Housing (Scotland) Act 2006

Maintenance plans

43Maintenance plans

A maintenance plan must—

(a)specify the maintenance which requires to be carried out over the period during which the plan is to apply,

(b)specify—

(i)any steps to be taken for the purposes of carrying out that maintenance (including any steps to be taken where anything to be maintained under the plan requires to be repaired or replaced), and

(ii)when any such steps are to be taken, and

(c)set out an estimate of the costs likely to be incurred in implementing the plan.

44Maintenance plans for two or more houses

(1)A maintenance order may, where any premises consist of two or more houses, require the owners of those houses to prepare jointly a maintenance plan in relation to any part of the premises, including any part—

(a)which is owned in common by those owners, or

(b)which those owners are responsible for maintaining by virtue of a real burden or otherwise.

(2)A maintenance plan prepared in pursuance of a maintenance order which relates to two or more houses must, in addition to the provision required by section 43, apportion the liability of each joint owner in respect of the costs of implementing the plan in such manner as the owners of those houses think fit.

(3)Such a maintenance plan may also—

(a)apportion responsibility for maintaining the houses to which the plan relates in such manner as the owners of those houses think fit (or, where the plan is devised by a local authority, in such manner as it thinks fit),

(b)require those owners to appoint a person to manage its implementation,

(c)require those owners to open, and deposit sums into, a maintenance account,

(d)set out the arrangements for operating a maintenance account (including arrangements for authorising withdrawals from it and for winding up and closure).

45Maintenance plans for two or more houses: further provision

(1)A maintenance order which relates to two or more houses may require the maintenance plan to make provision for securing the maintenance of any part of the premises concerned which some but not all of the owners required to prepare the plan—

(a)own, or

(b)have a responsibility to maintain by virtue of a real burden or otherwise.

(2)But a maintenance plan prepared in pursuance of such a maintenance order may not—

(a)require the owner of any house to which the plan relates to do anything in relation to any part of the premises concerned which that owner does not own or have a responsibility to maintain by virtue of a real burden or otherwise, or

(b)despite section 44(2) and (3)(a), apportion responsibility for maintaining any part of the premises concerned or liability for the costs of such maintenance in a way which conflicts with—

(i)any real burdens encumbering the houses concerned,

(ii)the development management scheme in so far as it applies to those houses or any decision made under that scheme, or

(iii)the tenement management scheme in so far as it applies to those houses or any decision made under that scheme.

46Approval of maintenance plans

(1)The local authority may—

(a)approve a maintenance plan submitted to it, with or without modifications,

(b)reject a maintenance plan and—

(i)make another maintenance order requiring the preparation of another maintenance plan, or

(ii)substitute a maintenance plan of its own devising in its place, or

(c)where a maintenance plan is not submitted by the date specified in a maintenance order, devise a maintenance plan for the house concerned.

(2)The local authority may approve a maintenance plan only if it is satisfied—

(a)that the plan complies with section 43 and, if relevant, sections 44(2) and 45(2), and

(b)that implementation of the plan will secure the maintenance of the house concerned to a reasonable standard,

and the local authority must be satisfied that any maintenance plan it devises complies with those provisions and that implementation of it will have that effect.

(3)The local authority may not approve a maintenance plan which relates to three or more houses unless the owners of the majority of those houses have confirmed to the authority that they are content with the plan submitted for approval.

(4)The local authority must serve notice of its decision under subsection (1) in accordance with section 62.

(5)A copy of the plan approved (or, as the case may be, devised under paragraph (b)(ii) or (c) of subsection (1)) must be attached to that notice.

(6)The maintenance order to which a decision under subsection (1) relates ceases to have effect on the date on which notice of the decision is served on the owner of the house concerned.

47Variation and revocation of maintenance plans

(1)The local authority may vary a maintenance plan in such manner as it thinks fit—

(a)if satisfied at any time that there has been a change in circumstances which justifies such a variation, or

(b)before doing anything under section 49 in relation to the plan.

(2)The local authority may vary a maintenance plan on the application of an owner of any of the houses concerned or of its own accord.

(3)The local authority may revoke a maintenance plan if it is satisfied at any time—

(a)that implementation of the plan is no longer practicable, and

(b)that the plan cannot be varied so as to make implementation practicable.

(4)The local authority must serve notice of any variation or revocation in accordance with section 62.

(5)Where a maintenance plan is varied, a copy of the revised plan must be attached to that notice.

48Implementation of maintenance plans

(1)Where a maintenance plan is approved or devised under section 46, it is for the owner for the time being of the house concerned to secure the implementation of the plan during the period for which it has effect.

(2)The local authority may do anything it thinks fit for the purposes of enabling or assisting the owner of the house to implement the maintenance plan.

(3)Subsection (2) does not authorise the local authority to pay any sums—

(a)into a maintenance account otherwise than in accordance with section 50, or

(b)to the owner of the house to which the maintenance plan relates otherwise than by grant paid under section 51.

49Enforcement of maintenance plans

(1)Where the local authority considers that the owner of a house which is subject to a maintenance plan has failed to—

(a)secure the carrying out of any maintenance required by the maintenance plan, or

(b)do anything else required by the plan,

the local authority may itself do anything which it considers necessary or expedient for the purposes of securing the implementation of the plan.

(2)Subsection (1) does not authorise the local authority to pay any sums—

(a)into a maintenance account otherwise than in accordance with section 50, or

(b)to any owner of a house to which the maintenance plan relates other than by way of a grant paid under section 51.