Shelter's approach towards transfer of housing from local authorities is pragmatic. Housing should be suitable, of good quality, secure and affordable. Who the landlord is should therefore be of secondary concern. The question of who should own and manage the houses should be judged by the quality of the service that tenants and wider society receive.

In particular, Shelter is concerned with the impact of transfer on future tenants and how transfer organisations will work with councils to meet housing need. In some cases, transfer will be the right option for an area, in some cases it will not.

What we know about transfer in operation in Scotland is dominated by the experience of three councils who may not give a balanced representation of what might happen elsewhere. The circumstances of every council are different, and each transfer arrangement will be unique. A further problem in assessing current experience is that in Scotland, unlike England, there is a lack of research to evaluate the performance of post transfer housing associations. In light of these problems, Shelter held a round table discussion of housing experts in order to identify the key issues relating to the impact of transfer on future tenants and homelessness services. The discussion informed the development of a set of criteria by which future stock transfers could be assessed. Each of the criteria is assessed through a series of questions that can be asked of stock transfer proposals. These questions are the most appropriate way of assessing how each stock transfer will impact on the main areas of concern for future tenants and homeless applicants.

The approach to assessing stock transfer on a case-by-case basis recognises that councils should have local discretion to plan transfer to suit local needs. What works for Edinburgh may not work for Western Isles. Some local authorities may retain management of temporary accommodation for example, but others may choose to lease back property from the transfer organisation. Whatever option is considered, our concern is that the service homeless people receive is the best possible one, and that the prospects for future tenants are as good, if not better, than if the housing continued to be managed by the local authority.

Shelter argues that future transfers should be considered carefully and proposals assessed on the basis of a number of criteria that go beyond the limited financial implications. The criteria are set out in this briefing and explained with a list of questions that should be applied to future stock transfer proposals. Stock transfer may be an important option for introducing investment into social housing, however, it should only go ahead if there are appropriate and sufficient measures in place to ensure that the interests of future tenants are secured and that the local authority can continue to deliver appropriate services and support for homeless people.