Category: News

Universal credit report links benefit to homelessness

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The Scottish Government has published a report that highlights what it believes are correlations between homelessness and the roll out of Universal Credit (UC). The analysis is important because in January 2020 there were around 240,000 people claiming UC in Scotland, which had risen to 480,000 by January this year according to the data contained in the report.

If the Benefit is contributing to an increased risk of homelessness then the large rise in claimants could track an increase in homelessness in the future, particularly once emergency Covid-19 support currently in place comes to an end or is withdrawn. For example, the current £20-a-week Universal Credit uplift, originally due to finish in April but extended until the end of September in the recent UK Budget.

The report outlines that homelessness rates in Scotland have slightly increased since 2015, coinciding with the rollout of Universal Credit since 2013. Mental health has grown as a reason for homelessness over that period, while homeless households and households affected by the five-week wait tend to be similar in composition. The report also identifies what it frames as a statistically significant correlation between UC sanctions and homelessness across local authorities in Scotland.

The report concludes: “Amid broader debates on the future of UC, it is therefore crucial that the impacts on homelessness are recognised and addressed.”

Funding allocations for drug services announced

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As part of an announcement of additional funding for drug services on 18 March the Scottish Government has also taken steps to close the Housing Benefit loophole which sometimes put the homes of people entering residential rehabilitation at risk. While some areas had found a workaround, it was not being applied consistently. There is recognition in the announcement that residential rehabilitation may not be the right choice for some and plans include measures allowing people to access treatment in a setting and at a time that meets their needs.

The four funds announced last week include:

  • a £5 million Communities Fund to provide resources to community and third sector organisations to increase capacity  
  • a £5 million Improvement Fund to support improvements to services for outreach, treatment, rehabilitation and aftercare, with dedicated support for women
  • a £3 million Families and Children Fund to support the families of those affected by drug misuse during treatment
  • a £5 million Recovery Fund for additional residential rehabilitation capacity.

Scottish Parliament passes Landmark domestic abuse legislation

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Domestic Abuse legislation passed by the Scottish Parliament in 2018 established that coercive and controlling behaviour is domestic abuse, and a crime. It also acknowledged the harm to children living in a home where abuse is taking place.

The Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Bill, passed in the Scottish Parliament last week, adds to safeguards already in place. In 2018-19, 88 per cent of all domestic abuse incidents recorded in Scotland occurred within a home.

Domestic abuse is the leading cause of women’s homelessness in Scotland and the Bill increases protection for people who are living with the perpetrator. It allows social landlords to end the tenancy of a perpetrator and take other steps to protect the housing of the person who has experienced abuse. A video of the debate is available here on the Scottish Parliament website.

Housing to 2040 – Scottish Government publishes long-term plans

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The Housing to 2040 publication sets out the Scottish Government’s long-term outlook for homes and communities across Scotland. Including supporting documents tackling equalities, child rights and the impact on rural and island communities, the final publication has been informed and shaped through consultation. Housing to 2040 is intended to reflect the diversity of people, homes and communities and provide a high-level guide to how policy decisions might be made over the next 20 years. The document also sets out plans for 100,000 affordable homes in the ten years up to 2031/32, with at least 70 per cent of these for social rent.

Plans to end homelessness are included, such as supporting people into a settled home through a rapid rehousing approach, and a commitment to Housing First is included as the default option for people with needs in addition to housing.

While Housing First will assist most people with complex needs there may be others who require something different. Housing to 2040 section 03, titled The Route Map, highlights research commissioned by Homeless Network Scotland and led by Indigo House, investigating the need, scale and form of shared and supported accommodation. This will report later 2021 and the Scottish Government has committed to work with partners to take action to ensure people are able to access the kind of home and support they need.

Every vote is a vote for Housing First

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Votes cast for one of the Holyrood parties in May’s Scottish Parliament election will be votes to help end homelessness for people with the toughest experiences.

Going into the election, all the Holyrood parties are backing a policy called Housing First, which international evidence, and experience in Scotland, proves is an effective method of ending homelessness for people with experiences such as trauma, abuse, addictions and mental ill health.

The policy has been running in six areas across Scotland since 2019 with the support of the Scottish Government. From April, it is set to roll out across most council areas and is the focus of our online conference taking place next week.

The approach provides normal, settled housing for people as quickly as possible rather than at the end of a long process that often fails to prevent or end homelessness and includes a support package tailored to the individual. Across the  Pathfinder areas there have been no evictions in the current programme out of 450 tenancies, with around 90% of those who started a tenancy remaining in their home.

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

“At least 8% of the Scottish population has experienced homelessness at some point in their lives. But we are not all at equal risk. Poverty is the main driver, and it is also linked to experiences going right back to childhood. Housing First should be the first response for everyone whose housing need is made much harder by trauma, addictions and mental health problems.”

“Housing First has rightly earned cross-party support and has also earned a long-term commitment from Scottish Government in the 20-year strategy for housing published this week. Why? Because it works. What has been achieved in Scotland is viewed as pacesetting by UK and international colleagues – but it wasn’t easy and this is just the start. Now we need the right and enduring resources and investment aligned at national and local level.”

Patrick McKay, Operations Director, Turning Point Scotland, said:

“Housing First is normal, it’s fairer and it works. If finding answers to society’s problems is the prize for those in government and opposition alike, then Housing First is a gift. In recent years in Scotland, more so since the pandemic began, resolving homelessness has resulted in increased cooperation and an acknowledgment that solving this problem is not impossible, but will take time.

“Turning Point Scotland helped to pioneer the Housing First model in its Glasgow pilot. Ten years on from that project we are ready to get behind the national challenge and help make Housing First a reality as a leading provider of support services.”

Professor Sarah Johnsen, of I-SPHERE, an award-winning research team at Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, said:

“To my mind, Housing First works because of four key ingredients. Firstly, by offering long-term security of tenure and support it offers a stable platform, freeing up headspace for residents to think about things other than ‘what happens next?’ housing-wise. Second, the support is truly flexible, changing in type, intensity, how and where it’s delivered as needed. Third, is sticks with people, even after periods of disengagement or blips in recovery, which would typically result in exclusion from other services.  Finally, it offers a normal home in an ordinary neighbourhood, with respite from the stigma and potential harms associated with many homeless service settings such as hostels and shelters.”

The Housing First Scotland Conference titled ‘Branching Out’ takes place on Tuesday 23 and Wednesday 24 March hosted by Homeless Network Scotland in partnership with Wheatley Group. The conference is an opportunity to hear directly from those responsible for Scottish Government homelessness policy, including an address by Kevin Stewart MSP, Minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning and Angela Constance, the Minister for Drug Policy as well as sector leaders across a day-and-a-half of activities and interactive sessions on three themes.

  1. Firm Foundations: Housing First as an integrated policy priority with shared financial commitment, and shared outcomes. This theme includes the launch of the National Framework for Housing First in Scotland.
  2. Olive Branches: Successful local partnerships are central to the success of the Pathfinder. Learn how local Housing First partnerships have been formed, how they function, why they work and what aspects have been more challenging.
  3. Low & High Hanging Fruit: in theme three we explore the practical lessons learned, the early successes, and some of the growing pains. This theme will help us grow, improve and connect Housing First as it starts up in most Scottish council areas during 2021.

View the conference programme and speakers by clicking here or book a place at one, or all, of the sessions by clicking here.