Evening Telegraph (First Edition)
Cash plea to help
being provided with temporary stays in places such as B&Bs.
“But with that, we expect to see the council using their budget on the massive costs of that alone, leaving little to no money to provide support to get people back into permanent housing.”
Last year, Dundee City Council had seen a 16% increase in people seeking temporary accommodation during the pandemic, with the total number of households increasing from around 300 in mid-May to 420 by mid-August.
The local authority is looking to tackle the issue by using a combination of different accommodation including its newly-deployed Housing First.
Housing First prioritises the right to a home above the obligation to engage with housing support services or transitional housing arrangements first.
The model is designed to meet the specific needs of homeless individuals with complex and interconnected support needs.
Malcolm added: “We are Housing First providers through our partnership with Dundee City Council and it is a really good tool but probably not the only resource needed.
“Housing First’s primary focus is to get a tenancy agreement for the individual, which Dundee has been very successful in doing, and then implementing a person-centred approach for supporting them and ensuring they keep up with tenancy agreements, whether that be with statutory support, debt management or substance abuse support.
“There is a lot of contributing factors to homelessness and we need to ensure that these issues are supported for as long or for as short a period as needed.
“That is why it is so important that funding to close that gap is found so that the support can continue to be provided.
“Unfortunately, as a charity the Salvation Army has seen their public giving greatly reduced, something which has hit a lot of charities hard.
“Without the additional means being found to support the inevitable rise in need, we will be unable to step up and fill that gap ourselves.”
Sam Evans, 53, found himself trapped as he was moved from one temporary home to another after he became homeless in 2013.
It was through the Salvation Army and its support that he was able to move into his own home after months of turmoil.
Sam, who now works alongside the Salvation Army’s catering team at Strathmore Lodge, has said it’s vital those requiring homes are supported.
“I was in and out of hostels and B&Bs, and it became a minefield as to where I would end up next,” he said.
“Some of the accommodation was terrible and had a damaging impact on my mental health.
“I was just a meal ticket for many temporary accommodation