Shelter Scotland staff and volunteers will take their campaign against the housing emergency to the streets of Edinburgh today to mark World Homeless Day.
Campaigners will be out in force at the foot of Leith Walk issuing a Housing SOS.
The charity will be highlighting the increasing number of people experiencing homelessness and asking the public to join in it in demanding urgent action to address the capital’s worsening housing emergency.
At 12:00 activists in Edinburgh will be joining campaigners in Aberdeen, Dundee and Glasgow in a “minute of noise”, letting our politicians know loud and clear that they need to act now.
World Homeless Day is marked each year on October 10th and unites activists working across the globe to end homelessness.
The latest figures released by the Scottish Government showed a 25% increase in the number of people who became homeless in Edinburgh in 2022/23, while more than 2,700 children in the city are stuck in temporary accommodation.
Shelter Scotland Director, Alison Watson, said: “Edinburgh’s housing emergency is getting worse; and across the country it is devastating lives so today we’re sending out a housing SOS.
“A household becomes homeless every 16 minutes on average, while 45 kids each day lose their home in Scotland.
“What’s so frustrating is that it doesn’t have to be like this, we know that by delivering social homes the government can end our housing emergency and give hope to the thousands of people across Scotland experiencing homelessness.
“That’s why this World Homeless Day, we’re out on the streets of Edinburgh not only demanding urgent action from those in power but urging the public to join our fight as well.
“At 12 o’clock we’ll join together to make a noise that politicians can’t ignore, to demand they make sure everyone in Edinburgh has somewhere to call home, and to remind them that none of us will be quiet until the job is done.”
Call comes as the charity struggles to find homes for all animal companions after record number of people look to put their pet up for fostering after being made homeless
Animal care charity Pet Fostering Service Scotland is calling for an end to restrictive housing policies after its service has seen a record number of people looking to put their pets up for fostering.
The charity has seen over 1,000 enquiries to use Pet Fostering Service Scotland’s aid this year, a rise in over 20% compared to last year, and is now unable to find a foster home for all pets of owners in need, which could result in pets not having a safe place to stay.
With pets often abandoned by the people they depend on for care and support, Pet Fostering Service Scotland helps those in emergency situations who are eager to keep their furry companions.
Due to a multitude of reasons, pet owners can experience serious disruption to their home lives, often resulting in the dilemma of how to survive whilst also keeping their beloved pet.
Pet Fostering Service Scotland is a charity which has been supporting pet owners for 40 years. Now, the charity is calling for a ban on restrictive housing policies.
Those who have been evicted and made homeless can often feel there is no option other than to abandon their pets. According to the charity implementing less restrictive housing policies could avoid situations like these taking place.
Often accommodation for those who have either been made homeless or require refuge has a no pet policy. There has also been a rise in pet owners looking for new accommodation that accepts pets, currently having to wait one year for suitable housing to become available.
As a result, Pet Fostering Service Scotland has had to put pets into fostering for a year or longer, which is detrimental to the animal’s health as it is too long a period. This can also be distressing for owners due to the loss of consistent and familiar companionship provided by pets.
The cost-of-living increase has had a significant impact on finding temporary accommodation for those who have been made homeless, as most housing options exclude the homing of pets.
Pet Fostering Service Scotland has processed over 1,000 enquiries for pet care across Scotland this year. 37% of those were from people in a homeless or re-housing situation and as a result could not care for their pets in the short term.
Bob Sinclair Chair at Pet Fostering Service Scotland said:“For those who have been made homeless or are facing an emergency situation, being housed alongside their beloved pet is so important.
“The significance of the companionship between a pet and owner is important for wellbeing for both sides. Changing restrictive housing policies and allowing pets into temporary accommodation could be life changing for these individuals and result in far fewer abandonment scenarios.”
The Pet Fostering Service is non-chargeable and relies solely on donations for the work they provide, and volunteers can apply to become pet fosterers.
Pet fostering gives volunteers the companionship of a pet without the long-term responsibility and can bring a sense of reward from helping those in need, both human and animal.
