Fife Council struggling with temporary housing demands as homelessness on the rise

The report was given to councillors this week

Fife Council is “regularly” breaching one of the Scottish Government’s housing requirements as it struggles to cope with temporary housing demands as homelessness rates have increased.

As a result, Fife’s Housing Service is reporting “regular breaches of the Unsuitable Accommodation Order”.

Fife’s Housing Services presented these issues to the People and Communities Scrutiny Committee on Thursday as part of the larger Housing Service Performance Report. Fife is one of nine local authorities in Scotland who are regularly not meeting those statutory requirements.

John Mills, head of Fife’s Housing Services, explained that the Kingdom is breaching the unsuitable accommodation order because of its use of hotels and B&Bs to accommodate people who present as homeless.

“We are using hotels and B&Bs to meet our other statutory obligations most days of the year,” he said. “One of the critical things is we don’t have enough temporary accommodation in Fife. That’s why on a given day we might not be able to accommodate someone. That’s a breach and that’s not good enough but we are one of a few other local authorities in that position.”

The performance report said the number of homeless people is rising not only in Fife but across the nation.

“Although the pressure on temporary accommodation is disproportionate and more severe than the increase in new presentations,” the report explains. “Temporary Accommodation continues to operate under significant pressure which translates as occasional breaches of statutory duty and regular breaches of the Unsuitable Accommodation Order.”

Mr Mills said Fife is one of nine local authorities in Scotland who are regularly not meeting those statutory requirements. There are a few plans for improvement in the pipeline, and the government is working with Fife to find long term solutions.

Housing Services want to continue decommissioning the use of B&B and hotel accommodation for local housing and homelessness needs. There is also an increased focus on homelessness prevention and a strengthening of housing service pathways.

A homeless reduction plan will be brought to Fife’s Cabinet Committee in October, which will outline more specific actions.