Prime Minister Andy Burnham made headlines last month when he pledged to end rough sleeping in the UK. In Scotland, rough sleeping has more than doubled between 2021 and 2025, but this is only the tip of the iceberg. It would be wrong to suggest that getting people off the streets ends “homelessness” but it’s a good place to start.

Ending homelessness needs more social homes, which is where the Scottish Government’s new housing agency - something which has garnered far fewer headlines than our new Prime Minister’s announcement - has the opportunity to make a real difference in the fight against Scotland’s housing emergency.

There are14,371 children homeless in Scotland today and 10,480 of them are trapped in temporary homeless accommodation, many growing up in overcrowded and unsafe conditions. Imagine a family of seven crammed into a small three-bed flat, with children and teenagers sharing rooms. Picture a child who has no choice but to sleep on the sofa as living spaces are turned into sleeping areas.

Children are growing up with no space to play, do homework, or have a decent sleep. Parents we work with at Shelter Scotland tell us how they have nowhere to cook food for their family or clean their clothes. This cannot be accepted. The housing emergency is causing devastating harm to the education, health, wellbeing, and future opportunities of children, families and individuals across Scotland. The longer this continues, the longer it will take to reverse the damage.

And the truth is that homelessness is not inevitable. Homelessness exists because there are not enough homes of the right kind at the right price for the people who need them. It is a political choice how many social homes to build and we know we need to build more – at least 15,693 a year according to the research. With the More Homes Scotland agency, we have an opportunity to change this trajectory, and the power to do so is in the Government’s hands.

When social homes are kept scarce, it is sadly predictable who is forced into homelessness: the individuals and communities already most excluded from society. Care leavers, Black and People of Colour, women fleeing domestic violence, people experiencing acute poverty and other marginalised groups all are at greater risk of losing out in the competition for scarce affordable homes. These are the people we work with every day at Shelter Scotland. Decades of underinvestment and poor political choices have led us to this moment. It cannot continue. We do not and must not accept it.

More Homes Scotland must be a turning point. Expected to launch in 2027-28, it will have the aim of driving up housing delivery across the country. This is desperately needed. The Scottish Government broke its promise to build 8,000 affordable homes in 2025/26 and is not on track to meet its commitment to deliver 110,000 affordable homes by 2032.

But what type of homes will the agency focus on?

New research from the UK Collaborative Centre for Housing Evidence, commissioned by Shelter Scotland, shows that this is a critical moment for Scotland. The authors emphasise that More Homes Scotland can remove barriers to housing delivery and increase affordable housing supply. The agency can help deliver the homes Scotland desperately needs, but only with the right funding, powers and focus.

What we need next is transparency over the agency’s purpose, priorities, and measures of success. Will the agency’s primary objective be reducing affordable housing need or increasing supply of all types of housing? The report’s authors say it should focus on reducing affordable housing need – and Shelter Scotland agrees.

More Homes Scotland must have the long-term objective of delivering social and affordable housing. If the Scottish Government is serious about getting the 10,480 children out of temporary accommodation, it must give it the power and funding to really tackle the housing emergency that has ripped through the country.

We know what is causing the housing emergency. We know how to fix it. The Scottish Government and More Homes Scotland agency must not miss this opportunity. Social housing transforms lives. Building the social homes Scotland needs must become a national mission.