Tag: Scottish Housing Regulator

Shelter Scotland calls for “immediate intervention” against City of Edinburgh Council after vote to strip homeless households of human rights

“Elected and unelected members have shown themselves to be incapable of following the rule of law“

  • Charity says it has “lost confidence” that the City of Edinburgh Council will uphold the rule of law and calls on Scottish Ministers and the Scottish Housing Regulator to intervene immediately – the first time the charity has called for special measures to be taken against a local authority
  • City Council acting unlawfully in use of unlicensed HMO accommodation to house some homeless households
  • City’s elected and unelected members voted in favour of suspending lifeline housing rights until March 2028, breaching housing laws they are charged with upholding
  • If the Scottish Government and SHR decide to intervene, it will be the first time that they have exercised the powers afforded to them to protect the housing rights of people experiencing homelessness

Scotland’s leading housing and homelessness charity has today (12 December) called on Scottish Ministers and the Scottish Housing Regulator to intervene against City of Edinburgh Council after the local authority voted in favour of stripping homeless households of their basic rights.

At a meeting of the city’s Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Committee, councillors voted six to five in favour of proposals to strip people experiencing homelessness of their right to adequate housing through the provision of suitable temporary and permanent housing.

The vote follows confirmed cases of homeless households being placed in unlicensed HMO (Houses in Multiple Occupancy) properties as temporary accommodation – a criminal offence. (2)

In a letter to Scottish Ministers and the Scottish Housing Regulator (3), the charity’s director Alison Watson warned that the Council’s plans are a concerted effort to undermine Scotland’s housing and homelessness rights system and that sanctions must be taken.

She states that: “We cannot stand by and watch efforts to strip people of their housing rights without putting up a fight on behalf of the most disenfranchised people in our communities. Law breaking on this scale cannot be normalised.”

The call comes following the Scottish Government’s reversal of cuts to the affordable homes budget last week after pressure from housing campaigners.

Alison Watson, director of Shelter Scotland said: “It should outrage everyone in Scotland that officers and elected members within a local authority have unilaterally decided to strip people in the capital of a fundamental human right.

“Edinburgh’s homelessness crisis is partly of the Council’s own making, but instead of showing compassion and seeking to help some of the most disenfranchised people in our society, they have chosen instead to punish them in this inhumane way by taking away hard-won rights.

“Shelter Scotland has lost confidence in the leadership of the City of Edinburgh Council to do the right thing and uphold the rule of law. The leadership has systematically failed homeless people for years and is now stripping them of their rights to cover up their own failures.

“I have written to the First Minister John Swinney MSP, urging him to use his powers to call in the council’s homelessness strategy for scrutiny. It is our belief that this will highlight that the current strategy is not only unfit for purpose and cannot guarantee the rights of people at risk of homelessness but is in fact in breach of the law.

“The Scottish Government must do more to fully fund local services through the upcoming budget. However, more money won’t work if the wrong decisions are being taken locally on how to spend it.

“I have also written to the Scottish Housing Regulator as recent assurances provided by the council leadership in their annual statement clearly do not hold up to scrutiny.

“Elected and unelected members have shown themselves to be incapable of following the rule of law. They must reverse the committee’s decision or else immediately step aside.”

Shelter Scotland is calling for the Regulator to consider its powers to use sanctions up to an including the appointment of new management in the housing department within the City of Edinburgh Council, under its powers contained in the Housing (Scotland) 2010 Act.

Under Scottish housing legislation, Scottish Ministers have the powers to call the City of Edinburgh Council’s homelessness strategy in for review, including its provision of temporary accommodation.

Alison Watson added: “Shelter Scotland has never called on the Regulator or Ministers to intervene in this way. We do not do so lightly. However, we will not stand by – and nor should the people of Scotland – and watch people’s rights be eroded without a fight.

“We cannot normalise law breaking on this scale. There must be consequences otherwise there can be no prospect that other rights will be protected, nor of the situation improving for the thousands of people in desperate need of a safe and secure home.”

There are currently around 5,250 households in temporary accommodation in Edinburgh. It is estimated that over a quarter (1,488) of these households are living in properties under an Unsuitable Accommodation Order.

Regulator highlights considerable pressure on councils’ services for people experiencing 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.”

Read the Regulator’s thematic inquiry report on homelessness services in Scotland.

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.”

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