What has devolution done for the homeless?

Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have had 10 years of devolved government – a decade in which changes in homelessness law as a result of devolution have opened up big gaps in the way people who become homeless are treated in different parts of the UK.

It’s been a decade in which the Scottish parliament has taken a lead in guaranteeing that by 2012 – with very few exceptions – all homeless people will be entitled to permanent rehousing. ‘Priority need’ status has been extended – but will eventually be abolished under Scotland’s changes in the law.

An interim target has been set for Scottish local authorities to reduce their ‘non-priority’ assessments by 50 per cent by 2009 (an announcement on this will be made in September). This extension of the statutory safety net was made possible, in part, by the supply of social housing, which is greater in Scotland than in the rest of the UK – an advantage that has diminished during the past decade.