Manchester have made significant progress in tackling street homelessness but a move away from a “one-size-fits-all” approach is needed to tackle the problem globally, according to a new report out this week.
The Institute of Global Homelessness’ (IGH) A Place to Call Home, launched in 2017, is the first concerted effort to support cities across the globe to eradicate street homelessness.
An initial 13 ‘Vanguard Cities’ committed to either ending or reducing street homelessness by December 2020, with over half (Adelaide, Glasgow, Greater Manchester, Montevideo, Santiago, Sydney and Tshwane) achieving reductions.
Greater Manchester set the most ambitious target, to end all street homelessness by December 2020, and achieved an impressive 52% reduction against baseline, the largest reduction in absolute numbers on the streets. COVID initiatives helped to accelerate success and demonstrate what can be achieved with sufficient political will.
Key to success in several cities was a lead agency driving efforts and coordinated entry to homelessness services including assertive street outreach services, individual case management, and the Housing First approach. Common barriers to progress included a lack of preventative interventions, pressure on affordable housing and insufficient resources, especially in Global South cities.
An overreliance on undignified and, at times, unsafe communal shelters and aggressive enforcement interventions represented an approach limited to ‘managing’ rather than reducing street homelessness. Additionally, the direct involvement of some religious denominations was found to discourage some people from accessing services.
Professor Suzanne Fitzpatrick, director of I-SPHERE at Heriot-Watt University led the international research team. She said: “Street homelessness is one of the most extreme and visible manifestations of profound injustice that our society faces today. Yet, it often struggles to achieve sufficient attention at an international level.
“While there are clear country-specific challenges that need to be overcome, this first global initiative on tackling street homelessness has highlighted the need to move away from a one-size-fits-all approach, towards more specialised interventions that target specific subgroups. Appropriate services for women, children, older people and other vulnerable groups, as well as culturally sensitive responses to Indigenous people and other groups affected by racial and associated forms of prejudice are essential.
“The overwhelming emphasis on emergency interventions was clear in our findings, with support applied only when people are already in crisis, rather than placing greater focus on preventative models. Even predictable pathways into street homelessness from institutions like prisons and hospitals have seldom attracted concerted prevention efforts.”
