Community Services Business Improvement Plan 2026-2029

Community Services has corporate responsibility for the delivery of both strategic and operational services, including delivery of the Council’s statutory duties across a number of functional areas.

The work is delivered by three service areas within the strategic grouping:

Community Protection

• Environmental Health
• Trading Standards
• Community Safety.

Community Planning and Partnerships

• Community Planning
• Resettlement
• Public Health and Vaccination Coordination.

Housing

• Housing Estate and Operations
• Homelessness and Prevention.

Community Protection Service

Service is actively engaged in a Co-Production arrangement with Police Scotland, with teams working innovatively together to deliver targeted joint services across the local communities of East Dunbartonshire and enhance community protection.
Delivery of work on the core community protection activities and priorities that the service is responsible for takes place on a planned and on-going basis. The service is committed to the further development of this work throughout the course of 2026-27, whilst also placing focus on any areas of additional regulatory activity that it can deliver to assist our local communities such as any new or evolving local public health or community protection needs and in dealing with the effects of the cost of living crisis.
 
The Service is comprised of three teams, all of which have a distinct remit in terms of delivering statutory community protection duties for the Council across the local area, with the primary overall objectives being to promote public health, public safety, wellbeing and consumer protection:

• The Environmental Health Team enforce a wide range of statutory duties in relation to food safety, public health in terms of nuisances and communicable diseases, occupational health and safety, noise pollution, air quality and contaminated land. This essential public health service is provided through the delivery of planned interventions to local businesses, reactive responses to public health complaints and assessment of environmental conditions within the district. Services are delivered to protect the community from hazards in the environment and to regulate and facilitate the growth of responsible businesses
• The Trading Standards Team enforces a wide range of consumer protection and licensing legislation and provides advice services to local consumers and businesses to maintain fair trading in East Dunbartonshire. The Team delivers risk based, targeted, and intelligence led programmes of enforcement work, with priority given to activities closely aligned to local outcomes under the LOIP
• The Community Safety Team delivers a wide range of critical work across the local area, including services in relation to antisocial behaviour, low level crime and community safety, decriminalised parking enforcement, control of dogs, fly-tipping, domestic noise issues and the pest control function. The team works closely with range of colleagues and key partners to deliver enforcement activity, as well as providing early intervention, prevention and diversionary activities.

Community Planning & Partnerships Service

The Community Planning & Partnership Service works with a wide range of partners across East Dunbartonshire to improve outcomes for local people and reduce inequality. They focus on turning shared priorities into coordinated action through the Local Outcomes Improvement Plan (LOIP), Locality Plans, VAWG Strategy and community planning activity that reflects local need and national priorities.

A key part of our role is supporting effective partnership working, strengthening governance arrangements, and ensuring resources are targeted where they will have the greatest impact. We also support communities to build capacity, take part in decision-making, and access opportunities that improve wellbeing. This includes funding support, engagement activity, delivering the Strategic Partnership Agreement and administering the community grant scheme.
 
Across all areas of work, we support delivery of key policy priorities including Community Learning and Development, Child Poverty, Humanitarian, Equality and Community Empowerment. We also support partners to evidence impact and improve how outcomes are measured.

The Community Planning & Partnership Team

The Community Planning & Partnership Team supports joined up working across public, third and community sectors to deliver local priorities. This includes coordinating and monitoring delivery of the LOIP and Locality Plans, supporting neighbourhood-based approaches, and helping services be responsive to community need.

The team promotes inclusion and participation, helping communities build confidence, strengthen capacity and influence local decisions. This includes advice, engagement support, training and management of community funding programmes.

Public Health and Vaccination

The Public Health and Vaccination function works in partnership with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and Council services to support the delivery of vaccination programmes and wider public health priorities. This includes supporting accessible, responsive delivery of seasonal vaccination programmes and contributing to local health protection activity.

The Resettlement Team

The Resettlement Team supports individuals and families arriving in East Dunbartonshire through UK and Scottish Government resettlement and asylum programmes. The team provides person-centred casework support to help people settle, integrate and build independent lives in their new communities.

Working in partnership with local services and community organisations, the team helps strengthen community connections, improve access to support, and ensure people are treated with dignity and respect. The work is grounded in statutory duties and human rights principles, supporting positive long-term integration and inclusion.

Over the life of this Business Improvement Plan, the service will continue to strengthen partnership governance, improve performance monitoring and impact measurement, enhance community engagement and participation, and ensure that strategic priorities are delivered effectively to support inclusive, resilient and thriving communities.

