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.”
The City of Edinburgh Council and national homelessness charity Bethany Christian Trust are operating a Welcome Centre this winter.
The Centre is providing accommodation of last resort, tailored support and positive move on options for people who would otherwise be sleeping on the streets. Since opening in October, it has already supported and accommodated over 500 people and will continue to operate over Christmas until May 2023.
Founded by Bethany Christian Trust in partnership with the Council, and supported by the Scottish Government, the Welcome Centre was pioneered in 2020 in an emergency response to the outbreak of Covid-19, providing en-suite rooms as a deliberate move away from congregate shelter provision, and has since helped to establish a new model of tailored support for people rough sleeping.
The Welcome Centre takes an innovative and person-centred approach, providing 24 hour tailored support for individuals all in one place. Guests receive their own en-suite room and 3 meals a day, including a hot evening meal prepared by volunteers.
They are also able to work with dedicated staff and visiting professional services with support to access longer term accommodation as well as on site assistance with mental health, addiction, wellbeing, health needs and accessing benefits.
Councillor Jane Meagher, the Council’s Convener of Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work, said:“When temperatures drop to this extent it’s more important than ever that we do all that we can to support anyone who may be at risk.
“With Bethany we’re operating a Welcome Centre this winter to provide an additional 65 beds for people with wrap around support, and demand for this service this winter has already been high.
“We’re also offering street-based outreach seven days a week through our partners to anyone we see rough sleeping and this involves checking in with people three times a night, specialist pharmacy and mental health services available on street and supporting people directly into Rapid Access Accommodation.
“The rise in homelessness we’re witnessing in Edinburgh is deeply concerning and the Council has a campaign to spread awareness of the support which exists for people who are struggling financially. We need to prevent more people from becoming homeless as far as we possibly can.”
Commenting on the increase in demand for the service, Alasdair Bennett, Chief Executive at Bethany Christian Trust said: “The Welcome Centre provides emergency en-suite accommodation of last resort for anyone who would otherwise be sleeping rough in Edinburgh.
“We have accomodated over 500 different people with the majority staying less than seven nights as they are assisted to rapidly move on to more appropriate accommodation. The centre is a place of warm welcome, hospitality and intensive support, tailored to the individual and involving multiple health, housing and charitable partners to respond to individual needs.
“We are seeing an increase in the number of people attending and being referred for this crisis intervention, even prior to the colder weather coming in, and we are working with all partners to find alternative options when there are no available bed spaces at the Centre. With a focus on rapidly re-accommodating people, new bedrooms become available at a rate of about 50 each week, or 7 a day, in order to support individuals in crisis that night.
“Even when we are full we are able to provide food, warm clothing and access to support here at the Welcome Centre, so we encourage anyone who is at risk of rough sleeping that night to come and we will do all that we can to support them, including linking them up with partner agencies and local authority housing options.”
Relying on the financial support of the general public, local churches, trusts, businesses, the City of Edinburgh Council and the Scottish Government, the Welcome Centre shows what can be possible when the people of Edinburgh come together to create change.
With a large professional staff team, over 1,000 Bethany volunteers and more than 20 visiting partner services, the Welcome Centre saw remarkable success in 2021 – 2022 in helping people recover from the crisis of homelessness and move on to a more stable situation.
The service accommodated and supported over 860 individuals who had fallen into homelessness because of a wide range of circumstances as well as those rough sleeping, with 97% of known outcomes positive.
Bethany’s Buy a Bed campaign, which is vital in enabling the service, is also in place again this year and gift vouchers can be purchased in Bethany Shops and online:
Annual £5 fundraiser aims to provide over 100,000 meals and gifts for homeless people
As thousands of people face hardship this winter and the demands on charities to provide support increases, Scottish-based business, itison, launches the eighth year of its Social Bite campaign, asking big-hearted Scots to donate £5 at www.itison.com/donate to buy over 100,000 meals and gifts for homeless people this Christmas.
The cost-of-living-crisis, as well as continued impact of the pandemic, has meant this year has been one of the toughest on record for families and individuals, and the £5 fundraiser aims to ensure that the most vulnerable in our society can enjoy a hot meal and a gift this festive season, and meals throughout the year.
