Homeless Report A Significant Step Forward Says SCSH

Today’s report by the Homelessness Task Force was welcomed as a big step forward for single homeless people by the Scottish Council for Single Homeless. SCSH Director Robert Aldridge said,

 "If the recommendations are implemented it will mark the first improvement in the rights of single people who are homeless for more than twenty years.

The original legislation offered help to families with dependent children and people with extra vulnerabilities. But most single people lost out. The new guarantee of temporary accommodation along with realistic advice to get a permanent home should make a big difference for single homeless people.

The new duty on Local Authorities to adopt strategies to prevent homelessness marks a further improvement but more needs to be done. Homelessness has reached a high water mark of over 45,000 applicants – more than half of whom are single homeless people. We need a long term strategy combining a better supply of decent houses with a broad range of support for those who do end up homeless."