Scotland should consider embedding an independent oversight group alongside the multi-million-pound agency More Homes Scotland (MHS) to support long-term housing delivery, according to a new paper published by the Chartered Institute of Building (CIOB).
Announced by First Minister John Swinney in January this year, MHS will encourage large-scale affordable housing projects and rural and island housing. Its role involves acquiring, preparing and releasing land and enabling infrastructure to unlock stalled sites.
The design of the new agency’s operating model was to be led by the office of Scotland’s cabinet secretary for housing with local authorities and the Scottish National Investment Bank.
It was expected to start operating from 2027-28 and be fully functional in 2028-29.
The discussion paper, How Will We Know if More Homes Scotland is Working?, explores the importance of independent evaluation of the new agency’s work.
Lessons from Canada
The paper argues that government must embed policy learning and evaluation in MHS to ensure Scotland is getting the quality homes it needs while providing value for money for the country’s taxpayers.
The report draws on research into Canada’s National Housing Council, an independent advisory body established as part of its National Housing Strategy Act. It commissions research, integrates experience from people who have experienced homelessness or housing struggles, and advises the government on how well housing policy is working.
“More Homes Scotland has the potential to become an important new institution within Scotland’s housing system, helping to coordinate delivery and increase housing supply,” said Dr Jocelyne Fleming, CIOB’s policy lead for Scotland.
“But delivery and evaluation are different functions. One of the lessons from Canada is that governments need to understand not only what is being delivered, but whether interventions are actually achieving their intended outcomes.
“A similar approach in Scotland could identify emerging pressures, evaluate programmes over time, build evidence from across the sector and support better policymaking without creating unnecessary red tape.”
Continuous learning and adaptation
The paper supports the creation of MHS and believes the agency could play a role in coordinating and accelerating housing delivery. However, it argues that housing systems are highly complex and require institutions capable not only of delivery, but also of continuous learning and adaptation.
According to CIOB, an independent advisory body could:
- commission research into housing programme effectiveness;
- monitor affordability and housing outcomes over time;
- bring together experience from people who have experienced housing hardship, industry expertise and academic evidence;
- identify evidence gaps and emerging housing pressures;
- support continuous policy learning and adaptation.
The paper stresses Scotland already benefits from a strong housing research community. However, no single body currently exists to gather evidence from across the sector and feed it directly into ongoing housing governance and policy changes.
Fleming added: “Separating delivery from evaluation would allow More Homes Scotland to remain focused on its core mission while ensuring policymakers have access to independent evidence about what is working, where challenges remain and how policy should evolve.
“Scotland’s housing system is unique, and the Canadian experience demonstrates the value of embedding policy learning into housing governance from the outset, which we believe will help ensure more people in Scotland have safe, warm places to live.”
Download the paper, How Will We Know If More Homes Scotland Is Working?, here.
