Glasgow homeless shelter facing closure after council refuses planning application

An application to keep a homeless night shelter in Glasgow open has been refused by councillors.

Homeless Project Scotland has been operating the facility on Glassford Street for several years without the necessary approval needed.

The application would have allowed the charity to continue operating a 24-hour night shelter and soup kitchen for the next five years.

Today’s decision by the council’s planning committee could mean the shelter is closed for good, affecting dozens of homeless people and volunteers.

The decision was not unanimous, with eight councillors voting to refuse and two to approve.

Glasgow City Council had recommended the application be refused, citing concerns over the rise in anti-social behaviour in the area since the shelter’s opening.

Volunteers wait for the councillor's decision on the night shelter. — Volunteers wait for the councillor’s decision on the night shelter. STV News

The council’s report listed several other reasons for refusal, including increased public disorder, unsuitable location, impact on nearby businesses, and a lack of a licence to cook and serve hot food.

In response, members of the Homeless Project Scotland staged a protest at Glasgow City Chambers earlier this week, ahead of the vote by the planning committee.

They also issued a public plea to councillors to save the shelter from closure, saying it was “vital” to helping the city’s homeless population.

Speaking to STV News following the decision, Homeless Project Scotland’s chief executive, Colin McInnes, said he was “disgusted”.

He said: “I don’t have words to describe how angry I feel inside my body at this moment in time.

“What councillors have voted for today is to push people onto the streets, push people into multiple doorways, so that the problem is not seen as vividly as it is in Glassford Street.

“They would rather the problem is spread across the city rather than come to one point in the city.”

Colin McInnes vowed to fight the decision that would mean closing the night shelter. STV News

During the meeting, it was claimed that crime in the area had risen because of the night shelter, something which Mr McInnes has denied.

Police Scotland submitted that 274 crimes have been recorded directly attributed to the night shelter since January 2024.

He explained the crime figures as people reporting crimes from the safety of the night shelter rather than at the crime’s actual location.

It was also noted that police had not objected to the application.

Despite being refused permission at Tuesday’s meeting, the shelter should remain open for the foreseeable future, as Homeless Project Scotland is likely to lodge an appeal with the Scottish Government.

The appeal will not be heard until March next year, meaning the shelter should remain open over the winter.

It will be up to the government to issue a final decision on whether it can remain open.