The housing minister has warned local authorities they are legally obliged to support the homeless with accommodation as it emerged the numbers who say they have been rough sleeping before seeking emergency help have soared by up to five fold in a year in Scotland.

Official returns show that some of the most affluent local authority areas have seen the biggest growth in cases where there was at least one member of a household who had experienced rough sleeping in the three months prior to making a homelessness application.

Across Scotland in 2022/23 there were 2440 cases - a rise of 295 (14%) from the previous year.

But the Falkirk council area has seen the biggest escalation with rough sleeping cases rising from five to 30 in the year.

Stirling and East Dunbartonshire, local authorities that rank in the lowest 40% of deprived areas of Scotland have seen the number of cases double in a year. In Stirling numbers rose from 20 to 40 and in East Dunbartonshire it went from ten to 20.

North Lanarkshire has also seen cases double - from 30 to 60.

READ MORE: More than 14 homeless people die a month in Scotland

Shelter Scotland said that the First Minister should now declare a formal housing emergency backed with an action plan to deal with the problem.

The Scottish Tenants' Organisation (STO) said it was a "national disgrace and would mean more homeless people would die on the cold streets of Scotland this winter" unless the Scottish Government give more money to "cash-strapped local authorities" to provide more emergency accommodation and to substantially improve emergency accommodation throughout Scotland.

But housing minister Paul Mclennan said: “Local authorities have a legal duty to provide accommodation to anyone at risk of homelessness and nobody should have to sleep rough in Scotland."

The Herald: SNP Housing Minister Paul McLennan

Other hotspots include Perth and Kinross where there was an 86% rise in case, Fife (72%), North Ayrshire (67%), Highland (60%) and Eilean Siar, Orkney and Scottish Borders (50%).

South Lanarkshire bucked the trend with a drop in rough sleeping cases from 95 to 35. But following a strategic review, the council is set to close its Lindsay House homeless unit - which has provided temporary accommodation since before the local authority's inception in 1996 - by the end of this financial year (March 2024).

It comes as campaigners took to the streets on Tuesday in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow as part of a Shelter Scotland protest against the housing emergency to mark World Homeless Day.

Shelter Scotland Director, Alison Watson, said: “These figures are part of a growing mountain of evidence that Scotland is in the midst of a housing emergency.

“The fact that the housing emergency is clearly getting worse, not better, is inexcusable.

“In that context, the Scottish Government’s business as usual approach can’t be tolerated.

“The First Minister needs to recognise the harm that the current situation is causing to our communities and formally declare a housing emergency in Scotland, backed up by an action plan that both addresses the underlying causes of the emergency and provides some hope for the people living at the sharp end right now.

The Herald: “An emergency situation, needs an emergency response – we won’t stand for anything less”.

The homelessness support group, the Simon Community Scotland said they were "very worried" about rough sleeping numbers in Scotland saying that the number of people seeking a safe place and support was increasing at a rate "we have never seen before".

They said this time last year in Glasgow, they were aware of only seven people rough sleeping in Glasgow. But there are now around 35 people on any given night.

In Edinburgh, in November 2022 there were around 30 people rough sleeping. But as recently as two weeks ago there were 80.

The group is working with Edinburgh City Council to get people into shelter and try to reduce the number to around 35.

They say there needs to be more safe places and support for people experiencing homelessness.

Lorraine McGrath, chief executive of Simon Community Scotland said: "There is no single reason for the increase in people experiencing homelessness. The cost of living pressures are now starting to hit people very hard.

"We are seeing many people who are experiencing homelessness for the first time and we are seeing people fall back into homelessness. People are experiencing significant mental health issues and past trauma issues and difficulty in accessing services.

"It takes a lot of skill, expertise, time and energy to help. It can take many months, in some cases years, to build trust and relationships and to provide support that helps people move out of the trauma of homelessness."

It comes as it emerged that in Glasgow between June 1 and September 1, there were 149 people who reported on their assessment they had either slept rough the night before or had slept rough in the three months before they sought assistance from the council.

The council acknowledged the numbers of rough sleepers could be even higher.

STO campaign co-ordinator Sean Clerkin said: "The Scottish Government has got to build thousands more social rented homes quickly to deal effectively with an ever growing homeless population of tens of thousands of our most vulnerable citizens.

"Nothing else will do if we are to prevent homeless people dying in the winter ahead."

Local authorities have a statutory obligation to offer temporary accommodation when they assess a person or household as unintentionally homeless until a settled or more permanent home can be secured.

Shelter Scotland said its protest on Tuesday was highlighting the increasing number of people experiencing homelessness and asking the public to join in in demanding urgent action to address Scotland’s worsening crisis.

The Herald: Shelter Scotland-organised protest in Edinburgh on Tuesday

At noon in each of the four cities, activists were due to join in in a “minute of noise”, letting politicians that they need to act now.

The housing minister said: “The Scottish Government is in regular contact with both local authorities and frontline outreach teams to monitor the number of people sleeping rough and to respond to pressures.

“Since 2020, we have provided over £1 million of funding to support the operation of Rapid Rehousing Welcome Centres in Glasgow and Edinburgh over the winter months, to ensure everyone at risk of rough sleeping can get support.”

Falkirk Council said it believed the rise in rough sleeper cases was the result of "improvements in recording of this information on our housing management system, but also remains a matter of concern".

South Lanarkshire council's head of housing services, Sharon Egan, said: “I can confirm South Lanarkshire Council’s Housing Services continues to work closely with partners, in particular Right There, to progress the closure of Lindsay House... ensuring the needs of current residents are met throughout the transition period and that appropriate temporary accommodation or secure tenancies are identified whilst ensuring that any housing support needs are met.”

The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities was approached for comment.