The Scottish Government says that housing options includes ‘early intervention and explores all possible tenure options, including council housing, housing association housing and the private rented sector.’ (Source: Scottish Government website)
Housing Options is a form of advice and information giving for people to consider their housing needs. It is also used to try and prevent homelessness by looking at peoples’ individual circumstances before they reach a crisis point. This includes people trying to find somewhere new to live or who want to stay in their current home but are having problems doing so (debt, health issues etc).
To ensure that there are a range of options available, local authority housing and homelessness services work together with other services and agencies such as employability, mental health, money advice and family mediation services.
Sometimes people need support to help them once they have got a house. The Housing Options team can arrange for someone to have a support assessment carried out. If the person is assessed as needing support, they might be given a support worker who will see them on a regular basis. There are different organisations that provide
housing support to people.
John Smith cannot afford to live in his house
John Smith has health issues
John Smith has lost his job