Lost property June 2008 Simon Blake Adrian Fradd Tackling homelessness in the UK Eleanor Stringer A guide for donors and funders Lost property Tackling homelessness in the UK A guide for donors and funders This report has been supported by Deutsche Bank, Lloyds TSB Foundation for Scotland and Mayhew Charitable Trust. Cover photo supplied by St Giles Trust Summary Homelessness is not just about the The key implication of the breadth of Preventing homelessness people that the public sees and thinks the problems underlying homelessness about—‘rough sleepers’ living on the is that tackling it requires action on Much homelessness need never occur streets—but the whole range of people several fronts—housing and education, in the first place. Long-term action by who lack a home. At least 260,000 people employment and health. charities to address underlying problems in England live on the street, in hostels or such as substance misuse and child in temporary accommodation. A further Partly thanks to increased government abuse helps to reduce the pool of people 560,000 households live in overcrowded support, significant progress has been acutely vulnerable to housing breakdown. accommodation. Visible homelessness is made in tackling rough sleeping and More targeted responses—giving advice the tip of the iceberg. the use of bed and breakfast hotels as on housing, for example, or working with temporary accommodation. But the rate groups at particular risk (such as prison The problem is not just a lack of bricks of improvement seems to have stalled, leavers)—are relatively well evidenced, and and mortar. Homelessness is often a while the number of people affected by the could be extended and replicated. symptom of underlying social problems, problem remains considerable. including family breakdown, poor mental Soft skills and physical health, drug abuse, low skills, A billion-pound homelessness charity Lack of confidence and self-esteem unemployment and poverty. Living on the sector works on many issues, delivering damages homeless people; many do not street or in a hostel tends to be the last vital services and challenging mainstream have supportive friends and family. It seems resort for people who have slipped through welfare services to help homeless people likely that these factors help to explain the the net of other services. These are some better. difficulties they face in living happy, stable, of the most vulnerable and damaged productive lives. people in Britain. Homelessness—it’s not Charities are increasingly offering activities But even homelessness in its broadest like drama, sport and art that build ‘soft sense, including life in crowded or insecure about not having a home. skills’ and friendship, helping homeless accommodation, often leaves people worn It’s about something being people to take the crucial first steps down by their housing needs and unable to towards overcoming the personal barriers make progress. seriously wrong. they face. These efforts need funding to be evaluated and to grow. Homelessness matters because it Stuart: a life backwards, by Alexander Masters. damages people’s lives, worsening existing Employment and training problems and creating new ones. Because most funding for homelessness Most homeless people are unemployed, For instance: charities comes from government and is so they lack the income, status and tied to housing, private donations play satisfaction a job can provide. Charities are • Between 30% and 50% of rough a crucial role in broadening the range developing specialist programmes to help sleepers have mental health problems.13 of services that organisations can offer, homeless people, especially entrenched • Only 5% of hostel dwellers are increasing their quality and allowing groups, to get trained, try work experience, employed.14 innovation. volunteer, find jobs and hold them down. Funding can help establish what works. • Among lone homeless people surveyed Historically, homelessness charities focused in Glasgow, just over a quarter had on giving homeless people food, safety and Permanent accommodation attempted suicide and about one in five sympathy. Since the mid to late 1990s, the had committed self-harm.15 approach has shifted towards building their The key structural constraint causing resilience and trying to help them transform homelessness is too little housing in the • More than a third of homeless people their lives. right place at the right price. Charities say they spend their days alone, and are vocal lobbyists, pressing government less than a third report spending time NPC identifies the following priorities for to increase the availability of affordable 16 with non-homeless people. donors. In each of these areas, more housing. They are also pioneering attempts • Children living in bad housing are twice funding is needed to allow charities to make privately-rented accommodation as likely as other children to have been to widen or deepen their efforts. By accessible to people who do not have excluded from school.4 supporting them, philanthropists can make enough money to pay for a deposit, and a measurable difference. who also lack the skills to hold down a tenancy. Funding is needed to sustain and build these efforts. 