The price of failure: 10,110 children in homeless accommodation

A record breaking 10,110 children are trapped in homeless accommodation according to new figures released today by the Scottish Government.

The statistics show the number of children in temporary accommodation has risen each year over the past decade, having more than doubled since 2014.

Local homelessness services are also breaking the law more frequently according to the data; instances of households entitled to temporary accommodation being unlawfully turned away by councils were 17 times higher than the previous year.

Shelter Scotland said these figures show children are paying the biggest price for politician’s continued failure to get a grip of the housing emergency, adding that it was clear the Scottish Government’s Housing to 2040 and Ending Homelessness Together strategies were unable to deliver the necessary change.

The charity called on the First Minister to prove he was serious about his ambition to end child poverty in Scotland by reversing brutal housing cuts when his government publishes its budget in December.

Shelter Scotland Director, Alison Watson, said:

“These figures show clearly that it is children in Scotland that are paying the highest price for politician’s failure to get a grip on the housing emergency; they should be a source of great national shame.

“Once again Scotland has broken unwelcome records, and the sad fact is that’s becoming the norm whenever these statistics are published. It’s hard to escape the conclusion that we’re seeing homelessness by design; politicians know what needs to be done but have consistently failed to deliver.

“Today is a grim reminder of the reality of Scotland’s housing emergency; more and more children losing their homes every day, getting stuck in the homelessness system, trapped in miserable temporary accommodation for ever increasing lengths of time.

“Every level of government has played a part in allowing the housing emergency to get to this disgraceful point, so politicians at every level of government have a more duty to act.

“Our First Minister tells us often that ending child poverty is his guiding mission. There is no way for him to succeed in that mission while more and more children in Scotland become homeless.

“The upcoming budget is a chance for him to show that his ambitions are more than just words. There are thousands of kids being robbed of their childhood in Scotland and they shouldn’t have to hear any more excuses.”