Heriot-Watt University Research Gateway Homelessness and poverty: reviewing the links Citation for published version: Johnsen, S & Watts, B 2014, Homelessness and poverty: reviewing the links. Heriot-Watt University. Link: Link to publication record in Heriot-Watt Research Portal Document Version: Early version, also known as pre-print General rights Copyright for the publications made accessible via Heriot-Watt Research Portal is retained by the author(s) and / or other copyright owners and it is a condition of accessing these publications that users recognise and abide by the legal requirements associated with these rights. Take down policy Heriot-Watt University has made every reasonable effort to ensure that the content in Heriot-Watt Research Portal complies with UK legislation. If you believe that the public display of this file breaches copyright please contact [email protected] providing details, and we will remove access to the work immediately and investigate your claim. Download date: 30. Sep. 2021 Homelessness and Poverty: Reviewing the Links A Report for the Joseph Rowntree Foundation Anti-Poverty Programme Sarah Johnsen & Beth Watts Institute for Social Policy, Housing, Environment and Real Estate (I-SPHERE), Heriot-Watt University Acknowledgements The authors would like to extend their sincere thanks to the stakeholders interviewed for taking the time to share their knowledge and expertise. Thanks are also due to Chris Goulden, Kathleen Kelly and Suzanne Fitzpatrick for their valuable comments on an earlier draft. Contents Acronyms .................................................................................................................................................. i Executive Summary ................................................................................................................................. ii 1. Introduction .........................................................................................................................................1 1.1 Background ..................................................................................................................................1 1.2 Objectives ....................................................................................................................................1 1.3 Methods ......................................................................................................................................2 1.4 Definitions ...................................................................................................................................3 1.5 Report Outline .............................................................................................................................3 2. Poverty as a Cause of Homelessness ...................................................................................................5 2.1 Empirical Evidence: A Consensus Borne ......................................................................................5 2.2 Theoretical Approaches: Understanding the Causal Links ..........................................................7 2.3 Variations in the Influence of Poverty .........................................................................................9 2.3.1 Geographic variations: welfare regimes, housing markets and labour markets ..................9 2.3.2 Demographic variations: household composition and individual circumstances .............. 10 2.3.3 Temporal variations: economic conditions and welfare reform ........................................ 11 2.4 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 13 3. Poverty as a Consequence of Homelessness ................................................................................... 15 3.1 Income, Welfare Receipt and Worklessness ............................................................................ 15 3.2 Barriers to Paid Employment ................................................................................................... 17 3.3 Experiences and Financial Implications of Paid Employment .................................................. 19 3.4 Experiences of Poverty Post-resettlement ............................................................................... 20 3.5 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 21 4. The Effectiveness and Cost of Interventions .................................................................................... 23 4.1 Intervening to Prevent Poverty Causing Homelessness ........................................................... 23 4.1.1 Secondary and tertiary prevention..................................................................................... 24 4.1.2 Primary prevention ............................................................................................................. 25 4.2 Intervening to Prevent Homelessness Causing Poverty ........................................................... 26 4.2.1 Employment, training and education schemes .................................................................. 26 4.2.2 Foyers ................................................................................................................................. 28 4.2.3 Social enterprises ............................................................................................................... 31 4.2.4 Emmaus communities ........................................................................................................ 32 4.2.5 Money management and financial inclusion initiatives ..................................................... 33 4.2.6 Personalised/Individual Budgets ........................................................................................ 34 4.3 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................ 35 5. Conclusion ........................................................................................................................................ 37 6. References ........................................................................................................................................ 39 Homelessness and Poverty: Reviewing the Links Acronyms BAOH Business Action on Homelessness BITC Business in the Community CLG Communities and Local Government DTI Department of Trade and Industry DWP Department for Work and Pensions ESA Employment and Support Allowance EU European Union FEANTSA European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless JRF Joseph Rowntree Foundation JSA Job Seekers Allowance LHA Local Housing Allowance MEH Multiple Exclusion Homelessness NCH National Coalition for the Homeless NEF New Economics Foundation OSW Off the Streets and into Work PRS Private Rented Sector PSE Poverty and Social Exclusion Survey REA Rapid Evidence Assessment SAR Shared Accommodation Rate SHEP Single Homeless Enterprise Project SHS Scottish Household Survey SMD Severe and Multiple Disadvantage TSO Third Sector Organisation i Homelessness and Poverty: Reviewing the Links Executive Summary Forming part of the Joseph Rowntree Foundation’s (JRF’s) Anti-Poverty Strategy, this review assessed the evidence base regarding the bi-directional links between homelessness and poverty, that is, the extent to which and ways in which: a) poverty causes homelessness; and b) homelessness causes (or exacerbates) poverty. It also sought to evaluate, insofar as possible, the effectiveness and costs of policy and practice interventions that aim to break the links between homelessness and poverty. The study involved a ‘rapid evidence assessment’ of the existing evidence base regarding the links between poverty and homelessness, including appraisal of relevant academic and grey literature from the UK and other developed nations. This was complemented by telephone interviews with eight key informants, including representatives of central government, campaigning agencies, umbrella bodies and service providers across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. For the purposes of the study homelessness was defined broadly to include rough sleeping or living in buildings not intended or fit for human habitation, living in temporary accommodation for homeless people (e.g. a hostel or night shelter), or staying with friends or relatives because the person concerned has no home of their own (i.e. ‘sofa surfing’). Further to this, the JRF’s working definition of poverty was employed, that being “when a person’s resources (mainly their material resources) are not sufficient to meet their minimum needs (including social participation)” (Goulden and D’Arcy, 2012, p.1). Poverty as a Cause of Homelessness The prominence of poverty in accounts of homelessness causation has varied over time, but it is now agreed almost universally that poverty is a key contributory factor. There are some (rare) cases wherein individuals with substantial incomes experience homelessness after a personal crisis, but empirical evidence indicates consistently and compellingly that experience of poverty is a common denominator shared by the vast majority of homeless people in the UK and elsewhere. That said, whilst there is a significant degree of consensus that most people are ‘poor’ at the point they become homeless and therefore lack the financial and other resources