< Previous | Contents | Next >

HOMELESSNESS
AN ACTION PLAN FOR PREVENTION AND EFFECTIVE RESPONSE
REPORT FROM THE HOMELESSNESS TASK FORCE TO SCOTTISH MINISTERS

LIST OF RECOMMENDATIONS

Empowerment

(1) The objectives of increasing homeless people’s control and extending their choices, and achieving the effective participation of people affected by homelessness in the development of future policy, practice and service delivery should be widely promoted and given practical effect in all activities directed at tackling homelessness (para 15).

Homelessness amongst ethnic minorities

(2) Information on the ethnic status of homeless people should be analysed to assess whether any additional actions, focusing specifically on people from black and minority ethnic communities, are required. This should be complemented by a more qualitative study of the experience of homelessness amongst Scotland’s black and minority ethnic communities (para 17).

Improving the homelessness legislation

(3) (i) The definition of priority need should be gradually expanded as services and accommodation are provided and the target should be to eliminate the priority need definition within a decade (i.e. by 2012) (para 28).

(ii) As a first step the statutory definition of priority need should be expanded to include all those assessed as homeless who are less than 18, or who have experienced domestic abuse, or are otherwise vulnerable within the terms of the current Code of Guidance (para 28).

(iii) As a second step the definition of priority need should be further expanded to include any other people who may be deemed to be vulnerable. Additionally, at this stage all those assessed as homeless who are less than a specified age (perhaps 25) and all those who are above a specified age (perhaps 55) should be brought within the priority need definition. The target should be to implement this second stage around 2007/8, although the precise timing will need to be decided in the light of progress made and an assessment of local authorities’ ability to cope with this further expansion (para 29).

(iv) Finally, by 2012, the priority need distinction should be abolished by extending the relevant duties to all those assessed as homeless (para 28-29).

(4) (i) The duty placed on local authorities to investigate intentionality should be replaced by a power to do so (para 34 (i)).

(ii) Instead of, as at present, being under a duty only to provide temporary accommodation and advice and assistance to an intentionally homeless household in priority need, the local authority should be placed under a duty to ensure that such a household is offered a short Scottish secure tenancy with appropriate support (para 34(ii)).

(iii) Local authorities should be placed under a corporate duty to provide, or ensure provision of, such housing support services as are considered appropriate with a view to enabling the conversion of the tenancy to a Scottish secure tenancy (Para 34(ii)).

(iv) The terms of the short tenancy should outline the support which will be offered to the tenant and the action the tenant will take (Para 34 (iii)).

(v) Progress should be reviewed regularly. The prospective tenant should have access to independent advice and advocacy throughout the process of agreeing the terms of the tenancy and during reviews of progress (Para 34 (iii)).

(vi) Where the landlord is not the local authority, the terms of the tenancy should be agreed between the prospective tenant, the landlord and the local authority. If on review the terms of the short tenancy have been satisfied, the local authority should be under a duty to ensure that the household is offered permanent accommodation in the form of a Scottish secure tenancy (Paras 34(iii) and (iv)).

(vii) Households which have been unable to sustain a short tenancy should have their entitlement to a short Scottish secure tenancy suspended until such time as progress can be demonstrated. Local authorities should however remain under a statutory obligation to make an offer of accommodation, with suitable support, during this suspension (Para 34(iv)).

(viii) Through their homelessness strategies, local authorities should make provision for households falling into this category. New approaches may be required in such circumstances (Para 34(iv)).

(ix) In order to avoid splitting up families local authorities should be required to offer accommodation which can house the entire household (Paras 34(v)).

(5) (i) Action should be taken to suspend the provisions in the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987 which enable a local authority to refer a homeless household to another local authority where they are of the opinion that the household has a local connection with that other authority and not with them (Para 37).

(ii) However, the Scottish Parliament should have power, by way of statutory instrument, to re-activate these provisions either for Scotland as a whole or for particular local authorities in case demand pressures prove intolerable (Para 37).

