Number of children in temporary accommodation reaches record level – figures

The number of children living in temporary accommodation has reached another record high – despite figures showing a fall in homelessness.

The latest Scottish Government statistics revealed that, on September 30 last year, there were 18,092 households – including 10,480 children – in temporary accommodation, with these the highest totals since 2002.

While the number of youngsters in such accommodation, which includes furnished local authority properties as well as hostels and B&Bs, had risen by 1% from September 2024, the number of households in temporary accommodation was up by 9% over the year.

Housing campaigners at Shelter Scotland said the increasing use of temporary accommodation was a problem “decades in the making”.

Shelter Scotland director Alison Watson said: “Despite promises, this has been a lost parliament for the 10,480 children without a home.

“Since 2021, we have seen the number of homeless applications/assessments rise by 18%, and the number of children in temporary accommodation soaring.

“These numbers – all representing real people, real families – are now increasingly accepted as a reality of Scotland in 2026.”

Scottish Labour housing spokesperson Mark Griffin said First Minister John Swinney “should hang his head in shame over his Government’s record on housing”.

The Labour MSP said: “We have had years of warm words and empty promises from a succession from SNP ministers, but the number of kids spending their childhood stuck in temporary accommodation is at its worst point ever.

“The declaration of a national housing emergency in 2024 should have been a call to action – but the SNP has reduced this landmark moment to a cheap gimmick by failing to step up.”

Richard Meade, chief executive of the Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA), also hit out, saying: “The level of homelessness in modern-day Scotland is simply unconscionable and is causing untold misery for thousands of families and children across the country.

“We aren’t seeing these numbers fall, in fact, a substantially higher number of people are not even being offered temporary accommodation. This can’t go on.”

There were 10,710 cases between April and September 2025 where households were not offered temporary accommodation by local councils – with the report noting this was “quite a bit higher than the 7,565 in 2024”.

Of such cases, 6,815 were in Glasgow, with 3,585 in Edinburgh.

The increase in the use of temporary accommodation came despite a fall in households applying for help with homelessness, with this dropping to 20,643 over April to September, 2% less than the same period in 2024.

A total of 17,291 households assessed as homeless or threatened with homelessness between April and September 2025, with this again 2% down on the same period 12 months before.

But the number of cases that were “open” and still being dealt with rose to 33,006 as of September 30 last year, a rise of 4% from the previous year and the highest since 2003.

The data also showed an increase in homelessness applications made by refugees and those who have been granted leave to remain in the UK.

There were 3,020 applications for help made by these groups in the six months covering April to September 2025 – up from 1,955 when compared to the same period in 2024, with applications from Ukrainian displaced households increased from 160 to 180 over this time.

“Together, these groups accounted for 16% of homelessness applications nationally,” the report said.

Housing secretary Mairi McAllan said this showed the “severe pressure that services are under due to the Home Office’s mismanagement of the asylum system, particularly in Glasgow”.

Calling for action from Westminster, she said: “The UK Government must provide additional support for Glasgow City Council.”

McAllan is now seeking an urgent meeting with UK immigration minister Alex Norris and Glasgow City Council on the issue.

While the housing secretary accepted there is “still much to do” to tackle homelessness, she said the Government is “determined to turn the tide and ensure everyone has the opportunity of a place to call home”.

She said: “To end homelessness, we must deliver more affordable homes and ensure people are supported to prevent homelessness happening in the first place.

“We have already delivered far more affordable homes per head of population than England and Wales. In next year’s budget, we’ve allocated a record-breaking £926 million to affordable homes. This is the largest funding allocation for affordable housebuilding since records began in 1989.”

She noted that Scotland had introduced “gold-standard homelessness prevention measures” and also said the Government had introduced a new, national fund to support women fleeing domestic abuse to help them avoid homelessness.

The housing secretary insisted the Scottish Government is taking an “activist approach” to “tackle the housing emergency and ensure no one in Scotland needs to experience the harm and trauma of homelessness and has the opportunity of a permanent, stable home”.

But Mr Meade said: “We cannot begin to tackle homelessness without a radical and credible plan to build far more secure, warm and affordable homes.”

The SFHA chief executive added: “The reality is that ending the housing emergency is going to require significantly increased public funding beyond what has already been announced.”

Maureen Chalmers, community wellbeing spokesperson for the local government body Cosla, said the latest figures were “disappointing, even if they show some homeless metrics stabilising for applications and assessments”.

She added: “Whilst we are seeing some progress, including fewer breaches of unsuitable accommodation orders, homelessness continues to have a profound impact on individuals and families across our communities.”