The charity currently has over 300 volunteers.
If you are interested in fostering a pet or want to hear more about the charity, please visit https://www.pfss.org.uk/
The Springboard programme is for young adults aged 16-25 who are currently either at risk of homelessness or accessing homelessness services across Edinburgh.
Participants will be able to gain qualifications in Emergency First Aid at Work as well as Elementary Food Hygiene. We will support the group with employability skills such as CV writing, Job Interview Skills and Job Applications.
We also run workshops focused on mental health and wellbeing as well as weekly social outings to encourage participants to form lasting friendships.
The programme also includes a 3-day Residential trip with the Scottish Outdoor Education Centre to allow the participants to try their hand at some adventurous outdoor activities like rock climbing, abseiling, archery and much more!
Bus fare can be covered by Four Square and lunch will be provided on each day of the course.
Edinburgh’s Family and Household Support Service has prevented at least 350 households from becoming homeless, a council report has revealed.
At a meeting of the Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Committee this week, councillors heard how the service is providing a citywide approach to ‘getting it right for everyone’ – with the aim of helping vulnerable residents before it’s too late.
Through referrals from sources such as teachers, housing officers and social workers to police officers and politicians, it has been possible to intervene early in many cases to help households in Edinburgh access the right advice and support.
Around £300,000 in welfare has been sourced to support families referred to the service, alongside advice on issues as varied as parenting, addiction, employment and health and wellbeing, according to the council report.
Working directly with teams which handle antisocial behaviour complaints and neighbourly disputes, the service is also working to prevent repeat instances of antisocial behaviour by working holistically with those involved to assess any support needs.
The Committee also heard how the service is successfully helping tenants sustain their tenancy once they move into a new home. Edinburgh’s ‘Keys and a Kit’ programme as it has been dubbed features sessions on finances, health and local community resources and activities to help new tenants settle in, which can be particularly important following a long period of homelessness.
By making the best use of limited resources by working collaboratively with charities and others, it is also estimated that this preventative approach has provided a saving to the council of close to £6m since 1 April 2022.
Councillor Jane Meagher, Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Convener, said: “Every day, our tenants are interacting with council services – be it for health care, school, or welfare. These services need to be joined up so that we can better support the whole life of a tenant and it’s great to see the difference this ‘getting it right for everyone’ approach is making.
“Thanks to early intervention from council workers and from our partners, we’ve prevented homelessness for hundreds of households. Families entitled to benefits have been helped and tenants moving into new homes have been supported.
“Plus an extra advantage of this has been £4.5m of costs associated with homelessness avoided in the last year alone, at a time when our finances are under immense pressure.
“I hope to see us build on this even further now that the Family and Household Support Service reports into the Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Committee.
“I’m confident that we’ll be able to draw this work together even more and build in other measures, such as noticing when a tenant’s home may be suffering from damp or is in need of an essential repair.”
10,000 children in temporary accommodation in Scotland
An annual update on Homelessness Statistics covering 2022-23 has been released by Scotland’s Chief Statistician.
Findings for that period show:
There were 39,006 applications for homelessness assistance – an increase of 3,247 (9%) compared with 2021-22, and higher than pre-pandemic (37,053 in 2019-20).
There were 32,242 households assessed as homeless or threatened with homelessness – an increase of 2,903 (10%) compared to 2021-22, also higher than pre-pandemic (31,618 in 2019-20).
There were 15,039 households in temporary accommodation at 31 March 2023 – a 6% increase compared with 14,214 at 31 March 2022. This compares to 11,807 at 31 March 2020.
The number of children in temporary accommodation has increased to 9,595 in March 2023 from 8,805 in March 2022 (9%). This compares to 7,355 at 31 March 2020.
Households becoming homeless from a private rented tenancy have been reacting to legislation changes. There was a low of 3,049 in 2020-21, following emergency COVID-19 legislation (11% of all homeless households). Since this was lifted in May 2021, numbers have been increasing, reaching 2,990 across the first six months of 2022-23 alone (19% of all homeless households). However, the cost of living legislation introduced in October 2022 to protect renters resulted in a drop to 2,200 for the second six months of 2022-23 (13% of all homeless households).
