6.6 Beyond the binary and homelessness – Homeless and Gambling Harm Learning

LGBTQIA+ people make up 5% of the population in the UK.

This is clearly disproportionate with 1 in 5 LGBTQIA+ people having experienced homelessness at some point in their life. The rates increase even higher with trans people - 1 in 4 have experienced homelessness.⁸⁸

LGBTQIA+ people are a marginalised group who are discriminated against within society meaning that they are at higher risk of:

Homophobia and inequality continue to exist in Scotland with homophobic hate crimes increasing every year since 2012 with a 75% increase in homophobic incidents in the past eight years in the country. These homophobic attitudes seep into systems and can stunt the growth of services meaning people do not feel comfortable seeking support.⁸⁹

There has been relatively little research on homelessness and LGBTQIA+ people, meaning that they are not represented in homelessness legislation, even though they are over-represented in the homelessness statistics.