SSEN-T support available to bring empty homes back into use

Orkney Islands Council is working with Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks – Transmission (SSEN-T) to help bring local empty homes back into use. 

SSEN-T are seeking more empty properties on Mainland Orkney for use for management staff accommodation, with support from the Council’s Development and Empty Homes Officer.  

The scheme involves SSEN-T financially supporting long-term empty homes to be brought back into use, in exchange for a reduced rental to SSEN-T management staff working on the Orkney-Caithness Transmission Link Project, once the property is brought up to a habitable standard.

The scheme has already seen two empty homes successfully brought back into use, with more on the way.

SSEN-T are now looking to expand the reach of the scheme and to attract more owners of empty homes to participate.

 According to the National Records of Scotland, Orkney has the third highest level of vacant dwellings within Scotland with an estimated 6.3% of the housing stock lying empty.

Although it is the responsibility of homeowners to maintain their property and keep it in good order, the Council’s Development and Empty Homes Officer can provide information and advice to help bring empty homes back into use. 

What is SSEN-T looking for: 

• Homes on Mainland Orkney which have been empty for at least 6 months 

• Homes with 1-2 bedrooms 

• Homes which can be brought back into use no later than 1^st February 2026 

• Homes requiring no more than £25,000 of upfront investment to bring up to a rentable standard 

How the financial support works: 

• SSEN-T will provide upfront funding (up to £25,000) to help bring the property back to use 

• SSEN-T will recover that cost over time through a reduced rent 

• A commercial lease will be offered until Summer 2028 

• The rent will be all inclusive, and cover household bills 

If you own an eligible property and are interested in bringing it back into use, please contact the Council’s Development and Empty Homes Officer, Rachael Batty, at rachael.batty@orkney.gov.uk. 

In your email, please provide the address of your property, number of bedrooms, and expected renovation costs and timescales. 

Notes to editors 

Properties can become empty for many reasons. Owners may be struggling to finance renovations, legal issues might be halting people from using the property, or the owners may be facing difficulties with selling or renting their property. 

Whatever the reason for a property becoming empty, an empty home presents costs to both its owner and the community around it. The Scottish Empty Homes Partnership estimates that an empty property can cost its owner between £8,000 and £10,000 a year based on the cost of council tax, insurance, repairs and loss of rent. The local community can also face a lowering of house prices, an increase in anti-social behaviour and the closing of local amenities due to the shrinking population. 

More information is available at - Empty Homes