Temporary Accommodation Task and Finish Group: final report and recommendations

Appendix 6: HARSAG principles of temporary accommodation funding

The interim report of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group^[30] from May 2018 included a detailed section on the financing of TA including a set of funding principles, or recommendations. The principles were repeated in the final report of the group^[31] and are copied below:

• The costs of homelessness and temporary accommodation should be a citizen-funded service, supported by Local Authority General Fund finance, and by Scottish Government Grant Aided Expenditure.
• The Scottish Government and COSLA should present a strong case to the UK Government for temporary accommodation funding support through housing benefit to be devolved to Scotland.
• In order to tackle poverty and give people an opportunity to access employment, training or further education and to move onto more settled accommodation, support for homelessness services should be given via a flexible grant system.
• Rents should be set at a level similar to the Local Housing Allowance rate in order to provide a more equitable system and provide a clearer path for people to move on from TA.
• Local authorities will need financial support to bridge the funding gap created by moving to an LHA equivalent rent while at the same time ensuring that the standards of temporary accommodation and support are maintained.
• The Scottish Government should address this as part of the transformation of the use of temporary accommodation in Scotland.
• That the devolved housing benefit funding for temporary accommodation should be ring-fenced to ensure that spending is not repurposed and focusses on preventing homelessness.