Housing policy

(6) Guidance on the preparation of local housing strategies under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 should make homelessness a priority, and this should be reflected in the allocation of resources by Scottish Ministers (para 40).

(7) If current research confirms the usefulness of lead tenancies, this should be actively pursued by Communities Scotland using resources from their development programme (para 42).

(8) Local authorities should assess the local availability of affordable housing for young people seeking their own accommodation for the first time. Housing strategies should include proposals to address any shortfall (para 42).

(9) All local authorities should provide access to rent guarantee/deposit schemes by 2004. The Executive should issue national guidance on such schemes based on lessons learned from local pilots; local authorities should also receive initial funding to enable schemes to be set up (para 43).

(10) A national framework for furnished tenancies should be drawn up, with appropriate funding, by Communities Scotland. A national furniture grant scheme and furniture re-cycling network should be established. We propose a target of 1,000 additional furnished tenancies a year for 5 years, at which point further need should be assessed (para 45).

(11) The number and quality of accommodation offers to homeless applicants should be monitored by Communities Scotland (para 47).

(12) Future guidance on choice-based letting schemes should incorporate arrangements to prevent homeless people being disadvantaged (para 48).

Benefits

(13) The Scottish Executive should pursue with the Department for Work and Pensions how to meet the general need for more information about the operation of the benefits system in Scotland and for research into the impact of benefits policy on homeless people in Scotland (para 49).

(14) The Department for Work and Pensions should be asked (a) to review the adequacy of welfare benefits payable to 16-24 year olds generally and to young homeless people specifically, (b) to pursue ways of making agencies involved in helping homeless people more aware of the full scope of community care grant provision, (c) to consider making an adjustment to the regulations to permit applications for community care grants to be made prior to the offer of a tenancy, (d) to review whether the overall provision through the Social Fund is helping vulnerable and homeless people in the best way, (e) to consider making homeless people, and people resettling from temporary into permanent accommodation, a priority for funding, and (f) to review non-dependant deductions (para 49(i), (ii) and (iv)).

(15) The Scottish Executive should play a full part in monitoring the operation of the broader definition of single room rent and should provide evidence to the DWP of any problems that persist, both in the single room rent arrangements and in the wider measures in place to restrict rents (para 49(iii)).

(16) Local authorities’ homelessness strategies should incorporate standards for dealing with housing benefit claims and targets for improvements. Local authorities’ performance in delivering these standards and targets should be monitored by Communities Scotland, in collaboration with Audit Scotland, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Benefits Fraud Inspectorate. When housing stock is transferred from a local authority to a registered social landlord, care should be taken to ensure that this does not have any adverse effect on housing benefit administration (para 52).

(17) The need for more pro-active benefits outreach and for clear service priorities for at risk/homeless groups should be addressed in the design of the new Jobcentre Plus service (para 53).

Action to prevent homelessness

(18) Local homelessness strategies should review and, as necessary, make proposals for improvements in (i) the arrangements for early identification of those getting into housing difficulties, (ii) the advice and support available for those getting into difficulties, (iii) the advice and support available for those known to be at particular risk of homelessness and (iv) the provision of leaving home and housing education in schools and other youth services. Strategies should take account of the differing and specific needs of families and single people living in urban and rural areas. They should ensure that they take account of the needs of people of differing age, race, disability, gender, sexual orientation and belief (para 55).

(19) Homelessness strategies should review the availability, accessibility and quality of services such as relationship counselling/mediation, financial/debt advice, drug/alcohol counselling, advocacy and proactive action to manage neighbour disputes and tackle harassment. Local authorities should act proactively to ensure that those at greatest risk of homelessness are made aware of the support available, and are helped to access this support (para 56).

(20) Homelessness strategies should provide for specific, concentrated support programmes for those threatened with eviction. These programmes should include the provision of access to independent advice and representation (para 57).

