The latest stories from Homeless Network Scotland's March-July 2025 briefing are below. 

Latest stories

Last winter too many people in Glasgow had no accommodation. Too many were forced to resort to using communal night shelters or risk rough sleeping as a result of the housing emergency. The Glasgow Homelessness Involvement and Feedback Team (GHIFT) surveyed and spoke to people using overnight services in the city to hear their experiences. The team presented their findings to Glasgow City Council and Health and Social Care Partnership officials at an event in the City Chambers and secured a pledge in principle that there should be no ‘shared air’ communal night shelters in the city. Read the GHIFT report. 

Homeless Network Scotland issued a briefing for decision-makers on homelessness accommodation provision during extreme weather, in the context of the housing emergency. The briefing sets out the ideal scenario, current ‘next best’ options and unacceptable options including shared air night shelters. Read the briefing.

A Scottish Parliament debate in March highlighted how people living in Scotland are experiencing severe destitution and homelessness because they have limited or no access to welfare support or housing. 

MSPs also heard about practical steps that could be taken by local and national policymakers to address and reduce the harm people are suffering, set out in a new legal briefing, Ending Destitution in Scotland – a Road Map for Policymakers. The Members Business Debate focused on a motion lodged by Scottish Greens MSP Maggie Chapman. Watch the debate.

Research from Heriot-Watt and Edinburgh universities shows many women experiencing violence and abuse are effectively pushed out of their own homes. Some are coerced into leaving by threats and intimidation, some flee after severe violence, others leave because they feel powerless to make their abuser leave. 

A report by Dr Lynne McMordie, Professor Suzanne Fitzpatrick and Professor Sarah Johnsen sets out why we need stronger legal protections and meaningful enforcement so survivors can stay safely in their homes rather than be made homeless. Read the report.

New figures reveal that despite a 1% drop in the last year, one in five children are still living in poverty in our country. 

Shelter Scotland’s report, In Their Own Words: Children’s Experiences of Temporary Accommodation, highlights the plight of 10,360 children currently stuck in temporary accommodation and urges Scottish Government to focus on new social homes to address child homelessness. 

SFHA and Wheatley Group's own Still Waiting report also revealed the experiences of people on waiting lists for social homes, reflecting on the physical, mental, financial and emotional consequences the housing emergency has on those waiting.

Meanwhile, the IPPR has warned that without urgent investment, Scotland will miss its child poverty target in 2030.

The question of how best to end homelessness is addressed in a paper that is of particular relevance to Scotland, where the Scottish Government-COSLA Ending Homelessness Together strategy is a cornerstone of efforts to eradicate homelessness in all its forms. 

The authors argue that incremental policy, culture and systems interventions – like we have seen in Scotland over the last 25 years – will get you so far but are unlikely to end homelessness. The answer is that we need to build far more social housing and create a better welfare system. But that requires political will backed up by a shift in cultural priorities – creating a society that truly buys into the goal, values every person’s right to access housing and support, and is willing to pay. Read the paper

The Social Justice and Social Security Committee is investigating the financial barriers women face when leaving an abusive relationship, and how people can be better supported, on issues including housing and homelessness. 

All in for Change gave evidence at a session of the committee in May (official report here). The Change Team’s written response covers issues around benefits, debt, homelessness, the impact of the housing emergency, and additional barriers faced by women with no recourse to public funds.

A qualitative research exercise has uncovered insights and experiences around ‘hidden homelessness’ in Scotland, whose very nature makes it hard to quantify. The research looks at why people are driven into this situation, barriers to accessing help, and the groups of people who are most at risk. Read more here.

On the first anniversary of Scotland’s national housing emergency being declared, and a year ahead of the Holyrood election, Everyone Home – a collective of organisations dedicated to ending homelessness – called on all political parties to commit to urgent, bold action to lay the foundations for creating more homes and tackling inequality driven by housing shortages. Read the statement.

A Scottish Parliament committee has published a report following an inquiry into how the housing emergency is being tackled by local authorities and the Scottish Government. Read the full report. 

A Scottish Parliament Information Centre (SPICe) blog analyses actions taken by Scottish Government and councils to address the emergency. 

An amendment to the Housing Bill at Stage Two will compel the Scottish Government to outline a strategy for dealing with the emergency, report every 6 months on the action it is taking to address it, and define in law the conditions that constitute a housing emergency, as well as what the end point looks like. Read more here. 

The housing emergency puts people at risk of harm in many ways and this is heightened during winter and other extreme weather events. A briefing from Homeless Network Scotland supports decision-makers to ensure everyone has a suitable and safe place to stay – and sets out good accommodation options as well as the bad, old solutions that are unacceptable and cause more harm for people in crisis. Read the briefing. 

In May MSPs held a debate following the Scottish Government statement on action being taken to address the emergency. Among the themes raised was the idea of a Challenge Fund for local authorities, housing associations and third sector organisations to replace unsuitable temporary accommodation. Read the official report here.

The Scottish Government’s £4million pilot fund to test how Ask and Act will work in practice will be crucial to ensuring the duty is effectively resourced and delivered by identifying what is good and can be upscaled, learning what doesn’t work, and sharing the learning widely. Everyone Home has set out a recommended course of action for design of the pilots. 

Scottish Government is expected to tender for a fund manager over the next phase. 

Stage 2 of the Bill process ended on 3 June. Successful amendments to the homelessness prevention section (part 5) at this stage include: 

• Removal of reference to an intentional threat of homelessness. If passed at Stage 3, there will no longer be a test to determine whether a person’s intentional action caused them to be at risk of homelessness. In response to MSPs calling for the removal of intentionality more generally, the Minister committed to consulting key stakeholders on this issue over the summer. • New rights to request a review of decisions in relation to the act part of new ‘Ask and Act’ duties, including whether action was taken and what that action was. 

• A power to create regulations covering what relevant bodies have to do as part of their ‘act’ duty if someone is threatened with homelessness. 

• A power to make regulations to create a legally binding assessment process, covering what must be considered and how applicants must be informed after the assessment. This could give a legal basis to Personal Housing Plans.

• Stronger information sharing powers between relevant bodies to assist action to prevent homelessness. 

• Social Security Scotland was added to the list of relevant bodies. The (then) Housing Minister indicated future engagement with MSPs on adding to the list. 

• An amendment that will require part 5 of the bill to be fully commenced no more than 3 years after the Act receives Royal Assent.

The Welsh Government has published its long-awaited Homelessness and Social Housing Allocation Bill. The legislation intends to prevent homelessness earlier and more often, create a trauma-informed, person-centred and multi-agency system, and explore scrapping priority need and intentionality tests. Read more on the Bill.

Scotland’s homelessness conference takes place at Perth Concert Hall on Monday 27 and Tuesday 28 October. Early bird booking is now open offering a range of attendance, accommodation and food options. Book here before the end of July and save 20%. 

Keynote speakers include pioneering star of stage and screen, former kids TV host, award-winning writer, campaigner and prominent member of the Windrush generation, Baroness Floella Benjamin, who has overcome adversity and prejudice since she arrived in Britain aged 10 to achieve stellar success in her career and as a champion for diversity and childhood wellbeing. Baroness Benjamin’s keynote address, Childhood Lasts a Lifetime, is a powerful narrative of resilience to inspire us all to work for positive change