Author: Janice Higgins

Former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Housing will be Home for 10

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Leilani Farha, former UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Housing, will visit Scotland in autumn to provide a keynote at Scotland’s annual homelessness conference.

Ms Farha is Global Director of The Shift, an international movement to secure the right to housing which works with multi-level stakeholders around the world including with several city governments in North America and Europe. She brings a unique set of knowledge and experience to share with colleagues in Scotland, including through her topical reports on homelessness, the financialization of housing, informal settlements, rights-based housing strategies, and the first UN Guidelines for the implementation of the right to housing.

With the conference programme launching today, Home for 10 is the title of this year’s event from Homeless Network Scotland which brings together the sectors and services in Scotland that are committed to adequate housing and preventing homelessness in Scotland.

Taking place on 4 October in Glasgow, the conference is marking ten years since the removal of the priority need test in Scotland; the result of progressive legislation from the Scottish Parliament which created an almost universal right to housing in Scotland, with exceptions as a consequence of immigration legislation reserved to UK Government.

But the 2012 commitment did not end homelessness in Scotland. Rights were seen to leverage action, accountability and help increase expectations – but on their own were not enough when efforts to prevent homelessness had not been widescale or early enough or the supply of affordable housing sufficient enough.

With 2032 the target date for 110,000 new affordable homes in Scotland, many are eyeing the opportunity to align this more realistic housing investment with new duties to prevent homelessness – to assure everyone has a home to build and live their lives.

The conference will welcome Shona Robison MSP, Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Housing and Local Government who will encourage the conference to ‘stay on track’ toward the ambition of ending homelessness in Scotland. And Kevin Stewart MSP, Minister for Mental Wellbeing & Social Care, will comment on how the National Care Service can improve housing and wellbeing outcomes.

All this will be explored across the day in three themed segments:

  • Making the Shift: a focus on housing rights, options, supply and access. And the financialisaton of housing and what it means for Scotland’s long-term vision set out in Housing to 2040.
  • Stemming the Tide: a focus on the factors that make up the cost-of-living crisis, how it links to housing and homelessness prevention – and the correcting action we need to take.
  • Rewriting Social Care: a focus on the opportunities and dilemmas of a National Care Service in Scotland. Change of this size also offers the chance to rewrite the language around social care to put people first.

Plus, four breakout sessions will provide an opportunity for immersive conversation in smaller groups:

  • The Art of Advocacy and Activism
  • Ask About Housing
  • Measuring What Matters
  • No Wrong Door

Maggie Brunjes, Chief Executive of Homeless Network Scotland, said:

“Home for 10 is shaping up to be an event that meets the moment. The homelessness sector in Scotland will go on record in terms of the swiftness and effectiveness of its response during the pandemic. But there are stubborn issues, and new threats on the horizon that are stalling progress in ensuring everyone has a home to build and live their lives.

“It is important to keep learning about what works and what matters. As well as a phenomenal range of speakers and contributors on the day, we will be publishing a special collection of insights and provocations from key experts – across policy, practice, personal experience and academia – on the mistakes made, the hard-won progress, and what needs to happen next.”

Keynotes and special guests confirmed include:

  • Darren (Loki) McGarvey, Author
  • Dani Garavelli, Journalist
  • Martin Boyle, Associate at Homeless Network Scotland
  • Catriona Mackean, Deputy Director at Scottish Government
  • Alex Fox OBE, Chief Executive of Mayday Trust
  • Ryan MacDonald, Housing Options Scotland
  • Alison Kennedy, East Ayrshire Council
  • Mark Cairney, Associate of Homeless Network Scotland.
  • Bryony Shannon, Blogger
  • Suzie Mcilloney, South Ayrshire Council

You can view the full programme here and book your ticket here.

Spotlight on drug-related deaths – and potential solutions 

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Michelle Major, Improvement Lead with Homeless Network Scotland summarises new data on early mortality among people experiencing multiple disadvantage, the latest data on drug related deaths in Scotland and the solutions put forward by the Scottish Drug Deaths Taskforce.

