Other options if the housing department won't help

This content applies to Scotland only.

Housing laws vary between Scotland and England. This page applies to Scotland only. Get advice relating to England

If you are homeless and the council's housing department has told you that it can't help you, there may be other options open to you. This section explains what you may be able to do in this situation. It explains your emergency options, your long term housing options and how you may be able to get help from the social work department.

Emergency options

This page looks at things you can do immediately if the council's housing department can't help you. Read more 

Help from social work

If you are homeless and you apply to the council housing department for help, it may refer you to social work for assistance. This section explains when and how the council might try to get social work involved, and what sort of help social work may be able to offer. Read more 

Longer term housing options

If the council doesn't have a duty to offer you a permanent home, you'll need to find your own accommodation. This page looks at how you can go about getting a council or housing association place or accommodation from a private landlord and how you can get help paying for this. It also considers other long term options. Read more