Housing Service

The Housing Service provides a broad range of services aimed at improving outcomes for residents and communities within East Dunbartonshire. A number of stakeholders are involved in the design and delivery of services, including tenants and residents, Registered Social Landlords, other Council departments and the Scottish Government.

The Local Housing Strategy provides the strategic direction, together with policies and plans to enable the Council and its partners to invest in the delivery of high-quality affordable housing and housing related services, across all housing tenures, to meet identified need within the locality. The Service is separated from Housing Performance and Strategy, and from Rent, and the two broad teams below are key parts of Community Services.

The Housing Operations and Estates Teams work across all areas of East Dunbartonshire, delivering effective housing estate management, anti-social behaviour, neighbour nuisance and tenancy dispute services. The Service works in partnership with other agencies, to ensure that tenants and customers live in well-maintained neighbourhoods, where they feel safe.

The Service works with others to ensure that people looking for housing, get information that helps them make informed choices and decisions, about the range of housing options available to them. The Housing team are committed to ensuring continuous improvement in the housing service, through the achievement of performance standards and business/improvement planning.

The Service works closely with all Community Planning Partners and contributes to the Council’s corporate objectives set out within the Local Outcomes Improvement Plan 2017-2027 by:

• Providing an efficient and effective Housing Management service, working in partnership with other agencies to ensure that tenants and other customers live in well maintained neighbourhoods where they feel safe
• Increasing the supply of affordable housing and meeting housing needs by implementing the Local Housing Strategy and Strategic Housing Investment Plan, working in partnership with The Scottish Government to maximise grant funded income to the council and registered social landlords
• Meeting the requirements set out in the Scottish Social Housing Charter and ensuring continuous improvement in the delivery of the housing service
• Preventing and alleviating homelessness to ensure that homeless people get prompt and easy access to housing options, help and advice; are provided with suitable, good quality temporary or emergency accommodation when this is needed; and are offered continuing support to help them resettle into permanent accommodation
• Improving housing quality in both the public and private sector, by investing in and delivering effective maintenance programmes to take account of housing quality and home safety needs; along with implementing the Council’s Scheme of Assistance to ensure improvement in the quality of private sector housing.

The Homelessness & Prevention Team provides services to people who are experiencing homelessness, or, who are threatened with homelessness. They are committed to ensuring that customers receive a high quality and responsive service. The service works to ensure that homeless people, who can often be vulnerable or have complex needs, get prompt and easy access to housing options, as well as help and advice; are provided with suitable, good quality temporary or emergency accommodation when this is needed; and are offered continuing support, including housing support, to help them resettle into permanent accommodation. The team is responsible for overseeing the prevention/housing options agenda.

This Team is also responsible for the management and monitoring of Landlord Registration, Houses of Multiple Occupation, Short-term let Licences and mortgage to rent applications.

The key strategic priorities for Community Services can be summarised as follows:

• Delivery of statutory responsibilities by Environmental Health and Trading Standards to improve and protect public health and consumer protection, in line with local and national priorities
• Revisions to the regulatory frameworks for Environmental Health and Trading Standards, including effective responses to any changes / impacts that result from matters such national reviews, changes to working models, legislative changes and workforce planning pressures
• Contributing to the creation of safer communities across East Dunbartonshire through effective deployment of frontline resources and delivery of intelligence led activity to tackle a wide range of community safety issues
• Delivery of activity across the East Dunbartonshire area in relation to the growing agenda of Decriminalised Parking Enforcement, with continued emphasis on the development of enforcement work relating to the recently introduced requirements on pavement, dropped kerb and double parking
• Development of partnership working and jointly resourced activities such as Co-Production with Police Scotland to deliver effective targeted services and to maximise efficiencies where possible
• Support revision and delivery of the LOIP and ensure Locality Plans are on track, supporting community planning partners responds to what people and communities actually need and improves outcomes locally
• Make sure key laws and policies (including CLD, Child Poverty, Equality and Community Empowerment) are built into everyday practice and turned into real action with partners
• Put equality, inclusion and participation at the heart of everything we do, so all communities are heard and reflected in decisions and services
• Strengthen neighbourhood-based working, helping communities have a stronger voice and more influence in shaping local priorities and services
• Support people and families arriving through resettlement and asylum programmes to settle well, build independence and feel part of their new communities
• Work with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and partners to deliver local public health and vaccination programmes that are accessible and protect those most at risk
• Improve how we measure, monitor and govern partnership work so we can clearly show impact, deliver value and reduce inequalities across East Dunbartonshire
• Providing an efficient and effective Housing Management Service, supporting tenants through engagement and mitigating the impact of welfare reform, cost of living and current social circumstances
• Working across teams, with colleagues and partners, meeting the housing duties placed on the Council and the needs of those in the communities by increasing the supply of affordable housing and continuous improvement in housing service delivery
• Preventing and alleviating homelessness while also providing a Housing Options Service. Progressing the Scottish Government’s Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan through reducing homelessness along with minimising the length of time households spend on our homelessness waiting list and living in temporary accommodation
• Preventing and alleviating homelessness to ensure that homeless people get prompt and easy access to housing options, help and advice; are provided with suitable, good quality temporary or emergency accommodation when this is needed; and are offered continuing support to help them resettle into permanent accommodation
• Improving the quality of housing conditions, both in the public and private sector. Ensuring required standards in terms of Houses in Multiple Occupation, Landlord Registration and Short Terms Lets. Regular liaison with Registered Social Landlords and with Private Sector Landlords.

