Homelessness is on the rise in Edinburgh, new figures show, as charities warn the worst is yet to come.
According to the latest statistics published by the council, 2,403 households were assessed as being homeless or threatened with homelessness in 2021/22 – up 23 per cent from 1,958 the year previous.
And it is feared this will continue to rise as the cost of living crisis pulls more people in the capital and across the country into poverty, with potential for a "huge spike in homelessness" in the coming months.
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A report updating councillors on Edinburgh's five-year Rapid Rehousing Transition Plan (RRTP) also showed that the number of cases where the council has a duty to provide settled housing rose 28.5 per cent over the same period.
In addition, the length of time taken by the council to close a case, which the report noted "has been steadily increasing since 2012/13", jumped from 379 days in 2019/20 to 618 days in 2021/22 and rose 21 per cent last year.
This has resulted in "both an increase in the number of open cases at the end of a year and in the average time to close a homeless case," the report states, adding: "A recent increase in case closures will have further exacerbated this figure."
The average length of stay for a household in temporary accommodation in the year up to 31 March remained at 317 days.
Of those assessed as 'unintentionally homeless', 1,051 – 60 per cent – secured settled housing in 2021/22 which is an increase of 13 per cent from the previous year. However this represents a significant drop from two years ago when 1,782 people were rehoused.
Mental health continues to be the prevalent support need for the homeless, with 42 per cent of households without secure accommodation seeking help.
Kiran Ramchandani, director of policy and external affairs at homeless prevention charity Crisis, said: “Action taken since the start of the pandemic dramatically reduced the number of people sleeping rough across Scotland and undoubtedly saved lives."
She added that while the number of people sleeping on the streets of Edinburgh "fell to extremely low levels" during the Covid-19 crisis, the number "trapped in temporary accommodation" is "still far too high".
Ms Ramchandani said: “We are deeply concerned that the spiralling cost of living could force more Scots into homelessness. We know what happens when people’s incomes fall behind their living costs.
"Rising rents, spiralling energy bills and insufficient welfare support all combine to put people under more and more pressure. At some point that pressure becomes too much, and they are forced into homelessness.
“Unless we see urgent action, we face the very real prospect of a huge spike in homelessness over the coming months. It is vital the UK Government acts now, to invest in housing benefit to stop people losing their homes.
"We also strongly support new plans from the Scottish Government to strengthen homelessness prevention and ensure people receive the support they need, when they need it, to remain in their homes.”
Cllr Jane Meagher, convener of the Housing, Homelessness, and Fair Work Committee, said: “Whilst I wholeheartedly regret that the number of households assessed as homeless has risen, these figures remain lower than pre-pandemic levels.”
“There is significant demand for social housing in Edinburgh which currently outstrips supply. This impacts on the number of open cases of homelessness and the time required to conclude a case.”
“We are committed to supporting people to access social housing.”
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