As the pandemic eases, Scotland will return to a position where the legal basis for UK, national or local government funding for accommodation, support and advice for people without established entitlements remains inadequate. In most cases, councils are currently funding housing and financial support to people with eligible needs.
Around 80 responses were returned for individuals and organisations across Scotland, with overwhelming support for the preferable future set out in the document. Recommendations included in the latest Route Map helped inform the Scottish Governments recently revised Ending Homelessness Together Action Plan.
The ambition to address poverty and destitution for people who do not have access to mainstream welfare and homelessness services is shared by the Everyone Home collective, Scottish Government and COSLA, which represents Scottish Councils. The organisations have agreed to work together to:
- develop a human rights-based pathway to safe accommodation and support for people who are destitute with no recourse to public funds (NRPF)
- identify innovative funding and delivery models for testing and implementing the pathways across Scotland
- continue to call on the UK Government for the policy changes needed to ensure that there are no gaps in the legal framework for people seeking asylum and settled status in Scotland.
Having No Recourse To Public Funds is for most people a temporary experience. The new route-map aims to mitigate the damaging impact of that experience until a person’s status is legally resolved to gain or re-gain access to public funds or re-connection with a person’s country of origin is made, with a forward plan in place to ensure destitution is not experienced in another place. To view the Route Map go to the Everyone Home website.