We’re running out of words. We’ve used “housing emergency” to explain the failure of our housing markets to provide adequate homes for everyone. Yet the cost of building and buying homes rises relentlessly and the Scottish Government is strapped for cash.

“Crisis” lost its power long ago, a word used to label one of many organisations dedicated to ending homelessness, but somehow never succeeding. The work that Crisis and Shelter and many others do is clearly valuable, but the problem persists. A significant chunk of people in Scotland simply cannot afford to house themselves.

Add in factors of physical disability, neurodivergence and issues of literacy and the problem becomes more acute. Then it’s not just about the availability of housing; it’s about a coherent system of care and support which enables people to live in the community, safely and enjoyably.

In the latest episode of the Scottish Housing News Podcast, Kieran Findlay and I spoke to Elaine Ritchie, strategic lead for housing and communities at Perth & Kinross Council, and Jacquie Pepper, who heads up the P&K Health & Social Care Partnership.

We spoke about getting people out of hospital into “core and cluster” units; about the way that the partnership and the council work together on housing vulnerable people through an Independent Living Panel; and Jacquie described the transformation which a combination of the right housing and care can bring.

Elaine was proud of the high percentage of accessible homes Perth & Kinross include in their new build programmes.

But in the end, we spoke about the housing crisis, which in Perth & Kinross is very real. Jacquie spoke of the difficulty of getting medical and emergency personnel to live and work in Perthshire’s attractive rural areas, where tourism absorbs many of the houses.

Elaine pointed out that the council’s allocation for building affordable homes had been cut by 25%. “We’re being asked to do more, with less”, she said. Then Elaine used that word “crisis”, and she clearly meant what she said. The problem is that society seems to be able to live with a housing crisis, or an emergency, or whatever you call it. I could sense her frustration.

You can hear Elaine Ritchie and Jacquie Pepper speak about the good partnership work happening between Perth & Kinross Council and P&K Health & Social Care Partnership on the Scottish Housing News Accessibility Podcast, Part 3.

A transcript of this episode is available here.

The Scottish Housing News Podcast is co-hosted by Kieran Findlay and Jimmy Black. All episodes are available here as well as on the following platforms:

• Apple Podcasts
• Spotify
• Spotify for Podcasters