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Scottish Government submission of 30 December 2021

PE1910/C - Amend the forthcoming legal requirement to have interlinked fire and smoke alarms in small houses

Following review of the above petition by the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee, further information has been requested. I have provided this below.

• Whether the Scottish Government will undertake a review of the uptake and effectiveness of financial support offered to individuals.

We recognise that some owners will have more difficulty, particularly with the option to fit alarms themselves.  This is why we have provided £0.5 million additional funding for Care and Repair Scotland to provide help installing alarms for older and disabled homeowners who live in council tax bands A-C and are in receipt of an income or disability related benefit as qualifying criteria. This was in addition to the £1million funding provided to SFRS for its Home Fire Safety Visit programme to owner occupied properties assessed to be at high risk from fire.

Scottish Government funding has enabled Care and Repair to provide free alarms, as well as offering households subsidised alarms which are provided at a discount by the manufacturer. This support will assist those who are least able to fit alarms for themselves. Care and Repair Scotland is providing regular returns to the Scottish Government on the use of the fund and the number of homes that receive free and subsidised alarms, by local authority area. The Scottish Government is reviewing these returns and maintaining engagement with Care and Repair Scotland to ensure that the fund is used effectively and to identify any gaps in support.

• What the Scottish Government is doing to ensure vulnerable homeowners are protected when arranging for new alarms to be fitted, including whether targeted advice has been issued on this issue and whether an approved traders’ scheme exists for this purpose.

We know that some people are concerned about scams. Our advice throughout has been that the best way to avoid scams is to use trusted sources of information, not to deal with cold callers and to be wary of any company that says their products or services have been endorsed by the Scottish Government. We have included messages on the type of alarms to purchase (including BS numbers) and the importance of using reputable and suitably qualified tradespeople including signposting to local government Trading Standards in our extensive media awareness campaign for the new standard, in leaflets distributed through local libraries and on the Scottish Government Fire Alarms website.