There has been an increase in rough sleeping, with 2,438 households reporting rough sleeping during the previous three months and 1,500 the night before the application. These remain lower than pre-pandemic and are the same proportions of all applications as the previous year (6% and 4% respectively).
Homelessness applications that closed in 2022-23 which used temporary accommodation spent 223 days in temporary accommodation on average. This increased from 214 days in 2021-22 and 175 days in 2017-18, when the time series started.
There were 445 instances of households not being offered temporary accommodation. This is a decrease of 38% compared to 2021-22. Almost all of these (420) were in Edinburgh.
83% of households assessed as unintentionally homeless secured settled accommodation in 2022-23, increasing from 82% in 2021-22.
The average length of time to close a homelessness case has been increasing over time and reached an average of 266 days in 2022-23. This compares to 262 days in 2021-22 and 226 in 2019-20.
Of the 32,242 homeless households: 62% of applicants were aged 25 to 49; 66% were single person households; 85% of applicants were of White ethnicity; and 51% of applicants had at least one support need.
There were 275 applications nationally which reported being from a Ukrainian displaced household, this accounts for 0.7% of the total.
Responding to yesterday’s release of homelessness figures for 2022-23 from the Scottish Government, showing a 10% increase in households experiencing homelessness in Scotland, Ewan Aitken, CEO of Edinburgh homelessness charity Cyrenians, said: “We are in the grip of a housing emergency in Scotland.
“That something so fundamental, something most of us take for granted – a safe and secure home – is out of reach and remaining out of reach for so many is an unconscionable reality made clear in today’s figures.
“Over 15,000 households, including children and families, refugees, those who have experienced trauma and abuse, and those with complex needs (over half of those assessed as homeless have additional support needs) are spending months and years in varying types of temporary housing solutions across Scotland.
“And those temporary solutions – some is housing of a standard we would not consider safe or secure – is stretched to breaking point, with the average time spent before moving on to stable housing now sitting at 223 days.
“As homelessness presentations continue to rise and the backlog in housing continues to build, we need to see urgent action from the Scottish Government and local authorities to end this crisis.
“That means substantial investment in social housing, land reform, and improving the supply of affordable homes which meet people’s basic needs. But housing alone isn’t enough – we need to address this as the public health crisis it is, and urgently invest in ways to tackle homelessness before it happens through early intervention, social support, community care, and ending poverty.
“The last child poverty figures, published back in March of this year, told us that nearly a quarter of children in Scotland are living in poverty. We now know how many children are homeless – nearly 10,000 living in temporary housing solutions. We can’t live with these figures.
“Homelessness happens because of poverty and huge health inequalities, creating lasting impacts that echo through people’s lives. That so many people are experiencing this is a tragedy – but it’s in our power as a nation to prevent.
“Every day charities like Cyrenians make a significant impact, but in order to stop these numbers continuing to rise, we have to see a collective commitment to sustainable prevention activity.
“In next week’s Programme for Government, the Scottish Government has the opportunity, by prioritising affordable housing, new and long term funded prevention duties, and social support, to turn the tide on this crisis.
“We hope these latest numbers force a commensurate response – we can’t turn our back on the human cost of the housing crisis.”
No more excuses: Edinburgh needs more social homes
Shelter Scotland reacts to latest homelessness stats
Leading housing and homelessness charity Shelter Scotland has slammed government inaction on the housing emergency following the publication of new homelessness figures.
Statistics released by the Scottish Government today show a shocking rise in child homelessness in Edinburgh and that families are facing long stays in temporary accommodation.
There was also a 28% increase in the number of Edinburgh’s households becoming homeless compared to the previous year.
Nearly 1,600 children became homeless in Scotland’s capital over the course of last year, a 16% increase, while more than 2,700 kids are trapped in temporary accommodation, a record high for the city.
