Aberdeen City Council has signed up to a new scheme to help tackle homelessness.
The Housing First initiative, backed by Josh Littlejohn – co-founder of the Social Bite shops in Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Dundee – will result in hundreds of flats being provided for homeless people, who will also receive support from local charities.
Aberdeen City Council has pledged 120 of the 800 homes, while Glasgow and Edinburgh will build 275 each, Dundee 110 and Stirling 20.
Mr Littlejohn, 31, who was in the Granite City yesterday to promote his Sleep in the Park venture on December 8, has been campaigning for a more joined-up approach to tackling homelessness.
He told the Press and Journal he was delighted that so many different organisations, including the Scottish Government, had thrown their weight behind an overhaul of the current system.
The Housing First programme in the north-east has been created in partnership with the city council and Aberdeen Cyrenians, Aberdeen Foyer and Turning Point.
Mr Littlejohn said: “When we started out in 2012, we were just a little coffee shop in Edinburgh and we had very little interaction with politics or politicians.
“But now, we are increasingly seeing more crossover between a lot of groups and the great thing is we seem to be pulling in the same direction.
“The Scottish Government has pledged £4million to the programme and we need to raise more money as well, which is why we are holding the Sleep in the Park events, across Scotland’s four biggest cities in December.
“We are hoping that 12,000 people will take part, and are looking for 2,000 to commit to sleeping out in Duthie Park in Aberdeen.
“This will help us move forward with Housing First, which is a really bold new plan to provide flats and wrap-around support for those who need help.
“Until now, councils have often found that dealing with homelessness is very difficult. It’s not just councils, but the NHS and the police who often have to grapple with the background problems of those without homes.
“That can involve addiction, or illness, or it can mean people who are in and out of prison. It’s breaking that spiral which is one of the biggest challenges.
“But Housing First can change that and I am confident it will do so. The programme is initially for two years, but my hope is that it will continue after that in perpetuity.”
Councillor Sandra Macdonald, the authority’s housing spokeswoman, said: “We welcome the Housing First initiative and we have been working to introduce the approach since last year, partnering with local organisations including Aberdeen Cyrenians, Aberdeen Foyer and Turning Point, housing associations, and landlords to reduce homelessness across the city.
“The initiative is in addition to projects the City Council was already working on. There are plans to build 2,000 new homes across the city, including council houses and accommodation to help the most vulnerable people in society including homeless people.”
