Housing association plans 500 new homes for Orkney

Orkney Islands Council says it needs 1,000 new homes to meet demand

Up to 500 new homes will be built in Orkney by an Edinburgh-based house builder over the next 10 years - the first time a national housing association has operated in the islands.

Places for People Scotland (PPS) has reached an agreement with Orkney Islands Council (OIC) to develop the properties.

The council said bringing in a national organisation was necessary in order to help meet house-building targets - with more than a 1,000 homes needed in the next decade to meet demand.

Frances Troup - head of housing with OIC - said that the local construction sector did not have the financial capacity to fully spend the money allocated to Orkney by the Scottish government for house building.

She added that Orkney firms would be able to tender for work from PPS, and that the association would be concentrating on building properties - including affordable homes - in the towns of Kirkwall and Stromness.

Gwenda Shearer, who chairs the council's housing committee, added: "Lack of available housing is without a doubt the biggest challenge facing Orkney."

She said the scale of the situation had required "decisive and bold action".

"Building new homes is such a critical element of retaining and attracting essential workers to support Orkney's communities and economy – including young people within our community who are looking to move out of their parents' home and to rent or to get on the housing ladder," she added.

She stressed they were committed to working with the local construction industry to help create jobs and boost the economy.