The Herald has launched a major new series investigating Scotland's housing emergency and just what needs to be done to end the crisis.

The earliest indicators of issues date back nearly four years when we told how Glasgow City Council failed in its legal duties to homeless people by not ensuring there was enough suitable temporary accommodation for them before the coronavirus pandemic.

The Scottish Housing Regulator inquiry into the council’s services for people concluded that the council did not provide temporary accommodation to significant numbers of people when they needed it.

Amidst a stream of concerns raised by the housing regulator and some councils, the Scottish Government finally declared a housing emergency in mid-May.

Find all articles in the series here.

Day Four

'A lot can be traced back to Thatcher': Why the housing crisis is making us sick

Dr John Montgomery, a GP partner in the Govan area of Glasgow, said it used to be rare to see patients experiencing medical problems due to housing. He explains how that's changed.

Disabled mother left to 'crawl' up tenement stairs – then sepsis nearly killed her

Tracey Whiteside will finally relocate to a ground floor flat later this month after nearly five years on her council's housing waiting list. She speaks to health correspondent Helen McArdle.

The council house riddled with damp and mould – and the three year battle to fix it

Paul Wilson, a student nurse with asthma currently training in the NHS, spent three years battling to trace the source of damp in his family's council house. Repairs eventually cost £35,000. He speaks to health correspondent Helen McArdle.

Charity says landlords 'profiteering from human misery' in Scots homelessness crisis

A Scottish charity which supports the homeless and has enjoyed the support of celebrities and royalty has warned that landlords are "profiteering from human misery" as the nation struggles to cope with a housing emergency, reports Martin Williams.

Social Bite: Call for action to fix 'broken' temporary homes for homeless provision

Social Bite founder Josh Littlejohn says urgent changes are required to fix temporary homes. Here he explains what he believes is the way forward.

Day Three

'I would rather live in a tent on the beach than leave': battle to stay on island

Gabby moved to Tiree nine months ago to take up the offer of a better job and after "falling in love" with the island while on holiday. She and her family face a battle to stay.

How Scotland's housing emergency damages children's education

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

Half properties on island 'with high housing demand' now second homes

Almost half of the properties (47%) on the island of Tiree are known to be "low occupancy" second homes or short-term lets or are permanently vacant.  Despite its remoteness, there is very strong evidence of demand for housing on the island, which is the most westerly of the Inner Hebrides. Caroline Wilson investigates.

'Little heed' paid to cost of 'green' housing says Highland builder

The owner of a Highland construction firm has said "little heed" has been paid to the cost of "ever-increasing" environmentally focussed housing regulation.

Living Rent: Housing crisis is a 'national disgrace that should shame politicians'

Ruth Gilbert, Living Rent's national campaigns chair, explains how this was a crisis that was decades in the making and has left tens of thousands of people without a place to call home. 

How loss of Highland's 'biggest housing developer' decimated number of new homes

When Ronnie MacRae started in his role in 2005 half of the 1800 new homes in the Highlands were self-builds. Three years later the number had dropped to 900. After the financial crash hit in 2007, the lenders stopped lending. Caroline Wilson investigates the decimation of new homes in the Highlands.

Day Two

'Failure': Number of kids in' homes hell' quadruples since Glasgow house stock move

Scotland's biggest city has seen the number of children being forced into housing limbo quadruple in the 21 years since the council transferred all its council stock, The Herald can reveal.

Duncan Mclennan: Privatising Glasgow council housing stock was a wise choice

Duncan Maclennan, who was the longstanding director of Glasgow University's centre for housing and urban research in the 80s and 90s, and has wide experience of UK policy explains why the transfer of housing to the Glasgow Housing Association was a wise choice.

CIH Scotland: Housing emergency needs political action not words

Callum Chomczuk, the Chartered Institute of Housing (CIH) national director for Scotland, explains how Scotland's housing system "needs political action, not words".

Ministers warned £9bn needed to end housing emergency

Ministers have been warned more than £9bn is needed by 2032 to build the affordable homes needed to end the nation's housing and homelessness emergency and meet their own building targets, Martin Williams exclusively reveals.

'No foundation': ScotGov's UKGov blame game over homelessness cuts 'doesn't stack up'

The Scottish Government's 'plea of poverty' after slashing the cash for affordable homes by more than £195m in just one year has been called into question as it emerged its spending ability has actually risen by more than £1.3bn, Martin Williams exclusively reveals.

(Image: Derek McArthur)

Day One

'Beyond belief': Scotland spends £720m in putting homeless in housing limbo

Scotland's councils have spent an 'outrageous' £720m of public money on placing the homeless in temporary accommodation such as bed and breakfasts and hotels over the last five years, Martin Williams exclusively reveals.

Crisis: 'Homelessness in Scotland is a political choice'

National charity Crisis has said that homelessness in Scotland is a political choice warning that the fact thousands of children are languishing in housing limbo is "shameful". Matt Downie, chief executive of the charity for people experiencing homelessness discusses what he feels needs to happen to end the housing emergency.

'National scandal': Number of Scots children made homeless in year fills St Andrews

A surge of Scots children that would fill St Andrews were declared as homeless last year in a national scandal which has seen more than 160 die in housing limbo in Scotland's biggest city over four years, The Herald can reveal.

'I lost my handsome boy': Scots mother's plea as over 160 die in housing limbo

A mother who lost her son while he was living in housing limbo has made a desperate plea for action as it is revealed that more than 160 have died in temporary accommodation for the homeless in Glasgow since the pandemic started.

Scotland's Housing Emergency: Council finds it is driving depopulation

It was on May 15, that the Scottish Government declared a housing emergency – nearly a year after the first of ten local authorities beat them to the punch. Argyll and Bute council was the first to make a symbolic in June 2023, stating that it was a "call to action" to tackle what it saw as a housing shortage.