Running since 2014, the annual Christmas appeal has raised an incredible £3 million and 700,000 donations to those who need it most, and last year, despite the hardship felt by many following the pandemic, over 100,000 donations were made, with an impressive 63% coming from new contributors across the country, showing just how selfless Scots can be.
In addition to the 100,000 meals and gifts supplied through Social Bite, along with itison they will also be donating the first £20,000 raised to Spirit of Christmas which gives Christmas presents to children living in poverty in around Glasgow, where the business is based.
Oli Norman, CEO at itison said: “This year has been exceptionally tough and the most vulnerable in our society have been hit the hardest.
“More people than ever before are struggling, and Christmas for homeless people and families is an especially challenging time. Every year we are blown away by the generosity of our members, and this year, at a time when support is needed more than ever, our hope is to raise enough through our Social Bite campaign to feed homeless people for the entire year”.
Josh Littlejohn, Co-founder of Social Bite said:“Back in 2014 we started working with itison on our annual fundraiser, with a target of 800 Christmas dinners. We ended up receiving over 32,000 donations meaning we could feed homeless people coming to our cafes for the whole year.
“Our annual itison fundraiser continues to exceed our expectations every year and has dramatically shaped the work we can do at Social Bite.
“We couldn’t do it without you and would love you to join us in sharing kindness this Christmas, please share it with all your friends and help the people who need it the very most this year.”
In Scotland, Social Bite’s Glasgow, Edinburgh, and Aberdeen cafes will open their doors to the homeless on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day at 1100 – 1600 to serve Christmas dinners with all the trimmings, offering food and company at what is one of the loneliest times of the year for many.
As well as providing food to those in need and providing gifts, itison members’ donations have previously helped fund the Social Bite Village in Edinburgh, providing housing, support, and a huge range of services to break the cycle of homelessness.
Social Bite is currently working hard and fundraising to build two brand-new villages in two new Scottish cities, their ongoing aim is to continue supporting people experiencing homelessness into employment, and 1 in 4 of its team has a background of homelessness. Your donation is not only providing a meal or gift but also helping Social Bite to break the cycle of homelessness through systemic change.
To donate £5 to buy a Christmas dinner for a homeless person or give a Christmas gift for children, families and vulnerable individuals visit www.itison.com/donate (it makes a great Secret Santa gift or stocking filler too!)
“It is said that the mark of a civilised society is how we treat our most vulnerable citizens; what does this say about our society?“
Homeless Project Scotland are holding a peaceful protest outside the Glasgow City Chambers in George Square this morning at 10:00 am.
A spokesperson for the campaign group explained: “The aim of the peaceful protest is simply to demonstrate to elected members that Homeless Project Scotland’s call for a building will not be ignored. Our soup kitchens are now becoming a service operating 7 days per week and are attracting over 200 members on average.
“We have asked Council Leader Susan Aitken and Scotland’s First Minister to bring our most vulnerable and those experiencing homelessness in doors to have warmth, care, compassion and nourishment that is essential to us all to survive. The time for talking is over. It is now the time to cut the keys.
“We are hearing time after time from people on social media outlets that we are bringing people into the city centre, in actual fact it is the council.
“Since 2020 the council has had 4 Glasgow Hotels all located walking distance from our current unit under the Central Station Bridge and indeed, the removal of dinner from these accommodations is, among the cost of living and the COVID-19 pandemic, to a sharp incline. Poverty is now becoming the fastest spreading epidemic and we need action now.
“Our peaceful assembly is welcome for everyone to come and partake in and is potentially going to the circuit Scotland’s Streets.
“Homelessness is not invisible, these are people, it is ridiculous that in this day and age that people are pushed to choose heat or eat. There is a tenfold increase in the number of service users we are seeing and a tenfold increase in the number of street outreach clients.
“It is said that the mark of a civilised society is how we treat our most vulnerable citizens; what does this say about our society? “
There will be refreshments and a good old fashioned Scots Broth Soup for those in attendance.
