Eyes of the world on Scotland as major homelessness summit draws full house
6 February 2012
The eyes of the world are on Scotland this week as a full house of leading experts gather in the capital for a major summit to discuss the future of how Scotland treats homeless people.
Organised by Shelter Scotland, the ‘Homelessness post-2012: Where next?’ summit [7 February 2012], will focus on progress made towards meeting Scotland’s historic commitment to give every unintentionally homeless person the legal right to a home by the end of 2012.Delegates will hear from leading global experts, including Dr Dennis P. Culhane, advisor to the White House and New York City on homelessness, Housing Minister Keith Brown and the Scottish Housing Regulator.
The 2012 target is internationally regarded as at the cutting edge of progressive homelessness reform and Scotland has already played host to visits from France, Finland, Australia and North America to share the lessons learned in the lead up to the commitment.
France, in particular, has recently agreed its own target, inspired by Scotland.
The reform to Scotland’s homelessness legislation will see an end to current system where only those people deemed to be in ‘priority need’ have the right to a home. The Act passed in 2003 effectively extends the right to a home to single homeless people and couples without children. For the last nine years Scotland’s 32 local authorities have been preparing for the changes and this conference will be an opportunity look beyond 2012 and address new challenges, set new priorities and share best practice.
Speaking ahead of the conference, Dr. Dennis P. Culhane warned that while the 2012 commitment has propelled Scotland to the world stage, the real measure of success will be in the number of people lifted out of homelessness. He said:
“Scotland’s groundbreaking commitment to end homelessness is serving as a model for how many other countries view homelessness solutions. In some ways Scotland and the United States share a similar vision in eradicating homelessness and that is reflected in the move to prevention, rather than cure.
“While the 2012 commitment showcases Scotland’s progressive homelessness legislation, its success can only be measured by the number of people lifted out of homelessness and given not only the legal right to a home, but the real chance of actually living in one.”
Graeme Brown, Director of Shelter Scotland and Chair of the summit, said:
“Scotland is leading the way in progressive homelessness legislation and has received international acclaim for its groundbreaking reforms. Despite the pessimism of a few, nine local authorities are already there, and a further eight are on the cusp.
“Nine years ago Scotland made history by committing to the 2012 target. We must now focus our efforts on where we are in meeting the responsibilities to homeless people and more importantly, where we want to be. This year marks a new beginning for Scotland and a huge step towards eradicating homelessness in Scotland and further afield.”
Housing Minister Keith Brown said:
"Scotland has an important, but challenging, homelessness target: that by the end of December 2012, all unintentionally homeless households will have the right to settled accommodation.
"Councils across the country are working hard to meet the target. Indeed, they are to be applauded for the manner in which they are enthusiastically embracing prevention as the way forward in the fight to tackle homelessness.
“This Shelter Scotland Conference is important because it brings together a host of national and international decision makers to discuss the 2012 Homelessness target, and how we can all work together to ensure it is delivered.”
