24 July 2024
HSEU News: The Future of Supported Housing as a Response to Homelessness in Scotland
The Supported Housing Task and Finish Group, appointed by Scottish Government and COSLA, publishes its final report today setting out the future role of supported housing in Scotland.

As announced by Homeless Network Scotland, the Supported Housing Task and Finish Group, appointed by Scottish Government and COSLA, publishes its final report today, recommending that national and local emergency plans should prioritise work focused on reducing temporary accommodation and the better targeting of shared and supported forms of housing.
The Task and Finish Group, co-chaired by Homeless Network Scotland chief executive Maggie Brunjes and Scottish Federation of Housing Associations policy lead Eileen McMullan, provides recommendations to the Scottish Government, local authorities and housing providers to create a model that enables social landlords to remodel or reprovision existing models of supported housing.
Yvette Burgess, Unit Director, represented the Housing Support Enabling Unit on the group.
The report recognises that most people can build and live their lives in an ordinary home as part of an ordinary community, but that supported housing should be available for a very small proportion of the population who are unable or don’t want to live in mainstream housing. Importantly, this should be a settled housing option for as long as someone wants it, and therefore breaking the stigma of ‘homeless’ supported housing altogether.
The review was informed by evidence from expert contributors on housing and support themes, a survey of 19 local authorities providing supported accommodation across Scotland, case studies of existing good practice, and lived experience expertise.
Key recommendations from the evidence-led review include:
- An ideal model of supported housing offering a self-contained home in a smaller-scale setting, with its own bathroom and cooking facilities, easy access to great support, some common space, and consistent quality standards.
- Maximising security of tenure for tenants plus fair funding arrangements to make sure no one is stuck in a life-limiting ‘benefit trap’ created by high rents.
- Moving to a joint funding and commissioning model between health and social care partnerships and local authorities, to break the ‘care group’ stigma attached to supported housing’s legacy as shared ‘homeless’ accommodation.
The report also recommends that housing and support providers work with the local authority and HSCP on an integrated plan for supported housing in each area to improve provision.
You can read the full report and a summary report on the Homeless Network Scotland website.