The figures also show the council is struggling to meet its legal obligations, with homeless services busier than ever. People entitled to temporary housing are being turned away or being housed in grim conditions, unsuitable for their needs.
The charity said the figures were a direct result of decades of underfunding social homes and a consistent failure of governments to fix Scotland’s broken housing system.
Meanwhile, City of Edinburgh Council also came in for sharp criticism from the charity after it reduced its affordable housing delivery targets.
Assistant Director of Shelter Scotland, Gordon MacRae, said:“These horrifying new figures add to the pile of mounting evidence that Edinburgh is in the grip of an unprecedented housing emergency.
“While responsibility for the housing emergency ultimately lies with the Scottish Government, the City of Edinburgh Council’s decision to lower its affordable housing delivery targets demonstrates a startling lack of ambition and a worrying disdain for meaningful accountability.
“For decades social housing has been neglected and this is the result; thousands of kids in Edinburgh with nowhere to call home.
“It is utterly shameful.
“We have some truly fantastic housing rights on paper, but the fact is they’re being breached as a matter of course in Edinburgh and the capital’s homelessness service is on its knees.
“There is no mystery surrounding the solution to this emergency, no need for more summits or round tables to puzzle out an answer. Edinburgh needs more social housing, and we need it now.
“The First Minister has repeatedly said that his mission in government is to end poverty, child poverty especially, in Scotland. There can no hope whatsoever of achieving that aim unless he and his ministers commit to serious investment in delivering social homes.
“The 2,700 kids in Edinburgh who are having their childhoods robbed can’t wait a second longer for politicians to get their act together.”
@CllrChalmersSNP the @COSLA Community Wellbeing Spokesperson on yesterday’s Homelessness Statistics. “These statistics are about real people.”:
Dame Helen Mirren and Martin Compston are among those celebrating the book launched on Thursday 17th August
Leading social entrepreneur Josh Littlejohn MBE who has spearheaded initiatives that have raised over £25 million to help end homelessness, and can count George Clooney and Leonardo DiCaprio as supporters, has launched his first book, Paying It Forward: How to Be a Social Entrepreneur.
Paying It Forward, which is part memoir, part manifesto for social entrepreneurship, and part manual for putting purpose ahead of profit, has already gained praise from early readers including Sir Bob Geldof, novelist Irvine Welsh, film director Richard Curtis CBE, Olympian Sir Chris Hoy and actors Martin Compston and Dame Helen Mirren.
In the book labelled ‘an essential read for our times’ by Richard Curtis CBE, Josh gives practical advice and guidance to those looking to enter the world of social entrepreneurship and shares inspirational stories from homeless people he has met over the last decade.
Josh also shares his personal story, exploring the ups and downs of founding and growing Social Bite – from opening a string of cafés, to creating a village to house homeless people, and staging fundraising ‘sleep outs’ all over the world.
Celebrating the launch in Social Bite’s original café in Edinburgh, Josh Littlejohn said: “I’m thrilled to launch my first ever book, Paying it Forward, which tells my story and chronicles all of the ups and downs, trials and tribulations, and humour of life as a social entrepreneur.
“I hope it offers practical lessons to inspire anyone interested in using their own skills to make a difference in the world. Most importantly,
“I hope it shines a light on the remarkable people I have met over the years from homeless backgrounds who inspire me every day. It’s been a pleasure to work with the team at Heligo Books on Paying it Forward and I’m so excited for people to read the book.”
Josh began working on the homelessness issue when he co-founded a small café in Edinburgh in 2012 and a young homeless man named Peter Hart plucked up the courage to go in and ask for a job.
This chance moment inspired a social enterprise that now operates six cafes in Scotland and London, offering jobs and food to homeless and vulnerable people.
In 2018, Josh and his team launched the Social Bite Village, a purpose-built community providing homes which has so far helped to house almost 100 people. In 2019, Josh launched ‘The World’s Big Sleepout’, with events in over 52 cities around the globe, and 60,000 people sleeping out in the world’s largest ever display of solidarity for homeless and displaced people.