The Community Planning and Partnership Team within the wider Community Service supports both the Council’s and the Community Planning Partnership Board’s strategic direction in relation to the delivery of all of the 6 local outcomes contained within the LOIP.
The Service also leads in the effective development of the East Dunbartonshire Community Planning and Partnerships framework and support the strategy and delivery work of all of the local outcome delivery groups.

Further, the team led the development of the revised Locality Plans (Place Plans) for our most deprived communities, namely Hillhead and Harestanes, Auchinairn, Lennoxtown, and Twechar and these will provide progress and monitoring reports late 2025.
Work will now take place collaboratively alongside colleagues from other council services and community planning partners to review, refresh and update East Dunbartonshire Local Outcomes Improvement Plan, with a whole systems approach, and the focus on deprivation and inequality, reflecting council priorities.

Economic Growth and Recovery

The Community Protection Service contributes to this priority through the provision of regulatory services that are designed to facilitate the growth of responsible businesses and maintain / protect a fair-trading environment in East Dunbartonshire. Economic growth and recovery are also supported by Community Protection through the delivery of effective community safety services across our town centres and local communities

Housing contributes to economic development in East Dunbartonshire through town centre plans, regeneration projects and delivery of an affordable housing programme.

Employment and Skills

Community Protection contributes to this priority through the provision of advice and education services relevant to its functions, and through the delivery of community learning and development activity in conjunction with a range of partners.

The Community Planning Partnership Team supports personal development by helping people access simple, joined-up opportunities that build confidence and everyday skills. Further, the team play a key role in supporting the quality assurance and delivery of the Community Learning and Development Plan 2025-27.

The team works collaboratively with partners supporting the CLD strategic partnership ensuring planning, delivery, monitoring and evaluation are aligned with local priorities and national expectations. It also leads and coordinates the community development strand of CLD within priority communities, and communities of interest, helping to strengthen community capacity, promote participation and support positive outcomes for local people

Housing support services can facilitate access to education or training pathways for all age groups encouraging engagement with partners in the Third sector. 

Delivering for Children and Young People    

Community Protection contributes to this priority through the provision of early and effective intervention services and youth diversionary activities, and through the delivery of educational activities such as the Junior Warden programme and air quality action planning work in our schools.

The Community Planning Partnership Team also focuses on children, young people and families through the CLD Strategic Partnership. This includes supporting the Child Poverty Action Plan, the Pockets, Places and Prosperity programme, and initiatives like Wellness Kitchens that give families practical help, confidence and support in their communities.

Project 101 delivers a youth housing information service, holding workshops and classes to better equip young people in East Dunbartonshire live healthy and safer lives. Targeted, intelligence led enforcement of age restricted products reduces the exposure to and accessibility of harmful products to children and young people.

Adult Health and Wellbeing

Environmental Health delivers a range of public health work across the Council area, and the Team participates actively in the ED Adult Health and Wellbeing Group as well as leading on the subgroup that is based around the Environment theme. The Trading Standards Team has a range of responsibilities in relation tobacco enforcement and control and liaises with partners to ensure that effective prevention, cessation and control measures are delivered.

Officers from Community Protection are also engaged in and support the work of the ED Alcohol and Drugs Partnership and the Substance Use Prevention Group.

