Our Armed Forces community require suitable housing that best meets their needs. The Scottish veterans’ housing landscape has seen many developments in recent years, including structures, legislation and policy to help house veterans and their families.
Many veterans and families who apply for social housing find that this is not always a smooth process and seek help from military charities to navigate their way through what can be a complex process.
In June 2018, the Scottish Government published homelessness statistics that showed about 3% of applicants for housing were previously in the Armed Forces. Poppyscotland spoke with veterans and their families whose experiences suggested that there is still a challenge in relation to giving national policy and legislation proper effect.
Therefore, the Scottish Government should establish a Veterans’ Housing Action Group, which works alongside the Veterans’ Housing sector. The role of this group would be to:
Over the course of the next Scottish Parliament, the Scottish Government should:
Establish a Veterans’ Housing Action Group with powers to review challenging cases, oversee the effective implementation of the Veterans’ Housing Pathway, and act on any recommendations it makes.
"When I left the Army, I moved back in with my Mum for eight years until I secured a place of my own last year. I had been on the waiting list for a long time but the local authority did not have an appropriate property to offer me. There was a big backlog, and I could not get hold of the Council easily by phone or email to get the help I needed. Veterans should get the help they deserve – after all they have put their life on the line for their country so should get the support they need."
ANDREW DALEY (Not their real name to respect client confidentiality)