Josh has so far helped raise over £25 million for charitable and homelessness causes and received an MBE from the Queen. He has received a Pride of Britain Award, a Robert Burns Humanitarian Award, five honorary doctorates and he also been included in Debrett’s list of the most influential people in the UK.
Paying it Forward: How to be a Social Entrepreneur was published in hardback, audio and eBook on Thursday (17th August 2023).
A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this book will be donated to Social Bite to help combat homelessness.
A new report by the Scottish Housing Regulator highlights that some councils are finding it increasingly difficult to fully meet their statutory duties on homelessness, particularly providing temporary accommodation to people experiencing homelessness.
The report highlights that councils are making considerable efforts in very challenging circumstances to deliver effective services and some have had success in moving toward an approach with rapid rehousing at its centre.
The Regulator also found that there is an emerging risk of systemic failure in their homelessness services.
The report sets out three main strategic challenges facing councils in providing services to people experiencing homelessness: dealing with the number of people in temporary accommodation; maintaining an adequate supply of temporary accommodation; and ensuring homeless people have sufficient access to permanent housing.
John Jellema, Assistant Director Of Regulation, said: “Some councils are finding it increasingly difficult to meet these challenges, and so to fully meet their statutory duties. This includes difficulties in ensuring that people with particular equality characteristics – such as single women and children – have temporary accommodation options that meet their needs.
“There are actions councils can and should take to respond to these challenges, and there are other improvements to services they can make. All councils should continue best efforts to meet their statutory obligations.
“The Scottish Government has put in place a wide range of policy actions aimed at achieving the goal of ending homelessness in Scotland. Having said that, the Scottish Government may need to consider what further urgent measures it can take to support councils to respond to the immediate challenges they face in delivering services for people who are homeless.”
Shelter Scotland has responded to yesterday’s report by the Scottish Housing Regulator, outlining the emerging risk of systematic failure within local authority homelessness services, particularly in securing temporary and permanent accommodation.
The report supports Shelter Scotland’s continued messaging that Scotland is in a housing emergency, and that the supply of more social homes must be prioritised by the Scottish Government.
It shows that councils are making considerable efforts in very challenging circumstances to provide homelessness services, however, are finding it increasingly difficult to meet their statutory duties in the provision of temporary and permanent accommodation.
The report highlights three major strategic challenges councils are facing: dealing with the significant numbers of people currently in temporary accommodation; maintaining a sufficient supply of appropriate temporary accommodation; and ensuring access to the number of permanent homes that are needed.
The report calls on the Scottish Government to consider what further urgent measures it can take to support councils to respond to the challenges they face in delivering services for people who are homeless.
It also notes that some households do not always receive a service that meets their specific needs, further demonstrating that the system is broken and biased.
In its Scottish Housing Emergency Action Plan last year, Shelter Scotland outlined three key priorities as the most critical to tackle the housing emergency: buy and build 38,500 social homes by 2026, fully fund local authority homelessness services and guarantee the right to a permanent home for every household.
Shelter Scotland Director, Alison Watson, said: “The Scottish Government know how to fix homelessness and the wider housing emergency in Scotland.
“As indicated in this report, an adequate supply of permanent, affordable housing provided by councils and RSLs is vital in ending homelessness.
“Over the years they have been presented with endless evidence and testimony that investing in social housing ends homelessness, tackles child poverty and is crucial in fighting the housing emergency. Yet, they are choosing to look the other way as thousands of families continue to struggle.
“If ever there was a clearer message from the sector that the time to act is now, this is it. The Scottish Government must recognise that its choices to ignore the housing emergency will have devasting consequences for the fight against homelessness.”
“It is really unlike anything I’ve seen in recent years in terms of the numbers coming to us.”
HOMELESSNESS is rising rapidly amid the cost-of-living crisis a leading charity has warned.
Matt Downie, CEO of Crisis, told GB News more women and older people were finding themselves sleeping on the street.
