National Homelessness Conference: the last while anyone sleeps rough in Scotland ?

Over 200 delegates will gather at a major homelessness conference held by the Scottish Council for Single Homeless (SCSH) in Edinburgh on Thursday and Friday this week.

Delegates from a range of professions – housing, health, youth projects and drugs and alcohol projects – will work through a crowded programme to try to make a real difference for homeless people.

SCSH Director, Robert Aldridge, comments:

"The Scottish Executive has set a target that by the end of 2003, no-one will need to sleep rough in Scotland . This is the last homelessness conference before that target should be met.

I am sure there will be countless arguments about whether the target has or has not been met. The fact is that there will still be people who sleep rough and they must not be stigmatised or demonised as in some ways ‘undeserving’ of assistance. It may be that the services we offer are simply not suitable for their needs. Or there may be other factors which mean they feel the need to sleep rough. We must not be judgmental.

In respect of rough sleeping and homelessness we need to remind ourselves at all levels that the job is not done. The homelessness box cannot be ticked. It is not yet sorted. Simply because the policy is on the statute books doesn’t mean it is being implemented effectively and consistently everywhere.

Deputy Minister for Communities Mary Mulligan will speak to the conference on Thursday. She said:

"The greatest challenge, but also certainly the greatest opportunity, in delivering change in homelessness services is effective joint working. The process of looking at issues – homelessness, housing supply, housing support – strategically depends on a partnership approach. A homeless person requires suitable accommodation – like all of us they may require other services too.

"We must ensure that homelessness does not make services inaccessible to people. We must ensure that services are provided at the right time and in the right way, and we must ensure that in delivering change together, the emphasis is on the ‘together."

SCSH Director, Robert Aldridge, concludes:

"The theme of the Conference is delivering change together. The past few years have been frenetic as a whole new policy framework for homelessness in Scotland has been developed – which I believe is the most comprehensive and forward looking in Europe . It requires a radical change in culture, much more joint working and partnership and a great deal of sheer hard work. And it’s not just about implementing the new legislation, it’s about dealing with prevention of homelessness well and trying to ensure that the solutions we find are sustainable in the longer term."

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1. SCSH is the national membership organisation for individuals and organisations working with homeless people.
2. The conference is being held at the Thistle Hotel, Leith Street , Edinburgh on Thursday 6 th & Friday 7 th November.