(21) Local authorities should review their policies for arrears management and anti-social behaviour to ensure that they do not lead to unnecessary or avoidable homelessness. Other social landlords should be asked to conduct similar reviews as part of their contribution to local homelessness strategies (para 58).

(22) The Accounts Commission, Audit Scotland and Communities Scotland, in consultation with local authorities, should review the appropriateness of the "Current tenants’ arrears as a percentage of net rent due" Key Performance Indicator to determine whether an alternative approach could assist in reducing homelessness by reducing the number of households evicted for rent arrears (para 59).

(23) The Scottish Executive should discuss the issue of illegal eviction and harassment with the police, the Crown Office and local authorities (para 60).

(24) Before issuing a re-possession order in respect of a private sector tenant or an owner-occupier, courts should be placed under a requirement to have regard to the extent to which the conduct of third parties is a contributory factor (para 61(i)).

(25) Any landlord (other than a local authority landlord) or other person applying to the court for a re-possession order against a tenant or owner-occupier should be required to notify the relevant local authority of the application (para 61(ii)).

(26) Those responsible for prisoners, looked after children, long-stay hospital patients and the armed forces should develop high quality housing and homelessness advice services with support from Communities Scotland. Standards for these advice services should be set and monitored within the appropriate regulatory regime for each type of institution. Local authorities should ensure that appropriate linkages are being made between services in institutions and services in the community (para 62).

(27) The statutory obligation to provide aftercare should extend to all children who have spent 6 months or more in the care of the local authority between their twelfth birthday and school leaving age. All looked after children should receive appropriate housing advice, including advice on what to do in a crisis, before leaving care. The Looked After Children assessment and action records should be revised to check that this advice has been given and understood, and that future housing intentions are sustainable. Regular checks should be made on the housing circumstances of those leaving care for a period of at least 2 years. Contingency arrangements should be in place for dealing with emergencies or near emergencies and the careleaver should be aware of them. There should be a standard national form for recording the initial and subsequent housing locations of care leavers for at least 2 years after leaving care. Local authorities’ homelessness strategies should seek to identify measures which can be taken, in the light of our comments, to reduce the risk of homelessness among those with a care background (paras 66-67).

(28) On completion of the forthcoming evaluation, housing advice services currently provided in prisons should be put on a permanent footing (para 69).

(29) The Department for Work and Pensions should consider granting local authorities discretion to pay housing benefit to those expected to be in prison for more than 3 months if the prisoner agrees to a repayment plan in respect of the additional amount (para 70).

(30) In preparing their homelessness strategies, local authorities should take full account of the needs of those leaving the armed forces and their spouses or partners. Guidance to local authorities should stress that people due to leave the armed forces should be classified as threatened with homelessness where their licence to occupy service accommodation is due to expire and they have no other accommodation. Local authorities and other bodies which may come into contact with people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, should have procedures in place to identify ex-servicemen/women amongst this group and to signpost the assistance available to them. Following evaluation the Ministry of Defence should extend the SPACES project to parts of Scotland where there are significant numbers of service personnel. The Ministry of Defence should consider establishing a network of accessible contact points providing resettlement advice and assistance to those who have left the services (para 72).

(31) Asylum seekers granted leave to remain in the UK should be offered alternative accommodation if they do not wish to stay in the accommodation funded under NASS arrangements (para 74).

Action to deliver an effective response to homelessness

(32) Local authorities, through their homelessness strategies, should provide the direction and create the framework within which all agencies join up to bring together a range of accessible options that open up genuine opportunities for homeless people (para 75(iv)).

(33) All service providers, statutory and voluntary, should ensure that they are promoting values, attitudes and behaviour which deliver responsive and personalised services. They should ensure that staff are supported and trained in serving people affected by homelessness. Training should cover, as appropriate, the definition of homelessness, risk assessment techniques to help ‘first-to know’ agencies respond effectively, joint working with other agencies, support packages, consultation techniques and how to help and empower people experiencing homelessness to find appropriate solutions. Joint training approaches should be pursued. The training programmes run by the Scottish Training on Alcohol and Drug Abuse (STRADA) partnership should include coverage on serving homeless people (paras 76-77).

