Scotland ‘still nowhere near’ addressing the scale of housing challenge

ONE year on from Scotland declaring a housing emergency, trade body Homes for Scotland has called for the Scottish Government to implement the ‘radical intervention’ required to tackle the situation.

Jane Wood, HFS chief executive, said we are ‘still nowhere near’ addressing the scale of this challenge.

“Indeed, we don’t even have an official exit strategy or metric from the Scottish Government to tell us when the emergency might be over,” she added. “This simply isn’t acceptable. We require more than what can only be described as a business-as-usual response from the Scottish Government which regularly cites arbitrary comparisons regarding housing delivery with other parts of the UK rather than acknowledge the 693,000 Scottish households currently living in housing need.

“The reality of the situation in Scotland is stark and it demands an emergency response. Over the last twelve months, we have seen homelessness reach another record high with over 16,500 households (including more than 10,000 children) in temporary accommodation, and housing starts and completions across all sectors continue to fall across consecutive years.

“Indeed, the significance of the housing challenge facing Scotland and need for bold and radical leadership to tackle this is now being amplified across business and academia. Over the last number of weeks we have seen the David Hume Institute, Prosper and the CBI clearly call for a rethinking of housing policy to grow the economy and protect the social wellbeing of the people of Scotland.

“Issuing a clear call to deliver an all-tenure target of at least 25,000 new homes each year in Scotland would give clear strategic direction and intent between national and local policymakers to prioritise new housing delivery. Returning to pre-recession levels of home building in Scotland would generate £3.7 billion in total economic output to the Scottish economy and support 87,000 high quality jobs each year.”

Homes for Scotland is to undertake a consumer campaign to challenge public thinking and help to inform civic society on the need for new homes and the wide-ranging benefits they offer. 

Creative agency Muckle Media has been appointed to lead on developing the brief for the campaign, entitled ‘Homes Build Futures’.

The campaign, which is supported by Lloyds Banking Group, will support the trade body’s primary purpose of delivering more homes for the people of Scotland. Everything the HFS team does is focused on identifying the barriers that prevent this happening and developing solutions to tackle them. Current key constraints are said to include the planning system and the impact of recent and proposed legislation which it has been estimated will add £34,000 to the cost of building a new home. 

Jane Wood said, “Scotland’s housing system is in a precarious position with 28% of households identified as being in some form of housing need, with homelessness at record levels as demand continues to outstrip supply. While government and those on the front line of the housing sector are fully aware of the emergency the country finds itself in, it is a subject matter that often flies under the radar for many in their busy day-to-day lives but we all have examples from colleagues, friends and family on the impact the current situation is having on their ability to lead full lives, achieve their potential and plan for the future. 

“We are not just talking about housing for now, we are talking about ensuring that housing needs are being met for our children and their children to come.  

“In working with Muckle Media, we’ll be exploring new ways to bring the topic into the homes of consumers, as well as politicians, so that it’s an issue that hopefully transcends the board room to people’s living rooms. We’re also working with (architect and TV presenter) George Clarke to help maximise our reach and very excited about what’s to come. We are looking forward to revealing plans of the campaign soon.”

Nathalie Agnew, MD and founder of Muckle Media, added, “One of our core brand values is to leave the world in a better place, and working with Homes for Scotland will allow us to contribute to that mission by supporting thought-provoking campaigns that address Scotland’s desperate housing needs and help shift the dial when it comes to consumer opinion. We’re really looking forward to helping to drive positive change within the housing sector.”