Keeping you wind and watertight

Edinburgh Council is keen to encourage flat owners to work together to keep their properties in good repair as we move towards winter.

And they are promoting a step-by-step toolkit which is produced by the Council’s Shared Repairs Service.

It offers private homeowners help and guidance when seeking to repair their properties.

In some cases, the service will be able to cover the ‘missing share’ to enable works to go ahead if an owner in a tenement property is unable or unwilling to get involved.

The toolkit provides helpful advice to anyone looking to fix a leaking roof, blocked guttering, a chimney, or stonework in need of repair.

Since the new service was launched it has enabled over £600k of work to be carried out privately in 46 tenement buildings.

It has also completed over £350k of repair works on behalf of owners in four tenements and the service has helped around 500 people so far.

Councillor Alasdair Rankin, Convener of the Finance and Resources Committee, said: “Storm Ophelia was a reminder to us all of the need to keep our property in good repair.

“The aim of the campaign is to help people take care of their own properties such as helping to set up stair meetings, explaining legislation and guiding towards trusted traders.”