Homelessness statistics expose massive shortage of suitable homes

New official government statistics show that during the first few months of lockdown last year Scottish councils doubled their use of bed and breakfast accommodation for people experiencing homelessness.

This came at a time when the courts were closed, and an effective eviction ban meant that fewer people than normal lost their home than in previous years. The numbers also reflect efforts early in lockdown to lift people off the streets and off sofas and into hotel accommodation. This was despite the law already requiring councils take suitable action prior to the health emergency.

Today’s figures show that:

•         
  At the end of September last year 1,414 households were in B&B accommodation
  compared to 710 at the same time in 2019 – an increase of 99%.

•      
  In total 13,650 households lost their homes between April and September of last
  year despite the eviction ban being in place during that time.

•      
  There were 7,900 children in temporary accommodation at the end of September, a new
  record high.

• 
  There was an increase of nearly a quarter (24%) in the number of households in temporary
  homes to 14,151 due to the shortage of permanent social homes.

•      
  21% of those households were accommodated in B&Bs and hostels; places where most will have been confined to a room for most of the time they were inside.

Our director Alison Watson said:

“Thousands of people have endured lockdown in homeless accommodation because our country is in the grip of a scandalous housing emergency caused by the lack of safe, secure and affordable social homes.

“To see a near doubling of the use of bed and breakfast exposes just how grossly under-resourced councils were before the pandemic triggered more funding to make use of available tourist accommodation. These protections should always have been there. It’s the law, it was the law and it remains the law.”

Alison Watson added:

“We can see that when the political will is there, homelessness can be resourced in a way which takes people off the streets and keeps others in their homes.

“This has to be just the start. The temporary protections for tenants need to be made
permanent to prevent a future wave of homelessness.

“But more than anything else we need to get real about our commitment to reducing the numbers of people living without the safe, secure and affordable homes they need. Independent researchers have told us that means 37,100 new council and housing association homes in the next five years. We won’t rest until there’s a home for everyone.”

The statistics can be read in full on the Scottish Government website.