So, as in Xcode 7.1.1, there seems to be a way to do this:
1) Create your own branch in Jira / Stash
2) In Xcode, go to Source Control
3) Select "Pull"
4) Click on the drop-down list and you will see a new branch "origin / ..."
5) select a new branch and click
6) go to "Source Control", hover over the working copy and select "Switch to Branch ..."
7) find the new branch of origin at the origin, and you will create a new local branch
Some IDEs, such as Visual Studio, may require you to pull out "master" to get new branches of origin, but now it looks like it's done now in Xcode.
UPDATE:. It seems that I have not checked the status "Update server automatically", which will eliminate most of these steps! (located in Xcode -> Preferences -> Source Control .., unless it was added in Xcode 7.3) 
whyoz source share