Scottish secure tenancy model agreement - revised 2002

Model Scottish Secure Tenancy Agreement

Dear Colleague,

REVISED VERSION OF THE MODEL SCOTTISH SECURE TENANCY AGREEMENT

You will recall that in October 2001, I sent you a copy of the Model Scottish Secure Tenancy Agreement (SST Model)which was published by the Scottish Executive at that time together with Guidance from the Scottish Ministers on its use in accordance with section 23(3) of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001. This letter amends that Guidance. Since that Model was published, a draft Model Short Scottish Secure Tenancy Agreement (short SST Model) was published for consultation. During that consultation, the Scottish Executive received suggestions for further improvements to the short SST Model. The Scottish Executive intends to adopt some of those suggestions in the final version of the short SST Model which will be published shortly.

Given that the two Models are closely related, it is desirable that where they deal with the same issues, the text should be the same. Relevant improvements to the short SST Model have, therefore, now been incorporated in the first revised edition of the SST Model, a copy of which is attached for your information. The opportunity has also been taken to provide further assistance in the legal notes to the SST Model, through updating the legal notes in the light of the improvements to the Model and recent legal developments, and to make some minor presentational alterations. The structure of the SST Model, the Guidance and the vast majority of the content of the SST Model remain unchanged.

For ease of reference, those changes which result in the changes in the text (usually replacing the former text) are highlighted in grey. Many of those changes are purely formal and have no substantive effect. A few words have been deleted without having been replaced. These are indicated by a score-through.

One of the features of the Model is that the source of the legal obligation is indicated by the use of bold (where the source is housing legislation) and italics (where the source is common law) and both where the source is both common law and statute. The legal notes are clear about the source in all cases. That scheme was not however, in all cases, carried through to the text itself. The revised version correctly represents the source of the obligation. Where an alteration has been made, that is indicated by the use of a line against the affected text on the right hand side.

Optional clauses, i.e those which depend on local arrangements, are indicated in square brackets in the Model. Again, in the light of comments received on the short SST Model, certain clauses which were not previously shown as optional have now been made optional or have been added. These clauses are indicated by the marker in the text.

These changes are identified, in the few cases where they are relevant, in the Summary Model Scottish Secure Tenancy Agreement at part three of the attached document and are indicated using the methods described above. Changes and additions to the text of the legal notes are indicated by means of highlighting in grey.

Landlords who have already finalised their tenancy agreements following consultation with their tenants are not required to further amend that version to take into account the changes in the text noted above. They should however take these changes into account in any subsequent revision of their tenancy agreements. Landlords who have not yet finalised their version should incorporate the changes in the text noted above unless that is not reasonably practicable. The revised version of the Model Scottish Secure Tenancy Agreement will shortly be placed on the Scottish Executive website at http://www.scotland.gov.uk/library3/housingmsst-oo.asp

The Model Short Scottish Secure Tenancy Agreement will be published shortly and it too will be placed on the website.

If you have any questions on the revised model, do not hesitate to contact us, either by e mail or telephone. In the first instance, please contact Dawn Abell on 0131 244 7486 (e-mail dawn.abell@scotland.gsi.gov.uk ).

Yours faithfully

ARCHIE STODDART