12th Scottish council declares a housing emergency

Another Scottish council has declared a ‘housing emergency’ making it the 12^th local authority in Scotland to declare a housing crisis.

East Renfrewshire council says challenges in the local housing market have made it difficult to keep up with demand.

East Renfrewshire has the lowest percentage of social housing in mainland Scotland, with only 11.4% of homes in the region being social housing, whereas the Scottish average is 22.9%.

The news comes after the Scottish government declared a housing emergency earlier this year and wants to introduce rent controls to tackle the housing crisis.

Almost 200 households in temporary accommodation

According to the council, homeless applications have jumped by 53% compared to just a 10% increase Scotland-wide.

East Renfrewshire council adds the number of council homes becoming available for new tenants—such as through people moving out—has dropped over the past five years, from around 260 to 190 homes per year.

The council says there are currently 350 households recognised as homeless and waiting for a place to live, with almost 200 households in temporary accommodation, including bed and breakfasts.

Increase in homelessness has grown

Housing and environment convener, Councillor Danny Devlin, said: “Declaring a housing emergency isn’t a decision we’ve taken lightly. The increase in homelessness over the past five years has continued and has grown at significantly higher rates than the national average.

“The situation is exacerbated here in East Renfrewshire as it remains an extremely popular place to live and the local housing market is not equipped to deal with this increase in demand.

“We’ve actions in place to work towards mitigating the pressures and will continue to work with partners to prioritise actions and develop plans to tackle the crisis over the coming months and years.”

One of the plans the council is considering to address the housing emergency involves boosting the percentage of lets to homeless households to 70% for existing stock and 40% for new builds, along with reviewing agreements with local registered social landlords.