I was privileged to have been elected at the first Full Council of the new session as Chair of Social Work and Housing. My vice chair will be Cllr Alisan Norrie who has experience and an excellent track record on social work and housing matters. I am delighted to be working with her as part of the team on Social Work and Housing Committee whose first meeting is 14th June.

There is no doubt about the challenges which will be faced by the Social Work and Housing service.  The backdrop is a very tough economic climate with the local government grant settlement being reduced signficantly over the next 3-5 years. The demographic changes and how we adapt and care for a rapidly rising population of elderly people is also a big challenge.

Here in Aberdeenshire we anticipate a growth in the number of older people which is higher than any other part of Scotland. By 2020 the number of people over 85 years in the Shire is expected to rise by 75%. It is also estimated that by 2020 the number of people over 85 with a diagnosis of dementia will rise by 62.5% and almost double by 2024. During this time we also expect a drop in the number of informal carers available to older relatives. This will have an adverse impact on future demand for care and housing and there is an urgent need for a national debate on what is sustainable and how such costs in the long-term can be funded. 

Another challenge is the increasing number of children at risk of harm or neglect.  This is in line with areas across Scotland and is largely attributable to the rising incidence of parental drug and alcohol misuse. Keeping our children safe and protected is a number one priority.

In Housing we are investing more to tackle homelessness and to be more proactive and use more preventative techniques to help people before they get into a desperate spiral. We are building new council houses and looking forward to the imminent opening of new build housing on sites in Banff and Inverurie. 

Stepping up our programme to provide more affordable homes is vitally important as is trying to look at ways of reflecting local peoples’ needs when it comes to housing allocation policy. 

Fuel poverty is another major issue for Aberdeenshire and this is one of the service’s key objectives. 

Overall I am very keen as Chair of Social Work and Housing to ensure that the voices of our people are heard and their needs listened to. We have some amazing citizens who do so much in our communities and the voluntary sector should always be part of our thinking in providing services.

My guiding principle will be that a service should be shaped around the person receiving it rather than the organisation providing it.