The Association, which has extensive areas of land throughout Argyll and Bute located and neighbouring its 5,100 properties, said the move will help deliver its strategic objective of maintaining and improving the neighbourhoods its tenants live in. 

For six months of the year the primary focus will be on grass cutting and plant maintenance during the growing season. The remaining six months of the year will see a focus on neighbourhood improvement involving a series of projects to modernise public areas in ACHA estates.

Commenting at the launch of the new team in Helensburgh, Alastair MacGregor, ACHA’s chief executive, said: “Feedback from recent Conferences indicate the Association’s tenants want to see a priority given to estate improvement and neighbourhood management. Bringing the service in-house will afford us a greater opportunity to do that through a number of planned initiatives to go along with routine grounds maintenance.”

In addition to the annual grounds maintenance budget of £363,000, there will be a specific five year programme of £300,000 per annum for five years to support environmental projects.