Households ‘trapped’ on social housing waiting list experiencing ‘devastating’ consequences, says SFHA

People waiting for social housing in Scotland experience significant negative impacts to their mental and physical health, children, finances, social life and employment, according to new research.

Commissioned by the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) and housing association Wheatley Group, findings from the ‘Still Waiting’ report show the “devastating” experience of some of the 250,000 “trapped” in queues for affordable homes in Scotland.

Many of the 30 people aged between their 20s and 60s who were interviewed for the project reported living in properties with poor conditions such as disrepair and mould; feelings of insecurity due to not having a permanent or suitable home, and unaffordable rent or high bills.

In May 2024, the Scottish government formally declared a national housing emergency. The report comes as MPs are set to approve the Scottish government budget for 2025-26 today, which includes an effective reversal of last year’s cut to the affordable homes budget.

>>See also: How do we respond to the devastating affordable housing funding cuts in Scotland?

>>See also: Scottish government restores £200m to affordable housing budget

While the SFHA has said it welcomes the £212m uplift for housing, it has called for a long-term funding plan for more social homes.

Reacting to the report, Sally Thomas  chief executive at the SFHA, described the findings as “devastating”.

She said: “We know that nearly 250,000 people in Scotland are on a waiting list for a social home: this report shows that they are often trapped in insecure, unaffordable housing which does not meet their needs and takes a significant toll on their physical and mental wellbeing.

“Delivering more social homes has to be a national priority. While it was of course welcome that the Scottish Budget saw consensus on restoring the Affordable Housing Supply Programme, this needs to be ramped up over a number of years to give housing associations the certainty to build at the required scale.

Steven Henderson, chief executive of Wheatley Group, said: “IThis report outlines the challenges and hardship faced by people on waiting lists and the devasting impact it has on the lives of families. “We are determined to use our scale and capacity to play our part in addressing the acute shortage of affordable housing in Scotland.”

The research was carried out by Altair Research.