THE HALF NOTS
DESPERATE FAMILIES BEING DENIED RIGHT TO SETTLED ACCOMMODATION Council slammed for failing to house nearly 50% of city’s homeless
GLASGOW City Council have been slated for failing to house almost half of the homeless people who came to them for urgent help last year.
The authority did not fulfil their legal duty to offer settled accommodation to thousands of desperate people.
An investigation by social housing watchdogs also found the council kept homeless people in temporary accommodation for too long.
The length of stay in 2016-17 was 238 days. That rose to 249 days for the first six months of 2017-18.
Social housing watchdogs the Scottish Housing Regulator found that the council identified a duty to provide homes for 4195 households in 2016-17.
But they only found settled accommodation for about 2405.
The watchdogs’ report says: “The council are not housing enough people who are homeless quickly enough.
“In 2016-17, they housed around half of those they had a duty to house.”
Shelter Scotland director Graeme Brown said: “We have for years been raising concerns about the experience of homeless people in Glasgow.
“In particular, we have serious concerns that Glasgow City Council are too often failing to meet their legal duty to find suitable homes for homeless households and that too many people are being turned away from the services they have a legal right to.
“We hope this report will
force Glasgow City Council to sit up and take the meaningful action needed so that they meet their statutory duties for all homeless people in the city.”
The regulators’ report also says the council’s target for providing homes is too low for the number of people in need.
It adds: “The council should set a target for housing people who are homeless which is consistent with the number of people it has a duty to secure homes for.
“The council’s target of securing 3000 homes for people who are homeless each year is too low for the number of people they assess they have a duty to house.”
The report does say that the council have made advances in some areas.
It adds: “The council and their partners have made some important improvements to the process they use to find homes for people and they are working together more effectively.
“The council aim for a person-centred, needs- led approach to identifying solutions for people who are homeless.
“This is positive, particularly for people with multiple and complex needs.”
The regulator’s report follows a series of stories in the Daily Record that exposed thee dire plight of the many homeless people in the city.
Among those we spotlighted was grandfather Joe Carmichael, 49, who was forced to sleep in a tent in an ad-hoc “homeless village” in temperatures of -7C over Christmas.
A Glasgow City Council spokesman said: “The report identifies many areas of positive practice in Glasgow’s homelessness system and the scale of the challenge faced by the city’s support services.
“As the regulators recognise, the council and their partners are working together more effectively to support those affected by homelessness.
“However, we accept that improvements within the system are still required to ensure people who present as homeless can move into a permanent home as soon as possible.”
The spokesman said the council are working to reshape homelessness services in Glasgow. He added: “Along with the city’s social landlords, we will study the report’s recommendations very carefully and work with them and other partners to make the appropriate changes.”