Scottish Mediation receives funding to deliver conflict resolution workshops for letting agents and landlords and mediation for neighbour disputes
- Funding will go to the 'Mediating Skills Workshop' project to improve relationships between letting agents, landlords and tenants
- and to the new Neighbour Mediation project
Scottish mediation has received a £28,763 funding award from the SafeDeposits Scotland Charitable Trust to:
- Deliver 10 workshops to improve relationships between agents, landlords and tenants in the private rented sector (PRS)
- Provide up to 20 mediations for neighbour disputes where at least one party is in the PRS.
Scottish Mediation has been delivering Mediating Skills workshops to letting agents and landlords with support from the SafeDeposits Scotland Charitable Trust since 2019. The workshops give participants the chance to learn about the causes of conflict and how it can escalate, as well as how to avoid situations where relationship breakdowns can lead to conflict with a view to avoiding costly and time-consuming disputes, tenancies ending prematurely, deposit disputes and cases being referred to the Housing and Property Chamber of the First-tier Tribunal. The workshops have been endorsed by the Scottish Government's Letting Agent Registration Team and count for three hours' worth of formal continuing professional development (CPD) for letting agents.
An online version was developed during COVID restrictions and this has proved so popular that future workshops are likely to be online although a face to face option is available. The workshops have been very successful and have been embedded as Module 5 of the LAS Letting Agent Compliance programme. Feedback from participants has been excellent. Some examples:
- Thank you, best online course I've been on!
- Really good workshop. Thank you very much for a useful and enjoyable session!
- Some really good tips on how to approach difficult situations.
- Fantastic course well delivered.
- Lots of different techniques to assist with what is a stressful part of the business.
- Really enjoyed the workshop. Learned some new skills and refreshed others.
- Important topic which will help in my daily working life.
The second part of the funding is to provide a new mediation service for neighbour disputes. These disputes can be extremely stressful and destructive and can lead to time-consuming complaints and loss of tenancies. The service will be administered by Scottish Mediation and provided by a panel of fully qualified accredited mediators from the Scottish Mediation Register. There is a gap in the existing services for providing accessible mediation for neighbour disputes and this will benefit not only the individuals but also their letting agents and landlords.
Scottish Mediation, which was founded in 1990, seeks to promote an understanding of mediation in dealing with conflict situations, both in terms of housing and other areas.
A grant-giving charity, the SafeDeposits Scotland Charitable Trust was established to help improve Scotland's PRS. It promotes and facilitates education, training and best practice within the sector by funding projects that provide tangible benefits to landlords, letting agents and tenants alike.
Graham Boyack, Director of Scottish Mediation, said: "Scottish Mediation is delighted to continue our excellent relationship with the SafeDeposits Scotland Charitable Trust and we are confident that the funding awarded will help build positive relationships in the private rented sector and avoid stressful, costly and time-consuming disputes."
John Duff, Chairman of the SafeDeposits Scotland Charitable Trust, said: "We are pleased to have awarded this latest grant to Scottish Mediation, who have continued to innovate and provide an expanding selection of mediation and training options for those living and working in Scotland's private rented sector. The work they do fits squarely with one of the Trust's aims, which is to advance conflict resolution between parties in the sector."
Content provided by Scottish Mediation.
