ONE in 28 adults in Scotland experiences extreme disadvantage, such as homelessness and substance dependency, each year, according to new research.
The study found that almost 200,000 adults in Scotland experience at least one form of extreme disadvantage annually.
When additional disadvantages such as mental ill-health and domestic violence are considered, the numbers affected more than double to nearly 450,000 people each year. The Hard Edges Scotland study examines the challenges facing charitable services and the public sector, and highlights the “mismatch” between the multiple disadvantages people face, and the fact services are often set up to address “single issues”.
READ MORE: This is how we can end chronic homelessness in Scotland
It says that people are often not able to access services until they have reached crisis point and highlights the need for services to become more consistent and tailored to individuals.
Researchers found numerous examples of people using the criminal justice service as a “safety net” and committing offences and/or requesting custodial services to gain access to support and “safe places” within the criminal justice system after being routinely failed by other services.
The report was commissioned by Lankelly Chase and The Robertson Trust and authored by Heriot-Watt University in Edinburgh.
Alice Evans, deputy chief executive of Lankelly Chase, said: “These findings tell the story of life as it is now for people facing extreme disadvantage across Scotland and asks us all to question the role we’re playing in allowing this to continue.
“The response required is bigger than any one individual or organisation. The solutions don’t lie in the research, but in communities across Scotland.”
Lankelly Chase is making £80,000 available to communities and organisations across Scotland to encourage new conversations about severe and multiple disadvantage.
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