Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is committed to a rapid rehousing or housing-led approach, which aims to ensure that people experiencing homelessness move into settled accommodation as quickly as possible, with any time spent in temporary accommodation kept to a minimum.

Since 2018, we have committed £84.5 million to support local authorities to implement rapid rehousing approaches across Scotland. This includes the delivery of Housing First for people with multiple and complex needs. Housing First provides settled accommodation alongside intensive, person-centred support to help people sustain permanent tenancies and achieve positive long-term outcomes.

Ensuring people receive the support they need continues to be a priority for the Scottish Government. That is why, in the Programme for Government 2026-31, we committed to supporting the delivery of a further 1,500 Housing First tenancies over the next five years.

We recognise the vital role housing adaptations play in enabling older people to live safely and comfortably in their own homes.

We have protected the Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) Adaptations Programme budget, maintaining this at £20.9 million for 2026-27. Grant funding for adaptations for RSL tenants in Glasgow and Edinburgh is set and managed by the respective local authority.

The following table details the number of people support by RSLs for major and general adaptations:

The Scottish Government recognises the important contribution of employer-supported volunteering to increase participation in volunteering across Scotland.

The Scottish Government has worked with Volunteer Scotland and third sector partners to support the development of the National Employer Supported Volunteering (ESV) Framework, launched in March 2026. The framework provides guidance, resources and good practice examples to help employers. It provides information on paid volunteering leave, team volunteering and skills-based volunteering.

Decisions on whether to provide paid volunteering leave are matters for individual employers. However, the Scottish Government encourages employers to consider the benefits of employer-supported volunteering for employees, businesses and communities.

In terms of impact, Volunteer Scotland's research suggests that expanding employer-supported volunteering could enable between 161,000 and 287,000 additional people to volunteer across Scotland. The Scottish Government continues to work with Volunteer Scotland and other partners to monitor participation in volunteering. There has been no separate assessment on the impact of paid volunteering leave or individual employer-supported volunteering schemes on national volunteering rates.

The Scottish Government has provided up to £3m to support economic recovery as announced on 5 August 2026. The Cairngorms Fire Recovery Fund is being administered by the Highland Council, as the organisation best placed to know, engage with, and support those businesses affected in the locale. The Fund is open to applications until the end of November; it will then be for Highland Council to update on outcomes.

The Scottish Government continues to work with Highland Council to support recovery and resilience.

The Scottish Government recognises the preventative value of good quality affordable housing, including community-led housing, in supporting health, wellbeing and independent living.

While we have not specifically quantified the impact of investment in community-led housing on future demand for health and social care services, we recognise that it can help meet locally identified housing needs and enable people to remain within their communities. Individual schemes can also deliver wider benefits. At Staffin on Skye, for example, a community-led development delivered six affordable homes alongside business space and a new community-owned health centre, improving local access to healthcare services.

The assessment of how best to implement section 41 of the Natural Environment (Scotland) Act 2026 is being taken forward through the building standards framework. This includes consideration of the practical, technical and regulatory implications of introducing a requirement for swift nest boxes, informed by engagement with relevant stakeholders and the established processes for changes to building standards requirements. The timing of commencement will be considered as part of the wider building standards work programme.

Scottish Household Survey results on percentage of adults reporting feeling safe when walking alone in their neighbourhood after dark, by year and by local authority area, are publicly available from https://scotland.shinyapps.io/sg-scottish-household-survey-data-explorer/ (see table 2.52 in the neighbourhoods topic).

The Third Sector Partnership Agreement is an opportunity to build on progress made through Fairer Funding, recognise the vital contribution of the third sector, and strengthen how we work together to design and deliver policy. We are establishing a Steering Group to support the co-design of the Partnership Agreement. This will bring together representatives from the third sector, national and local government, and independent funders; membership of the group will be published shortly. It will provide strategic leadership, expert insight, and development oversight to guide the co-design of the Partnership Agreement and support its effective implementation.

The Scottish Government remains committed to the Accessible Vehicle and Equipment Scheme, to ensure that disabled people in receipt of a qualifying benefit can lease a vehicle on an affordable, all-inclusive lease. It is a requirement of the AVE Scheme that clients have access to a range of vehicles at both nil-advanced payment and at affordable prices. Motability Operations reviews and update its selection of all vehicles quarterly based on manufacturer availability with information uploaded to its website: www.motability.co.uk.

The Scottish Government will continue to work with Motability to ensure that disabled people can access the support that meets their needs through the AVE Scheme now and into the future.

The Programme for Government committed to developing a strategic partnership between More Homes Scotland and the Bank to help leverage additional private investment into housing. While the Bank seeks to attract third-party capital alongside its investments, the level of co-investment achieved will depend on the individual investments made.