Every day in Scotland, three people suffer a drug-related death. Each death is a personal tragedy for them, their friends and families, their communities – and every one of them is preventable. The National Records of Scotland’s latest report shows that in 2021, 1330 deaths were drug-related in Scotland, and while this is 9 fewer deaths than in 2020, it is still the second highest annual total on record. Of all drug deaths recorded in Scotland, 84% involved opiates, and 69% involved benzodiazepines. In 93% of all drug deaths, more than one drug was found to be present. In Scotland, men are 2.4 times as likely to have a drug related death than women, however over time this gap has decreased; in the early 2000s males were more than 4 times more likely to die from drug misuse than females.

Scotland’s drug related death rate is nearly 4 times higher than the UK as a whole and higher than that of any European country – making it a national crisis and now, according to Scottish Governement, a national mission. It is notable that within Scotland, people in the most deprived areas are over 15 times more likely to die from drug misuse than those in the least deprived areas. This deeply embeds the roots of the crisis in poverty, inequality and trauma – exacerbated by cumulative policy and clinical decisions over recent decades.

A new study from Dr Emily Tweed at Glasgow University also highlights the high number of avoidable deaths amongst people experiencing multiple disadvantage in Scotland. Experiences of homelessness, justice involvement, opioid dependence and psychosis often co-occur and the population of people experiencing these issues is growing and aging. This new research suggests that those who experience more than one of these disadvantages are most at risk of premature and avoidable death.

All this means that the recent efforts to understand and create solutions to alleviate the crisis are very welcome and much needed, with key reports published in recent weeks. Over the last three years, the Scottish Drug Deaths Taskforce have listened to the voices of people from across Scotland and beyond – people with experience of using drugs, families, service providers, community representatives, those in our justice and emergency services, academics and many more. Their stories have been heard and learned from. Combined with findings from an examination of the evidence base, these stories and experiences are at the heart of the recommendations and actions from the Taskforce. The final report, Changing Lives, was published on 21 July and includes recommendations for a No Wrong Door approach to accesssing services. Taking a No Wrong Door approach means breaking down traditional silos between services and sectors so that there is easier access to the treatment and support that people want. This is critically important.

Reporting on the Changing Lives report, Scottish Housing News highlighted the recommendation that Scottish Government should continue to support Housing First and scale up the approach across all Scottish local authorities, and that learning from the Housing First model could be used to support the design of other services. With a strong evidence base, Housing First has a high success rate for people whose homelessness is made harder by experiences including addiction and trauma. The nature of the support is open-ended and flexible, is not dependent on abstinence to access secure, permanent housing, and the model is based on a set of principles, one of which is harm reduction.

The extent to which the law can be leveraged to reverse the drug deaths crisis has been explored in different ways too. The Taskforce produced a Drug Law Reform report in September 2021 which focused on how existing drug legislation, a matter reserved to UK government, affects the public health approach that needs to be taken in Scotland. In July 2022, Turning Point Scotland launched a campaign advocating action on drug law reform and the limitations of the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. Meanwhile, the Scottish Conservatives focused on the powers that the Scottish Parliament has to legislate in this area, publishing and consulting on a proposed Member’s Bill in 2021 called the Right to Addiction Recovery (Scotland) Bill. The proposed bill was developed with activist organisation Favor UK and associates with direct experience of addiction, recovery and of different treatment options. This lived experience lens and expertise, alongside our belief in the importance of rights to redress disadvantage, led Homeless Network Scotland to be among the 78% of respondents who supported the bill when the final proposal was lodged with the Scottish Parliament in May 2022. It has subsequently gained enough support in parliament for the Scottish Conservatives to introduce a Member’s Bill which will go through the relevant stages for new Bills in the Scottish Parliament.

