Ending Homelessness Together Fund: FOI release

FOI reference: FOI/18/01680
Date received: 15 June 2018
Date responded: 10 July 2018

Information requested

The amount committed by the Scottish Government to the Ending Homelessness Together Fund referenced on page 20 of the Programme for Government; for the amount of money that had been paid out through the Fund has paid out to date; for (if it does not break the cost limits) a list of payees that have received funding from the Fund and for the business case for the Fund.

Response

Please see below a table which sets out what funds have been committed to date in relation to the allocation made to the Ending Homelessness Together Fund in the Programme for Government 2017.

Payee	2017/18 Description	2017/18 Amount	2018/19 Description	2018/19 Amount
Aberdeen Cyrenians	Outreach services and extreme weather provision in Aberdeen	£80,000	Outreach provision and Flexible emergency funding in Aberdeen	£127,500
Bethany Christian Trust	Edinburgh Winter night shelter	£27,000		-
City of Edinburgh Council	Additional rapid access beds	£90,000	Additional rapid access beds	£77,500
Simon Community/ Streetwork	Flexible emergency funds Glasgow and Edinburgh	£50,000	Flexible emergency funding in Glasgow and Edinburgh	£15,000
Simon Community/ Streetwork	Extra outreach and extreme weather provision in Edinburgh	£15,000		-
Total allocated	From SG funds other than Ending Homelessness Together	£262,000	From Ending Homelessness Together Fund	£220,000

In addition, £66,000 was committed by members of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Action Group members in 2017/18, bring the annual total in that year to £328,000.

On 27 June, the Minister for Local Government, Housing and Planning announced the allocation of £21 million from the Ending Homelessness Together fund to support local authorities in the transition to rapid rehousing and Housing First. This includes a £1.5 million contribution over two years from the funding made available this year for addiction services, demonstrating commitment to cross portfolio collaboration at the highest level. Including this commitment, £19.72 million has been allocated from the Ending Homelessness Together Fund with £220,000 formally committed to organisations as detailed in the table. As implementation plans are developed for the HARSAG recommendations we expect further funding commitments to be made.

£50 million was allocated to the Ending Homelessness Together Fund in the lead up to the publication of the Programme for Government 2017. The figure was arrived at to demonstrate the seriousness with which Government was approaching the issues around homelessness, with the intention of being able to facilitate transformative system change. Decisions on individual awards or initiatives are assessed on their merits with final decisions resting with Ministers in the normal way of Government spending.

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