(34) Local authorities should establish crisis response systems which are flexible and provide individualised responses; ensure that all those without accommodation are able to access at least immediate emergency accommodation until appropriate assessment is carried out; are permanently available and accessible and perform a triage function; include joint protocols and procedures for needs assessment to ensure appropriate support for people with complex or multiple needs; have effective referral arrangements in place; ensure that explicit exit strategies are devised; and monitor and evaluate the outcomes of resettlement services and adjust and improve provision wherever appropriate. The effectiveness of these systems should be subject to inspection by Communities Scotland (paras 79 and 80).

(35) The Executive should provide advice on the development of crisis response services and a national database and web-site of homelessness services should be established (para 81).

(36) Local authorities should give priority to ensuring the availability of independent and informed advocacy services within their area and ensure that these services are well publicised. Advice and information should be made available in forms which are accessible by people of all ethnic groups and of all abilities (para 85).

(37) Local authorities should plan the delivery of a sufficient supply, range and location of temporary and supported accommodation. Provision should be made for the (sometimes very different) needs of families, young people and groups who currently find it difficult to access or sustain any form of accommodation. Large-scale hostels should be replaced by alternative provision. Homelessness strategies should include proposals to reduce the use of Bed & Breakfast to a minimum, and to eliminate its use for families (para 88).

(38) Homeless people should, wherever possible, be located in a community in which they feel comfortable and are likely to be fully integrated into community life. Wherever possible they should have the opportunity to live near friends and family and their workplace/school or higher/further education institution (para 89).

(39) Local authorities should ensure that appropriate support packages are available for homeless people during their resettlement (Para 90).

(40) Local authorities should plan the provision of barrier-free housing for varying needs and respond quickly to requirements for adaptations to housing stock which will prevent the occupier from becoming homeless (para 92).

(41) Local authorities’ homelessness strategies should be dovetailed with domestic abuse strategies. In drawing up their homelessness strategies, local authorities should review the information and advice available to those who are, or may become, homeless as a result of domestic abuse, the availability of safe emergency supported accommodation, the availability of suitable long-term accommodation and support packages, and the extent to which local arrangements recognise the needs of children. Homelessness strategies should address the needs of all those who are or may become homeless as a result of domestic abuse, including young people and older people (para 93-94).

(42) A high priority should be placed upon monitoring of quality and delivery of Health and Homelessness Action Plans. The Health Department’s Primary Care Modernisation Group should set out how the primary care needs of homeless people would best be met (para 99(i)).

(43) All local authorities should record information about the GP registration of all those who register as homeless, and should offer information about local health services to homeless people rehoused outwith their existing GP area (para 99(i)).

(44) NHS Boards should ensure their strategic planning embraces the current and future service needs of homeless people. Drug and Alcohol Action Teams should include, in their planning priorities, the service requirements of homeless people relating to substance misuse. Monitoring of the effectiveness of such processes should be undertaken through the Scottish Executive’s assessment of Local Health Plans and Corporate Action Plans on Substance Misuse (para 99(ii)).

(45) NHS Boards should ensure that all children in homeless families are able to access the full range of universal health services for children; and the Health and Homelessness Co-ordinator should monitor this action (para 99(iii)).

(46) NHS Boards should address the provision of mental health services to homeless people to minimise the barriers to access. Being free from substance-misuse should not be an automatic pre-condition for access to services (para 99(iv)).