Involving people affected by problem substance use is important for a human rights-based approach to policy making. The Scottish Government has made an important commitment to put people with lived and living experience at the heart of the National Mission to reduce drug related deaths. This approach aims to empower people so that their voices and their rights are acted on in decision-making. Professor Allan Miller, an internationally recognised human rights leader, will be leading on this work and will bring together people affected by drugs and alcohol alongside people who provide services to form the National Collaborative. The National Collaborative will make recommendations to government and will make decisions independently. There is an open invitation for people to nominate themselves or others to be part of the Change Team of the National Collaborative, and for groups who are well placed to advise the National Collaborative to put themselves forward as reference groups. More information and an expression of interest form can be found here.

While there is much to be done to tackle the high rate of drug related deaths in Scotland, when we understand the causes and contributing factors, we are better placed to create solutions and conditions that help.

Home for 10 – Scotland’s Annual Homelessness Conference

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After such a momentous period, it is our special pleasure to host Scotland’s annual homelessness conference and to warmly invite you to join us on 4 October 2022 at the waterfront Crowne Plaza, Glasgow.

A day of inspring speakers, focused breakout sessions – plenty of debate and discussion, and hopefully a few surprises too.

About the Conference

2022 marks ten years since the removal of the priority need test in Scotland.

It was called the 2012 target – or 2012 commitment. It was the result of progressive legislation passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2003 meaning local authorities would have a duty to provide every person who was was not ‘intentionally’ homeless a home by 2012.

It was more than a legal change. It was a huge culture change which accepted that all of us – not some of us – are in urgent and priority need for housing when experiencing homelessness.

But the 2012 target did not end homelessness in Scotland. And for two main reasons. Efforts to prevent homelessness have not been widescale or early enough. And because not all areas have been able to guarantee housing supply and turnover in the places that people want to live.

2032 is the target for 110,000 new affordable homes in Scotland. This is the agreed number that is needed to ensure everyone has the home they need. Which, for almost all of us, is an ordinary home in an ordinary community. And across this period, new duties to prevent homelessness – right across the wider public sector – are expected to be enacted and implemented.

Can we dare to imagine a scenario where the combination of new prevention duties and new affordable housing over the next 10 years will ensure everyone has the home they need? What else needs stacked up for all areas to reduce and ultimately end homelessness? And importantly, what more needs done to help people affected by homelessness today?

Home for 10 will spotlight what the last 10 years has taught us and debate how this should influence the 10 years ahead. And explore some other important ‘tens’ too, including:

Tenure

  • Launched at the conference, a compilation of insights from diverse experts reflecting on 10 years gone and anticipating the 10 years ahead.
  • A new deal for tenants and a cost of living crisis; the urgent need to end evictions into homelessness.

Tenable

  • How do we know we are getting closer to ending homelessness? What does it look like and how do we measure it?
  • Can a National Care Service help get better housing outcomes?

Tenacity

  • What matters most to colleagues in direct support and advice roles.
  • Reframing words and images that blame people.
  • Advocacy and activism alongside people: when patience isn’t a virtue.

BOOK NOW

Temporary Accommodation Standards – a Draft Framework

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In October 2021, the Scottish Government established a Working Group to help produce a new standards framework for temporary accommodation in Scotland. The group has developed a draft framework and are now consulting wider stakeholders.

SOME BACKGROUND

Ensuring standards in temporary accommodation are consistent and of a good quality has been a priority for many stakeholders, due to the variance in standards across different types and in different areas. In 2018, the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group recommended a new framework to underpin temporary accommodation, taken forward as an action in the joint Scottish Government and COSLA Ending Homelessness Together Action Plan in 2018, updated in 2020.

In August 2019, Scottish Government held a consultation on improving temporary accommodation standards, which proposed changes to three main areas:

1.    The Unsuitable Accommodation Order;

2.    Advisory standards for temporary accommodation; and

3.    The development of a temporary accommodation standards framework.

Progess against each area includes (1) the Unsuitable Accommodation Order was extended to all homeless households from May 2020 and (2) new advisory standards for temporary accommodation were created and published in November 2019 in the interim Homelessness Code of Guidance.