Speaking to Alastair Stewart he said: “Homelessness is definitely on the rise. We did have some good years through the pandemic, where we actually saw numbers go down.
“But they’re going up again, this is the very sharp end of the cost-of-living crisis, as you can imagine, and a crisis hitting our services all year round.
“Over the winter period, and particularly Christmas, we open various centres, including hotels, and some of them are still running. We’re running them until the end of January this year. And one of the reasons for that is there’s so many people needing help.
“It is really unlike anything I’ve seen in recent years in terms of the numbers coming to us.
Commenting on the types of people contacting the charity Mr Downie continued: “There is a rise in the number of women, there’s a rise in the number of young people and a rise in the number of older people, it’s everything.
“What we’re seeing particularly are people who just cannot afford to pay their rent. The number of people who just come to us and say, actually I never thought homelessness would happen to me.
“They tell us their rent’s gone up or I simply can’t afford the 12 or 15% increase. We’re talking about people that, as I say, never thought they were anywhere near this ever happening to them. And that is happening to women and to various different groups.
Explaining how they help those in need he added: “The opposite of homelessness is a person reaching their potential is not simply having a roof over their head. So, what we do is make sure that people have a home, not just temporary accommodation, but that they also have the skills they need to really rebuild their lives, get jobs, and rebuild relationships.
“No-one needs to be defined by something awful that happened to them.”
Scottish Labour MSP Sarah Boyack has warned that children in Edinburgh may be forced to spend Christmas in temporary accommodation.
Across Scotland, the number of children staying in temporary accommodation has soared to a shameful record high of 8,635.
This includes 2,265 children in Edinburgh – an increase of 20 per cent on the previous year and an appalling increase of 930 per cent since 2002.
Overall the length of time people have to spend in temporary accommodation has also been climbing year-on-year across Scotland, with families being hit hardest by long waits.
In Edinburgh couples with children are now typically stuck in temporary accommodation for an average of 725 days.
Scottish Labour MSP Sarah Boyack said: “It is nothing short of a national scandal that 2,265 children in Edinburgh could be spending Christmas in temporary accommodation.
“Things are at crisis point across Scotland, after years of neglect under the SNP.
“Leaving children stranded in limbo for so long will have a devastating effect on their wellbeing, attainment and life chances.
“The SNP need to act urgently to fix this shameful dereliction of duty and make sure families in Edinburgh have the safe, secure housing they need. It is appalling that children can be stuck in temporary accommodation for nearly two years.” ENDS
Notes
Local Authority
Number of children in temporary accommodation
Average Days Spent in Temporary Accommodation in 2022 – Couple with Children
Two Edinburgh care homes have helped spread some Christmas cheer with a special charity donation.
The residents and staff of Letham Park and Mathieson House residential care homes on Ferry Road Edinburgh, operated by Renaissance Care, held a festive raffle to raise £350 for local homeless people as their way of giving back to the local community.
The money will be donated to Social Bite’s Festival of Kindness campaign, which uses funds raised to offer support to homeless people, such as accommodation for the night or a hot Christmas meal.
Up for grabs in the raffle was a Christmas hamper filled with specially designed glassware, coffee cups and special festive crafts, which were all handmade by Kevin Dignall, Deputy Manager at Mathieson Care Home.
Kevin said: “I had made things like that before for staff or families at the home and I just wanted to make a nice hamper for Christmas to raffle off as a prize.
“The residents are always keen to stay connected to their local community and it’s a tough enough time for lots of people at this time of year, so everyone felt it was only fitting to try to help some of the most vulnerable people in the community.
“It was all great fun, and we drew the raffle on the same day as our Christmas fayre, so we had music going, singing and Santa made an appearance as well.”
Social Bite Executive Director Founder, Josh Littlejohn MBE, said: “We’re very thankful to the residents at Renaissance Care for their donation to our Festival of Kindness.
“Acts of kindness like this are needed more so now than ever before and make a huge difference to those who need it most.
“The money they’ve raised through the various raffle events will go towards ensuring vulnerable people have delicious food, gifts and company this festive period.”