Health and wellbeing is supported through the Community Planning Partnership Teams community-based work such as Wellness Kitchens and by bringing partners together to respond to local health needs. This helps people get the right support earlier and feel more connected and supported in their communities

Housing can deliver support services to residents that aims to help them achieve good mental health and wellbeing, to combat addictions, tackle obesity and to avoid loneliness by increasing community engagement. This links directly to community planning and delivery of quality built and natural environment. 

Safer and Stronger Communities    

The Community Protection Service contributes to this priority through delivery of a leading role in the work of the ED community safety partners, co-ordinating activity to facilitate the delivery of effective and efficient local services and joint work under the theme. The Service participates in each of the local outcome delivery groups for the priority, contributing also to the work of the local Violence Against Women Partnership and the work of the local Community Justice Partnership.

In addition, the Community Protection Service is actively engaged in a local Co-Production arrangement with Police Scotland. Regular tasking meetings are held in conjunction with police colleagues to prioritise and coordinate activity, with targeted joint work being delivered to protect communities across the East Dunbartonshire area.

rom a single agency perspective, the day-to-day work of the three Community Protection Teams (Community Safety, Trading Standards and Licensing, and Environmental Health) is targeted heavily towards this theme and to the development of safer and stronger communities within East Dunbartonshire.

The Community Planning Partnership Team helps build safer communities by working with the Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) partnership. This includes supporting awareness activity such as International Women’s Day, helping deliver the VAWG Strategy and 16 Days of Activism.

The Housing service contributes to making East Dunbartonshire a safe place to live and work through policies that tackle anti-social behaviour, by delivering a community safety strategy and through a protocol with HMP Low Moss.

Older Adults, Vulnerable People and Carers

Trading Standards have a role to play in terms of delivering effective services in relation to bogus caller, rogue trader and scams issues. Such services are delivered in conjunction with  a range of partners, most notably the Police and colleagues within the Adult Protection Services of the HSCP.

The Community Safety Team also deliver a broad range of work that has impact in terms of this local outcome – helping to protect the most vulnerable within our communities through delivery of effective anti-social behaviour services and activity in relation to neighbour disputes. Liaison with Police Scotland colleagues through Co-Production activity, along with Adult Protection Services and other Council services, is key in this area.

The Community Planning Partnership Service supports older people, vulnerable adults and carers through targeted work in our most deprived communities. This helps reduce isolation, improve access to support and strengthen community connections, including awareness activity around brain health and wellbeing. It also includes delivery of a person-centred holistic integration support, empowering individuals settling in EDC to be self-agent.

Housing contributes to the quality of life of our older population who are supported to live independent lives in their own home or in a homely setting, as long as practicable, assisted by an aids and adaptions service delivered by housing through a Care and Repair service. Housing Estates and Homelessness also support tenants and persons of all ages, for example sheltered housing. 

Climate Change Mitigation

The Community Protection Service contributes to this priority through the provision of services in relation to environmental protection (e.g., the delivery of statutory duties in relation to air quality, pollution control and contaminated land by Environmental Health). The Service also gives due consideration to this priority as part of any policy and strategy work that it is engaged in, thus developing a Community Protection policy base into which the cross-cutting climate change theme is integrated.

The Community Planning Partnership Team supports climate action by working with community groups to encourage more sustainable projects. It helps groups consider environmental impact through community development support and by including sustainability in community grant decisions.

Cost of Living Support

The Community Protection Service contributes to this priority through the delivery of regulatory services that are designed to assist with economic recovery and support local businesses and communities with the cost-of-living crisis. 
 
A key focus of Community Services is poverty and inequality and the Community Planning Team build this into all aspects of activity and promote across the council and with partners. Working closely with Revenue and Benefits, welfare rights, CAB, EDVA and a range of other partners. 

Child Poverty is a key strand of Scottish Government and council focus. Housing Officers as part of a core duty will signpost to support including cost of living and financial / welfare matters to support tenants and the homeless. 

To read our priority performance indicators, view our Community Services BIP tables document.

We recognise that we have a role to play in responding to the global climate and ecological emergency, and improving well-being and we will do so via the activities described in the Sustainability section of the Community Services Business & Improvement Plan tables document.

View information on Risk Management in the Community Services Business & Improvement Plan tables document.

To read the Consultation and Engagement Action Plan for all services, visit the Consultation and Engagement Action Plan 2026/27.