Supporting people who hoard

The Hoarding Taskforce was established as a multidisciplinary working group in 2024 in Scotland. It aims to explore and develop a more joined-up multi-agency approach to improve support for people with problematic hoarding behaviours,  recognising this as a hidden, and often misunderstood mental health issue.

The Taskforce’s ambition is to better manage risk, keep people safe and make more effective use of limited resources, adopting a life-span approach. It recognises that: problematic hoarding behaviour isn’t an adult only issue; that practitioners need help in building skills and confidence; that we need to listen and learn from experts by experience and tackle stigma

Taskforce members include a mix of different strategic partners, people who hoard, and three local area partnerships: 

• Glasgow City HSCP
• Pan Lanarkshire HSCP
• Clackmannanshire and Stirling HSCP

A full list of membership and Terms of Reference.

In our first year (2024-5) we: 

• Ran three multi-disciplinary stakeholder events to explore the issue in context
• Ran webinars during hoarding awareness week 
• Conducted an audit of resources currently used.

 Additionally, we:

• Published an Iriss Insight, drawing out implications for the workforce from the evidence
• Shared stories of innovation to showcase better ways to support people that champion earlier intervention, longer-term, person-centred and trauma-informed approaches (and new versions of what ‘good’ looks like.)

In 2025-6 we:

• Worked with Taskforce members to identify our next steps together

And in 2026-27 we will:

• Finalise development of an evidence and practice informed learning resource 
• Final activity reports  
• Look to leave a sustainable Hoarding Taskforce