Latest news with #HousingEmergencyActionPlan
Glasgow Times
14-06-2025
- Business
- Glasgow Times
'Our homelessness services are under significant pressure'
We are aware that the number of people living in temporary homeless accommodation is at a record high, from reports provided by Glasgow's Health and Social Care Partnership. Currently, staff at the Health and Social Care Partnership are focusing on supporting people who are living in an emergency situation. At the moment, the demand for housing in Glasgow is much greater than the housing supply. There can be a delay of several years before people who are homeless can access a permanent house or flat. Homeless charities highlight that the cuts by the UK Department for Work and Pensions towards Personal Independence Payment and Universal Credit will lead to a further increase in homelessness. Decisions by the UK Government in the year ahead are likely to exacerbate our already stretched council services. The Scottish Government is mitigating the UK Government's Bedroom Tax. We know that this funding would be better spent tackling the housing crisis and the UK Government should scrap this tax. There is a Housing Transfer Incentive Scheme in Glasgow which can help release large housing association homes by encouraging people in 'under-occupied' properties with three rooms or more, to downsize. Tenants can access appropriately sized homes to meet their needs through specific housing support services. We can welcome the Scottish Parliament's Housing Inquiry by the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee which has published a series of recommendations to support further collaboration by the Scottish Government with housing providers to deliver a national overarching Housing Emergency Action Plan by the end of this session. We need the Scottish Government to provide clarity on whether its additional funding for the Affordable Housing Supply Programme budget will ensure that it meets its target of providing 110,000 affordable homes by 2030. It is vital that housing is a priority and that the Scottish Government considers the importance of increasing the Affordable Housing Supply Programme budget. There has been significant partnership working undertaken to respond to the housing crisis. We can welcome the number of housing associations providing lets to tenants who are homeless across Glasgow. The Scottish Government can explore the opportunities available by increasing social investment in housing. The capacity of housing associations could be developed to increase the number of homes, especially for families, in our local communities. There is a need to ensure clarity for housing providers on the intended statutory requirement for homes to meet net-zero standards. Uncertainty is deterring housing development and this needs to be addressed to help tackle the housing crisis. We can support the appointment of Màiri McAllan as Cabinet Secretary for Housing to ensure that there is increased focus on tackling the housing crisis and providing energy-efficient homes for the future. It is vital that the new Cabinet Secretary can use all the powers at her disposal to address the housing crisis we face.
The Herald Scotland
25-05-2025
- Politics
- The Herald Scotland
Scottish housing emergency one year on: 'There is no credible plan'
In the last 12 months, homelessness has risen. Social housebuilding has fallen. Our study with YouGov found 2.3 million adults struggling with the condition, security, suitability, or affordability of their home, or facing discrimination when trying to find one. Behind these statistics are families living in fear. Children growing up without space, safety, or dignity. All while John Swinney vows to end child poverty. But child poverty cannot be tackled without ending child homelessness. And the latest Programme for Government fails to offer either a plan or the investment to do so. It is now clear: there is no credible plan to deliver 110,000 homes and no serious effort to cut the number of households stuck in temporary accommodation. We need a Programme for Housing. What we got was a Programme for Homelessness. Read more on Scotland's Housing Emergency: Despite systemic failures in homelessness services across Scotland, there is no commitment to ramp up social housebuilding, no expanded budget, and no real investment in services to prevent more people falling into homelessness. Politicians are failing in their duty. They look away as wave after wave of families fall through the cracks. We know what it means for families to live in overcrowded, unsafe homes - to be unable to host a friend, to live in fear, to be isolated. We now have evidence of the profound harm this does to children's development and mental health, casting a shadow long into their future. We don't need more excuses. We need a Housing Emergency Action Plan - with clear, concrete targets, proper funding, and a genuine commitment to affordable, secure, permanent homes. Not a plan that shuffles people from one crisis to another. As the Scottish General Election approaches, every political party has a choice to make continue treating housing as a second-tier issue or rise to the challenge and put it where it belongs - at the centre of the agenda. Voters have power, too. We can demand more. We can ask the hard questions. We can refuse to accept that this is the best Scotland can do. Because everyone deserves more than just a roof over their head. Everyone deserves safety, stability, peace. It has been a year. If our politicians won't treat the housing emergency like the emergency it is, then we must. It is time to say: enough is enough. If those in power won't act, then it's up to all of us to speak out, stand up, and fight for the right to a home. Alison Watson is a director at Shelter Scotland.
