Council looks to hire ’empty homes’ officer to help tackle housing crisis

Shetland Islands Council is searching for a full-time officer to analyse how many homes are currently left empty across the isles, and develop a strategy for how they might be coaxed back into use.

A graduate officer is currently preparing a report on empty homes in Shetland, which is expected before councillors by September.

That role could soon be bolstered by a dedicated empty homes officer, director of development Neil Grant told a meeting of the council’s development committee this morning (Wednesday).

Shetland has three times the number of long-term empty homes compared to the mainland average, according to 2023 figures published by the national records of Scotland.

The majority of these — roughly 150 — are in Lerwick, though the northern and eastern isles have the highest proportion of empty homes.

Shetland is one of only four Scottish councils which has neither an empty homes officer nor empty homes service — along with Moray, Midlothian and Clackmannanshire.

In other council areas, empty homes officer have worked by surveying owners to understand why their homes are empty. In severe cases some councils have enforced compulsory purchase orders to put long-standing empty homes back on the market.