(47) Actions within the national drugs and alcohol plans which will prevent addictions contributing to homelessness and which will tackle substance misuse amongst homeless people, should be given high priority. The recommendations of the Glasgow Street Homelessness Team in relation to the development and provision of drug and alcohol services to hostel dwellers should be more widely applied. Local action to tackle substance misuse and homelessness in parallel should be developed through homelessness strategies and Drug and Alcohol Action Team plans. The results of Scottish Executive work on effective interventions in tackling substance misuse should be disseminated to support commissioners and purchasers of services and service providers in both homelessness and drugs and alcohol agencies (para 99(v)).

(48) In the case of primary care services, specialist provision should be seen as transitional for all but a small number of homeless people. It should provide planned support over a reasonable period of time until individuals are re-housed and settled with access to their local GP practice and primary health care team. The general approach should be to support homeless people to maintain their current health networks or to establish new regular contact with mainstream health services (para 99(vii)).

(49) The Health and Homelessness Co-ordinator, whose remit includes setting standards for homelessness training programmes, should support training on homelessness for health professionals and ancillary staff (para 99 (viii)).

(50) Jobcentre Plus should, as a key priority, improve gateways for homeless people to access mainstream employment services and programmes. This should include systematic skills auditing of homeless people, ensuring easy access to employment services for homeless people and linking relevant employment initiatives to establish coherent systems for individual progression (para 105).

(51) Jobcentre Plus should work with the Scottish Executive and the Scottish New Deal Task Force to engage employers to develop employment initiatives targeted at vulnerable and homeless people. This should include wider employer participation in relevant transitional employment programmes for homeless people. Jobcentre Plus should examine ways of supporting employers who are willing to participate in initiatives to employ homeless people, particularly smaller employers who lack the resources of the large corporate organisations. Appropriate business networks should be enlisted to promote such initiatives. (paras 106-107).

(52) Public sector employers should also examine ways of creating and expanding work opportunities for homeless people. New public sector initiatives should strive to employ homeless people in the provision of their services (para 108).

(53) Transitional employment programmes should be piloted in Scotland to test the creation of new incentives to work for homeless people. Such pilots should test how flexibility around housing benefit payments could overcome the poverty trap faced by homeless people when trying to access employment. The Department for Work and Pensions should aim to develop and test in 2002 a pilot scheme with The Big Issue in Scotland. If the Department for Work and Pensions is unable to overcome impediments in Social Security legislation which may prevent potentially effective schemes, UK Ministers should consider amending the relevant legislation to remove these hurdles (para 110).

(54) A clear action plan should be developed to use the results of the ongoing evaluation of New Futures Fund services to transfer successful service elements onto a permanent footing over the next 3 years. If proved successful, the relevance of the Routeways initiative and other similar approaches should be considered for application in Scotland (paras 111-112).

(55) The strength of a homeless person’s social networks should be an integral part of the assessment of their needs and of the support offered to them in temporary accommodation and during permanent resettlement. All projects serving homeless people should pursue strategies to promote and support opportunities for positive social interaction (paras 114-115).

(56) A national co-ordination role should be created to build and co-ordinate local mediation, befriending and mentoring services for homeless people across Scotland. This role would also evaluate existing projects, disseminate good practice and facilitate information sharing (para 117).

(57) Local authorities, through their homelessness strategies, should develop practical means of enabling people affected by homelessness to (re)build social networks. This may involve the use of new independent services or a review, with Social Inclusion Partnerships, of current practice (para 118).

Delivery

(58) A monitoring group should be set up to take forward the action programme. The group should pay particular (but not exclusive) attention to movement in the number of households applying under the homelessness legislation; the number of households assessed as homeless; the proportion of homeless households placed directly into permanent accommodation; the number of households experiencing repeat homelessness; the number of homeless households — particularly families with children — in Bed & Breakfast; time spent in Bed & Breakfast; time taken by the local authority to deal with cases, and customer satisfaction indices (paras 120-121).

(59) An expanded suite of questions relating to homelessness should be included in the Scottish Household Survey from 2003 (para 122).

< Previous | Contents | Next >