Housing emergency
The housing system in Edinburgh is under unprecedented pressure, with rising homelessness, severe affordability pressures and the demand for homes exceeding the supply. Because of these pressures a housing emergency was declared in the city in November 2023 and our Housing Emergency Action Plan sets out clear, prioritised actions to tackle it. These will help to relieve the impact of these pressures and reduce the number of households in Edinburgh without settled accommodation.
Prevention and reducing harm are central to every decision we make in the action plan and we've already made substantial progress. We’ve met many of our key targets and our work to increase affordable housing supply and provide vital support to those at risk of homelessness is starting to make a real difference.
Whilst progress has been made, we know there is still a lot to do. No single organisation can solve the housing emergency alone. Working together with partners, stakeholders, investors and communities to prioritise and commit to the action needed to tackle the housing shortage is essential.
- There are around 6,270 homeless households in Edinburgh being supported in temporary accommodation - this has risen from 3,570 at the start of the first Covid lockdown in 2020.
- Edinburgh has the lowest amount of social housing per head of population in Scotland, with only 14% social housing compared to a national (Scottish) average of 23%.
- Our current Strategic Housing Investment Plan sets out an aspirational pipeline of 8,040 affordable homes that could be approved over the next five years, and 7,396 affordable completions.
