Homelessness: introduction

Under the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987, someone is considered homeless if they have no permanent accommodation in the UK, or if they have accommodation but cannot reasonably use it, for example because of inability to gain access, threat of violence, or overcrowding which threatens health. 

Homeless people may live in a variety of situations, including sleeping outdoors (“sleeping rough”), staying in hostels, bed and breakfast and temporary supported accommodation, staying with acquaintances (“sofa surfing”), and living in overcrowded housing.

The causes of homelessness are complex, and there is rarely one single trigger. Poverty, a lack of affordable housing, and restrictions on access to, and levels of, social security support are all factors; these often interact with individual and interpersonal vulnerabilities such as mental health problems or relationship breakdown (Watts et al, 2024).

The Covid-19 pandemic and accompanying policy changes - such as measures to prevent evictions - have had major impacts on the occurrence of, and response to, homelessness in Scotland. These are discussed in more detail in following sections.