Better help for homeless people

Scottish Council for Single Homeless (SCSH) will today appear before the Scottish Parliament Local Government Committee to give evidence on the Housing ( Scotland ) Bill. SCSH will make the case for an extension of the definition of priority need when assessing homelessness applications.

Current proposals in England will extend the categories of those considered to be ‘in priority need’ under the homelessness legislation. These proposals cover:

• All young people aged 16 or 17
• Care leavers aged up to 21
• People recently discharged from institutions (such as those leaving prisons or the armed forces)
• Those fleeing domestic violence or harassment.

Speaking before the Committee meeting the director of SCSH, Robert Aldridge , stated:

"Priority need for the some these vulnerable groups is a confused picture under current legislation in Scotland . Only care leavers are specifically covered. Even then, priority need for care leavers currently only relates to people who were looked after on or after their 16 th birthday. We believe that those who spent considerable time in care after their 12 th birthday are equally vulnerable.

Evaluation of the Rough Sleepers Initiative shows that people with an institutional background, especially people leaving prison or the armed forces, are disproportionately represented amongst rough sleepers. If homelessness is to be addressed seriously they should, in our view, be considered to be in priority need.

Current laws mean those who experience violence or threats of violence from someone they live with are considered homeless. Those with children will be ‘in priority need.’ However the situation is not clear for those who do not have children – legislation states they may be a priority. It is clear to SCSH that they should automatically be considered to be in priority need."

Notes

1. Scottish Council for Single Homeless (SCSH) is the national membership body for organisations and individuals tackling homelessness.
2. Robert Aldridge is a member of the Homelessness Task Force led by the Scottish Executive.
3. SCSH is giving evidence to the Local Government Committee at 10.00am on Wednesday 31 st January.