Housing emergency declared in Aberdeen

The aim is to tackle homelessness and increase housing supply

Councillors in Aberdeen have declared a housing emergency in the city.

The Scottish government declared a national housing emergency back in May, recognising a shortage of affordable, quality homes.

Now Aberdeen's housing committee has passed a cross-party motion for an action plan to tackle homelessness and increase housing supply.

The council will write to the Scottish and UK governments to request "immediate support" for what was described as a "grave situation".

The action plan move was backed by several housing and homelessness organisations.

They claim lives are being damaged by inaction.

Figures from Shelter Scotland showed the number of children in temporary accommodation in the city had more than doubled in the last year.

Gordon MacRae, assistant director of Shelter Scotland, spoke at the meeting.

Mr MacRae said a "whole city view" was needed to tackle the problem.

Gordon MacRae of Shelter Scotland said action was needed

"How do we go from a situation now where hundreds if not thousands of people in the city are denied the dignity of a safe, secure affordable home and how do we get to a place in the future where that basic human right isn't just a privilege of some," he said.

Hundreds of homes in Aberdeen affected by potentially dangerous concrete are to be demolished and rebuilt. Reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) was identified in more than 500 council and private properties earlier this year.

Mr MacRae said: "The RAAC situation in Aberdeen is a symptom not a cause of the city's housing emergency.

"It's an example of what happens when you fail to invest in good quality housing and maintenance and repairs over the long term.

"And it's just the latest shock to an already fragile housing and homelessness system that is already struggling to meet demand."

The council will also request that the Scottish government urgently reviews its decision to cut its Affordable Housing Supply Programme allocation to Aberdeen by 24% for 2024/25.

Housing Minister Paul McLennan said: “Since 2007, Scotland has supported the delivery of more than 131,000 affordable homes, with more than 93,000 of those being for social rent.

"We will invest nearly £600m in affordable housing in 2024-25, the majority of which will be for social rent. This year, Aberdeen City Council will receive at least £12.1m.

“We have also made record funding available to councils to deliver a range of services, including tackling homelessness, of more than £14bn in 2024-25 – a real-terms increase of 4.3% compared with the previous year.

"In addition, the homelessness prevention measures in the housing bill aim to ensure shared public responsibility and earlier intervention to prevent homelessness.”