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More than 450 Glasgow homeless refused hotel room in a month

More than 450 Glasgow homeless refused hotel room in a month

Glasgow Timesa day ago

Between April 1 and May 1, on 456 occasions, people were turned away when they said they needed somewhere to stay that night.
The council said it happens when there are no spaces available, and it is seeking extra resources to deal with the housing emergency.
READ NEXT:Glasgow's drug consumption centre is working says health secretary
Figures also show almost 100 people have been found rough sleeping this year.
The housing emergency has led to huge demand for homeless accommodation and the latest count saw 1972 people in hotels and B&Bs in the city.
Of those, 1417 were people with refugee status having been granted leave to remain in the UK.
There were 314 women also living in the hotels and B&Bs and 71 families.
The number of people who reported sleeping rough before they made their homelessness application in the first five months of the year was 433.
The Simon Community, which conducts counts of rough sleepers, said it found 97 people sleeping rough.
The Glasgow Times has been running the End the Homeless Hotel Shame campaign, highlighting the conditions people are subject in some of the 40 hotels used by the council.
The latest FOI revealed the hotel owners were paid £4.1m in the month of April alone.
The figures were revealed to the Scottish Tenants Organisation by Glasgow City Council under Freedom of Information.
READ NEXT:'Don't blame us': Taxis hit back in Glasgow city centre transport row
Sean Clerkin, campaign co-ordinator, said: 'The very high numbers of those sleeping rough on the streets of Glasgow is testament to the housing and homeless emergency that has engulfed the city of Glasgow.
"Even more alarming is the fact that Glasgow City Council has illegally refused accommodation to over 450 people in only four weeks recently is completely unacceptable.
'The rising costs of homelessness for the Council in paying over £4m to private hotel operators in one month recently if projected for 12 months will mean paying out nearly £50 million over the next year. This is also unacceptable.
'The Scottish Government has to give Glasgow City Council much more money to build tens of thousands of social rented homes to eradicate homelessness as the current budget for 2025/26 at just over £115 million is lower than the affordable housing budget for Glasgow in 2021/22.
'In addition, the British Government has to give Glasgow additional monies to properly house refugees in the city.
'We need action now not more words that mean nothing.
A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council said: 'We're duty bound to find and provide emergency accommodation to those affected by homelessness. Unfortunately, the increasing demand for homeless accommodation in Glasgow means there are times when we haven't been able to do so.
'This happens when there is no accommodation available despite operating in more than 40 hotels across the city to accommodate those who we have a confirmed duty for.
'There is no quick alternative. We are in continual dialogue with both Governments about these challenges and to seek the additional resources necessary to address the challenges we are facing.
'We continue to work with a range of partners to expand emergency accommodation that will provide an alternative to bed and breakfast type accommodation.'

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More than 450 Glasgow homeless refused hotel room in a month
More than 450 Glasgow homeless refused hotel room in a month

Glasgow Times

timea day ago

  • Glasgow Times

More than 450 Glasgow homeless refused hotel room in a month

Between April 1 and May 1, on 456 occasions, people were turned away when they said they needed somewhere to stay that night. The council said it happens when there are no spaces available, and it is seeking extra resources to deal with the housing emergency. READ NEXT:Glasgow's drug consumption centre is working says health secretary Figures also show almost 100 people have been found rough sleeping this year. The housing emergency has led to huge demand for homeless accommodation and the latest count saw 1972 people in hotels and B&Bs in the city. Of those, 1417 were people with refugee status having been granted leave to remain in the UK. There were 314 women also living in the hotels and B&Bs and 71 families. The number of people who reported sleeping rough before they made their homelessness application in the first five months of the year was 433. The Simon Community, which conducts counts of rough sleepers, said it found 97 people sleeping rough. The Glasgow Times has been running the End the Homeless Hotel Shame campaign, highlighting the conditions people are subject in some of the 40 hotels used by the council. The latest FOI revealed the hotel owners were paid £4.1m in the month of April alone. The figures were revealed to the Scottish Tenants Organisation by Glasgow City Council under Freedom of Information. READ NEXT:'Don't blame us': Taxis hit back in Glasgow city centre transport row Sean Clerkin, campaign co-ordinator, said: 'The very high numbers of those sleeping rough on the streets of Glasgow is testament to the housing and homeless emergency that has engulfed the city of Glasgow. "Even more alarming is the fact that Glasgow City Council has illegally refused accommodation to over 450 people in only four weeks recently is completely unacceptable. 'The rising costs of homelessness for the Council in paying over £4m to private hotel operators in one month recently if projected for 12 months will mean paying out nearly £50 million over the next year. This is also unacceptable. 'The Scottish Government has to give Glasgow City Council much more money to build tens of thousands of social rented homes to eradicate homelessness as the current budget for 2025/26 at just over £115 million is lower than the affordable housing budget for Glasgow in 2021/22. 'In addition, the British Government has to give Glasgow additional monies to properly house refugees in the city. 'We need action now not more words that mean nothing. A spokesperson for Glasgow City Council said: 'We're duty bound to find and provide emergency accommodation to those affected by homelessness. Unfortunately, the increasing demand for homeless accommodation in Glasgow means there are times when we haven't been able to do so. 'This happens when there is no accommodation available despite operating in more than 40 hotels across the city to accommodate those who we have a confirmed duty for. 'There is no quick alternative. We are in continual dialogue with both Governments about these challenges and to seek the additional resources necessary to address the challenges we are facing. 'We continue to work with a range of partners to expand emergency accommodation that will provide an alternative to bed and breakfast type accommodation.'

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