THE CONSULTATION

Between October 2021 and May 2022, the Working Group has developed a draft set of standards, the third and final area of the original consultation. The draft standards span considerations for local authorities and partners in relation to:

  • Physical Standards
  • Location Standards
  • Service Standards
  • Management Standards

In advance of the draft temporary accommodation standards being agreed later this year, the Working Group are seeking stakeholder input on the content of the standards. The group invites you to review the temporary accommodation standards and provide comments to ensure that the quality of temporary accommodation is of good standard and meets the needs of the whole household.

TO RESPOND

View the draft Temporary Accommodation Standards Framework here.

Responses by email to the Scottish Government’s Homelessness Team on Homelessness_External_Mail@gov.scot

Please respond no later than 17 June 2022.

Rent arrears must not end in homelessness   

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Scotland’s Housing First Conference on 31 March, taking place in person once again, will consider how a ‘no evictions into homelessness’ approach could work for tenants and landlords – and if it could be woven through the future Scottish rental strategy as a guiding principle. 

The Scottish Government is consulting on ‘A New Deal for Tenants – rented sector strategy’ that seeks to improve accessibility, affordability and standards across the whole rented sector. That consultation frames what is expected to be a popular afternoon breakout at the Housing First conference starting at 1.30pm hosted by Yvonne Gavan, Scottish Government and Ruth Whatling, Homeless Network Scotland. 

A New Deal for Tenants also commits to building on learning from the temporary Covid-19 eviction ban and consider how to further protect tenants from being evicted over the winter period. The conference will explore this theme at a ‘Housing ends Homelessness’ session hosted by Callum Chomczuk, National Director of Chartered Institute of Housing with guests David Bookbinder, Glasgow and West of Scotland Forum of Housing Associations, Lorna Cameron, Horizon Housing Association, Eileen McMullan, SFHA and Nicola McQuiston, Wheatly Group. 

Alongside many other issues, it is an opportunity to unpick how the ‘no evictions into homelessness’ principle, a pillar of the Everyone Home Collective 2022 plan, could operate in practice as part of the rented sector strategy. And specifically asking if it is possible to end to all evictions into homelessness, all year round?  

Maggie Brünjes, Chief Executive of Homeless Network Scotland, which is running the conference, said: 

“There should be no circumstances in Scotland when anyone is evicted with nowhere to go. The Scottish Government’s New Deal for Tenants is an opportunity to pin that principle and consider what practical measures are required to ensure arrangements work for tenants and landlords. 

“The stop on evictions during the pandemic was essential to protect public health and prevent homelessness. That first year of the pandemic may be too much of a one-off to benchmark but we can see a negligible impact on rent arrears. So, the question must follow, ‘Does the threat of eviction influence people in the way that has been long been assumed’.”  

The conference gets underway with A Well-Lit Path, focusing on learning and experiences at the end of Scotland’s Housing First Pathfinder that launched officially in April 2019. This panel session is hosted by Sir Andrew Cubie, Chair of Social Bite and former Chair of the Housing First Advisory Group. 

Sir Andrew Cubie said: 

“It is a pleasure to be taking part in this ‘in person’ event. It comes as the Pathfinder draws to a close, providing an opportunity to mark the achievements of this remarkable programme. Just as important is the focus on the future with an ambitious, scaled-up Housing First as part of Scotland’s transition to rapid rehousing, ending homelessness for the vast majority of those who take up a tenancy. In many respects this conference takes place at a pivotal time, making it an essential booking for the many who have contributed up to this point and for those who will take it forward.” 

Delegates are invited to reconnect at the venue after the conference and join colleagues and speakers for a glass of wine or a soft drink and snacks – an informal opportunity to catch up or make new connections. 

Book tickets on the Housing First Scotland website here and sponsorship / exhibitor packages are available to suit a range of budgets and requirements. Please email hello@homelessnetwork.scot to discuss or browse the right option for your organisation here. Follow on Twitter @HFScotland and #HeretoStay