A new pilot aimed at preventing people from becoming homeless will be tested in Wester Hailes after the Council and partners were awarded funding from the Scottish Government.
The system wide approach to prevention will be known as SWAP – ‘Ask and Act’.
The pilot will provide earlier interventions and practical support to help people at risk stay in their homes.
The move comes after the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025 was passed, putting new legal duties on public bodies to ask about a person’s housing situation and take action before homelessness happens.
Across Scotland, 15 projects are sharing £4m through the Homelessness Prevention Pilot Fund, managed by Advice Direct Scotland for the Scottish Government.
A team will be set up in Edinburgh, with public and third-sector partners trying new ways of working to give joined-up and timely help to individuals and households at risk.
The ‘Ask’ and ‘Act’ duties will be built into everyday services provided by partners in Wester Hailes, including NHS Lothian, Police Scotland, Prospect Community Housing, Social Security Scotland, Scottish Prison Service and Crisis.
This will let them spot people who need help earlier, offer support directly, and refer them to the Council’s prevention services.
Housing, Homelessness and Fair Work Convener Tim Pogson, said:
This is fantastic news, being awarded just over £600k from a £4 million fund for the whole of Scotland is a tremendous endorsement of our proposal, and I’m grateful to the team who brought it together and partners for agreeing to be part of this.
It will also help us boost our efforts to tackle the housing emergency facing the city.
It’s exciting that work is already under way, and I’m confident we’ll see positive results in the new year.
Pogson said preventing homelessness and supporting tenants before they reach crisis point is essential to making sure as many people as possible have a secure home.
Last year, the Council’s homelessness prevention services helped 2,622 households as part of the Local Housing Strategy.
Màiri McAllan, Housing Secretary, Scottish Government, said:
We are determined to end homelessness – and the best way to do this is to prevent homelessness in the first place.
This investment in prevention pilots will help us test and scale up innovative approaches to help people stay in their homes.
