Episode Description
In this episode, Kieran Findlay and Jimmy Black explore one of the most urgent and least‑acknowledged dimensions of Scotland’s housing emergency: the disproportionate impact on Black people and people of colour.
A new report from Shelter Scotland and the Coalition for Racial Equality and Rights (CRER) reveals that systemic racism is shaping who gets help, who is turned away, and who waits the longest for a safe, permanent home. To unpack the findings, the hosts are joined by:
Gordon Llewellyn‑MacRae, Assistant Director of Communications and Advocacy, Shelter Scotland
Dr Nadia Ayed, Research Associate at I‑SPHERE, Heriot‑Watt University
Together, they examine the data, the lived experience behind it, and the practical steps needed to build an anti‑racist housing system.
Further reading:
Systemic Racism and Scotland's Housing Emergency Joint Report - https://scotland.shelter.org.uk/professional_resources/policy_library/systemic_racism_and_scotlands_housing_emergency
I-Sphere’s Homelessness, Race and Ethnicity research - https://i-sphere.site.hw.ac.uk/2025/07/11/final-report-of-our-homelessness-race-and-ethnicity-research-programme-finds-shocking-evidence-of-inequalities/
Anti-Racism and Housing Network meeting (February 2026) https://www.scottishhousingnews.com/events/anti-racism-and-housing-network
A transcript of this episode is available here: https://www.scottishhousingnews.com/articles/confronting-systemic-racism-in-housing-with-gordon-llewellynmacrae-and-dr-nadia-ayed-podcast-transcript
Kieran Findlay is the editor of Scottish Housing News. Jimmy Black is a former Dundee housing convener and housing justice campaigner.
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