1 Day centres Capabilities within the sector Conclusions Day centres, literally places where Many homelessness charities are Despite some progress in recent years, homeless people go during the day, changing their roles and the scope of their the scale of homelessness in the UK play a vital role in identifying emerging activities. Given the size of the sector, and the breadth and depth of the problems and linking homeless people in to there is surprisingly little support to help underlying problems remain troubling. By services. But because they rarely provide them to share good practice. A number supporting charities in this field, donors accommodation, they get inadequate and of charities are doing unglamorous but can get homeless people into decent unstable statutory support. Funding for day valuable work raising standards in a accommodation, give them the support centres also helps to tackle several of the number of areas—involving homeless they need to stay there, and help them to other priorities NPC has identified, including people better in services, for example, or rebuild their lives. prevention and soft skills. providing specialist support for building refurbishment, or conducting more thorough evaluation. Funding initiatives like these can influence the whole sector. Photograph supplied by Homeless Link 2 Contents Introduction 5 5. Prevention 55 The purpose of this report 6 What is the situation? 55 Scope and content 6 What are charities doing? 57 Structure 6 What can a donor fund? 64 1. The basics 9 6. Health 67 What is homelessness? 9 What is the situation? 67 What is the impact of homelessness? 10 What are charities doing? 70 Why do people become homeless? 12 What can a donor fund? 73 What happens when you become homeless? 12 7. Soft skills and social networks 75 Who are homeless people? 17 Where are homeless people? 18 What is the situation? 75 How do people move within the system? 19 What are charities doing? 78 What is government doing about it? 20 What can a donor fund? 83 Conclusion 23 8. Employment 85 2. Homelessness charities 25 What is the situation? 85 A brief history of the sector 25 What are charities doing? 88 What do charities do? 26 What can a donor fund? 95 Direct services 26 9. Final word 97 Indirect services 31 Funding for charities 33 Appendices 99 Main challenges faced by sector 34 Encouraging trends 37 Appendix 1: How many people are homeless? 99 Conclusion 38 Appendix 2: Estimating the size of the homelessness sector 100 3. What should a donor fund? 39 Appendix 3: Distribution of services 100 Deciding what areas to fund 40 Acknowledgements 103 Choosing organisations to support 43 How to fund 44 References 106 4. Housing 45 What is the situation? 45 What are charities doing? 49 What can a donor fund? 53 3 4 Introduction Introduction David’s story More worryingly, Sean started to develop health problems. He had difficulty breathing and had David became homeless when he was nineteen to go to hospital. Sarah was convinced that his and he split up with his girlfriend. She was development and behaviour had been damaged uncomfortable with his drug-taking and they by the move. had constantly argued about him getting a job. He ended up sleeping rough on a bench She contacted a local charity that provides for about two weeks, then moving in with his housing advice. It advised her to appeal against grandmother for another two. the local council and guided her through all the forms she had to complete. The appeal was When he applied to the local council for successful and Sarah and Sean were moved help, they referred him to a local charity that into a much better flat, in an area nearer Sarah’s ran supported accommodation specifically parents. Just two months later, Sarah says she for young people. He was given a furnished can see the difference in Sean’s health and bedsit where he finally felt secure—knowing behaviour. that he could stay there for at least two years. His support worker encouraged him to take Robert’s story advantage of courses run by the charity, and he soon completed qualifications in literacy, Robert became homeless when he was 42, maths and IT. With this and taking part in the after his wife and child died in an accident. He local football league, he stopped taking drugs said he had nothing to fight for, and walked out altogether. of his home. For the next three years, he lived on the streets of central London. He slept in David was also elected to the charity’s user a hostel occasionally, particularly when it was group—a committee of residents and clients cold, but he never managed to stay long before that provides feedback to the charity’s he was evicted for picking petty fights.