As we investigate Scotland's Housing Emergency, education writer James McEnaney explores the impact of the crisis on children and their education.

Concerns about the link between poor housing and children’s education are not a new phenomenon.

Nearly 20 years ago, research from the housing charity Shelter highlighted the massive and lasting impact of poor housing on young people’s education.

Their 2006 ‘Chance of a Lifetime’ research explored ‘the impact of bad housing on children’s lives’ and although the research was carried out in England, the findings are much more universal. The report includes an entire section on the ways in which poor housing affects learning, highlighting the fact that growing up in such circumstances has a measurable and acutely damaging impact.

It also points to research from France which found that “children growing up in a home with at least two children per bedroom are both held back in their education and drop out of school earlier much more often than other children.” The rate at which pupils were held back by at least one grade in primary school was more than 20% higher for children living in overcrowded housing, for example.

The effects of homelessness are also made clear, with the report revealing that “lower levels of academic achievement that cannot be explained by differences in their levels of ability,” and that homeless children were two to three times more likely to be absent from school. These consequences are potentially long lasting – a study carried out in Cornwall found that children who had faced homelessness still experienced delayed development of their communication skills a year after their families secured a permanent home.

As Shelter has recently highlighted, households with children generally spend a greater amount of time in such accommodation than those who do not have children, a problem caused by the acute lack of affordable, family-sized houses in the social sector. Official data suggests that couples with children spend around 50% longer, on average, in temporary accommodation than the figure for all household types.

The Children and Young People’s Commissioner for Scotland (CYPCG) has carried out research specifically into the impact of the use of ‘hotel-type accommodation’ as part of homelessness and asylum services. The final report, titled: "Sometimes I feel like I am in prison” – Placing Children in Hotel-type Accommodation’, paints a stark picture of the plight of many families in Scotland.

CYPCS states that there are “regular reports that children living in hotel-type accommodation have no, or restricted access to education,” and suggests that this situation is caused by a combination of “features of this type of accommodation” and “failures of accommodation providers or public services.” Specific concerns about digital exclusion are also highlighted.

The report also includes comments from children affected by the use of this type of accommodation, with one speaking directly about the impact on his education:

“There is no designated study area, my parents have to leave the room so I can get time to study or join in my online lessons, because if they are speaking on the phone or moving in the room that is distracting, at least in a house even if you have one room you can go to the sitting room.”

Another organisation with an interest in the links between housing and education is the Child Poverty Action Group (CPAG) Scotland, a charity that has carried out ongoing work on the cost of the school day. In their most recent publication they gathered children’s own views on a range of issues including access to food, inclusion in school trips, and readiness to learn – the responses demonstrate that young people themselves clearly understand that a child’s home environment has an enormous impact on their school experience.

When asked about the things that are important for being 'ready to learn', 81% of primary pupils and 84% of secondary pupils said 'not being tired or stressed'. For both groups, this was the top ranked issue.

Young people quoted in the report argued for the importance of “a good night's sleep in a comfy warm bed”, “a home that you feel safe in”, and “being able to comfortably prioritise school".

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Sara Spencer, the Cost of the School Day Project Manager at CPAG Scotland, told The Herald that young people clearly tell them that “they only feel ready to learn when their basic needs are met.”

“Top of their list are things like decent sleep, a comfy bed, warm homes and full tummies, all things which are impossible to achieve when children are living in insecure or poor quality housing. The housing emergency is inextricably linked with child poverty. If the First Minister is serious about eradicating child poverty we need the right policies to achieve it.

“That means restoring affordable housing budgets, investing in childcare and increasing the Scottish child payment to £40 per week as part of wider action to meet child poverty targets. Schools are doing what they can to support their families but action to tackle child poverty and the housing crisis is essential if we want all children in Scotland to be set up and ready to learn when they arrive at the school gates.”

Those comments were echoed by Anne Keenan, the EIS teaching union’s Assistant Secretary for education and equality, who said that poverty “continues to blight the lives of hundreds of thousands of people in Scotland”, with major consequences for the nation’s children.

“Low wages, precarious work and insufficient social security provision, coupled with high costs of housing, food, childcare, transport and energy, conspire with the result that a quarter of a million children in Scotland live in poverty and over two thirds of them are from working households.

“Only last month, the First Minister acknowledged that ‘too many children are living in temporary accommodation and far too many families are reliant on emergency food aid’. The current housing crisis means that many families are either on waiting lists for permanent accommodation or living in overcrowded conditions. And the impact on children and young people is evident. If a child’s living environment is not warm, safe, or secure, then their health and wellbeing and their engagement with school will be negatively affected, resulting in poorer outcomes and life chances for the most vulnerable students.

“In seeking to eradicate child poverty and deliver better outcomes for children, the First Minister must address these challenges, ensuring that every child has a safe and secure home and will not go hungry and that they are taught by qualified teachers, who can focus on the delivery of quality education, unencumbered by enduring worries about job security and an inability to plan for the next stage in their lives.”

The Scottish Government's Housing Minister, Paul McLennan MSP, told The Herald that he has been meeting with council housing conveners “since last summer to discuss the housing pressures each area is facing.”

“The Scottish Government is working with local authorities to identify ways to reduce the number of people in temporary accommodation and provided an additional £2 million in 2023-24 to the local authorities with the largest percentage increases in temporary accommodation.

“When temporary accommodation is used we are determined to ensure that it is indeed temporary.

“Increasing housing stock is key to reducing the use of temporary accommodation. Since 2007, we have delivered more than 131,000 affordable homes, with more than 93,000 of those being for social rent and we will invest nearly £600 million in affordable housing in 2024-25.”