The truth behind Scotland's homelessness statistics will inform debate at Shelter Scotland's homelessness conference in Glasgow today (27 January).
It aims to looked beyond the numbers and highlight what they really mean to homeless people and put forward new strategies for prevention and support.
Shelter says there has been a 34% reduction in homeless applications in Scotland over the last five years, but this is no indication of what is really happening to homeless people.
Scotland's chronic shortage of social housing is the key factor. The housing and homeless charity blames this for the fact that one in 10 homeless families, who spend time in temporary accommodation, are there for more than a year.
Shelter issued a report which showed 60% of all homeless families and individuals spend time in temporary accommodation while their local authority deals with their application. This was equivalent to around 22,000 households last year. The average stay is around 18 weeks.
Graeme Brown, director of Shelter Scotland, said: "The Shelter Scotland conference will look towards long-term, innovative solutions to homelessness and its prevention and what the housing safety net should look like and how it should work for everyone who may need it."
The keynote speaker is Julia Unwin, chief executive of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation, who will address the conference on Homelessness in a changing world - how we respond to the real needs of homeless people in complex times.
Conference delegates comprising local authorities, housing practitioners and support service providers will hear further analysis from Shelter Scotland and will take part in workshops on a number of key aspects of homelessness.
