Temporary Accommodation u0026 Decant Managed Services framework

Scottish social landlords have duties under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2001 to manage tenancies responsibly, and under the Homelessness etc. (Scotland) Act 2003 everyone in Scotland has a right to settled accommodation if they become homeless, regardless of priority need. The Housing (Scotland) Act 2023 strengthened prevention duties, requiring housing bodies to ask and act when someone is at risk of losing their home within six months. In practice, this means that if a landlord needs to move a tenant out for works or an emergency, the accommodation provided must be genuinely suitable for that person’s needs, it must not put them at risk of homelessness, and the process must be managed with their welfare as the primary concern. Using a framework with pre-vetted suppliers and compliant contract terms is the most straightforward way to demonstrate that obligation is being met. 

Emergency decants don’t wait for procurement processes. The framework is designed for this, with 24/7/365 availability meaning you can access vetted suppliers and place accommodation at any time without needing to run a new exercise. For urgent situations you can direct award to the highest-ranked capable supplier, providing a detailed scope of the requirement. This gives you a fully compliant procurement route even under time pressure, with a complete audit trail. PfH Scotland recommends establishing your framework call-off terms and contact protocols in advance so that when an emergency arises your team knows exactly how to activate the service quickly. 

A planned decant is a managed move where residents are relocated in advance of works that make their property uninhabitable or unsafe for a defined period, typically as part of a major investment programme, fire safety remediation, or significant refurbishment. An emergency decant is an unplanned move triggered by an event such as fire, flood, structural failure, or a serious hazard identified during inspection. Both sit within the framework’s scope. The key difference in procurement terms is that a planned decant allows more time to specify requirements and potentially run a mini-competition to get the most competitive outcome, while an emergency decant will almost always be a direct award given the urgency. Either route is compliant under the framework. 

Under the Scottish Social Housing Charter, social landlords are expected to manage their housing stock in a way that respects residents and treats them fairly. During a decant, that means ensuring the temporary accommodation is genuinely suitable for the individual’s household including any accessibility needs, disabilities, or vulnerability, keeping the tenant informed about the process and expected timescales, managing their possessions appropriately, and facilitating their return as soon as the property is ready. The duty under the Homelessness etc. (Scotland) Act 2003 means you can’t simply place a tenant in accommodation that isn’t appropriate and consider the obligation discharged. Suppliers must vet properties against suitability criteria as a condition of the framework, and services are delivered in line with your own organisational policies and procedures. 

The framework requires suppliers to operate in line with member GDPR policies and procedures. Before using the framework, organisations should ensure they have a lawful basis for sharing tenant personal data with the accommodation supplier, typically a legitimate interest or contractual necessity basis given the housing management context, and that data sharing is covered within their privacy notice. The framework’s requirement for suppliers to work within your stated policies provides a contractual mechanism to enforce data handling standards. If your organisation doesn’t already have a data processing agreement template for temporary accommodation providers, PfH Scotland can provide guidance on what to include in the call-off terms. 

Yes. The framework scope includes accommodation vetting specifically to ensure properties are fit for purpose and suitable for the displaced person’s needs. This includes accessibility requirements for disabled residents, proximity requirements for residents with medical needs or school-age children, and appropriate occupancy arrangements. Suppliers are required to find alternative accommodation where an initial property isn’t suitable. Under the Equality Act 2010 and the Scottish Social Housing Charter’s expectations around equalities, landlords must ensure decant accommodation does not put disabled or vulnerable residents at a disadvantage, and the framework’s vetting and suitability requirements support that obligation. 

PfH Scotland supports members from requirements definition through to ongoing contract management. For planned programmes, we can help you structure the scope of works and choose the most appropriate access route, including running a mini-competition if demonstrating competitive value is a priority. For emergency situations, we can help you activate the framework quickly using the direct award route. Throughout the framework term, our Quantum platform provides visibility of spend and contract performance. If your organisation is planning a major investment programme that will require a significant number of decants, getting PfH Scotland involved at the planning stage means we can help you structure the procurement to manage both cost and resident welfare effectively.