Survey of Private Rented Sector Tenants in East Lothian
East Lothian Council is preparing a new Local Housing Strategy which will set out how East Lothian Council and partners will deliver housing and housing services in the area for the next 5 years (2023-28).
The private rented sector in East Lothian plays a very important role in meeting housing need. To ensure the Local Housing Strategy is based on up to date information on the private rented sector and the key issues facing private sector tenants, the Council has launched a research study about the operation of the private rented sector. The study will help the Council and partners to understand more about the type, condition and costs of private rented accommodation; as well as the needs of tenants who live in the sector.
As part of this research, a widespread survey of tenants who live in the private rented sector has been launched to gather information on the type, condition and costs of accommodation, as well as the quality of management services and suitability of homes to meet housing need.
The survey is being carried out by an independent research organisation, Research Resource. The survey is available online and will take no more than 10 minutes to complete. The online is now live and will be open for a period of 4 weeks.
For private tenants, this is a major opportunity to express views on the quality of the accommodation in the sector; and whether homes are suitable for the needs of local households. The research will also explore how satisfied tenants are their current home and whether they have aspirations to live in a different type of accommodation in the future.
Crucially, the survey aims to understand if private renting in East Lothian is affordable and if households on low to moderate incomes are struggling to meet their housing or energy costs. The outcomes of the survey will be used to inform the new East Local Housing Strategy, so that support, partnership and action to improve the operation of the private rented sector can be targeted.
All tenants living in private rented accommodation are urged to participate in this important research survey. All survey responses will be for research purposes only and it will not be possible to identify individual tenants from the responses. Research Resource are registered under the Data Protection Act and all responses will be completely confidential.
If private rented sector tenants have any questions regarding this research, please contact Research Resource on 0141 641 6410 or Rebecca Pringle at rpringle@eastlothian.gov.uk for further information.
Tenants can access the online survey via the following link or by scanning the following QR code: www.researchresource.co.uk/ELtenant.html
