Adapting Housing First promotes systemic change in homelessness work in Europe

In 2023, more than one million people were homeless in Europe. This is not only a human tragedy, but also bad news for European societies. Promoting permanent housing would be a solution to homelessness that respects fundamental rights and is more economically viable than rotating people from one temporary accommodation to another.

Homelessness has been accompanied by a wider housing crisis creeping into Europe, which is eroding public confidence in decision-makers. Some countries are facing a situation where affordable housing is simply not available and people, especially those with low incomes, are being pushed into temporary housing solutions or, in the worst case, homelessness.

Y-Säätiö actively monitors and seeks to influence the homelessness situation through its international networks.

Adapting the Housing First model

One of the vantage points is the three-year Adapting Housing First project, funded by the EU’s Erasmus+ programme, which studies and develops homelessness work based on the Housing First approach. The project is led by Sophia Housing in Ireland. Y-Säätiö is responsible for the research component of the project. Other partners are Arrels Fundacio from Spain and Housing First Berlin from Germany.

The Housing First model was once developed as a solution to long-term homelessness and its approach was, and still is, radical. The primary solution to homelessness is a home, followed by working towards other goals through a range of supportive measures.

The model has been proven in numerous studies and evaluations. Even those who have been homeless on the streets for years have been able to move into permanent housing, which can make a huge difference to their other functioning and quality of life. The model has also been found to be cost-effective.

Similar success stories have also been heard in the Adapting Housing First project, from both residents and staff.

From the perspective of homeless residents, what is particularly important and effective about the model is that it provides a secure and permanent home for the homeless person. The support that comes with it helps to improve quality of life and to establish contacts with the rest of the service system and society.

For homelessness workers, the model has provided an opportunity to develop their professional skills and to work according to strong ethical principles. Cost savings to society have been achieved through improved quality of life for residents and reduced need for services.

How to promote systemic change?

The challenge of the Housing First model has been its small scale and temporary nature. In many European countries, work is carried out in projects with time-limited funding that often have the potential to reach only a few dozen people. At the same time, there may be thousands of homeless people. One of the objectives of Adapting Housing First is therefore to extend the Housing First model.

In line withDemos Helsinki’s breakdown , it is not sufficient to work effectively at an individual level to improve the situation of one person, although that is important as well. Change should also be made at the systemic level.

Homelessness work should first of all aim at ending homelessness through permanent housing rather than temporary accommodation. Secondly, the different actors and organisations must be committed to working together to achieve this goal.

In several countries, a key bottleneck to systemic change is affordable housing, which the housing first model needs to enable permanent housing. There is simply no housing available, but rather a housing shortage.

Different housing options must also be available. For example, not everyone is suited to living independently in their own home – some need communal or more supported housing solutions.

The project aims to address these challenges through advocacy. Developers and other housing actors have been invited to participate in discussions on homelessness and policy makers have been informed about the central role of housing and the different housing solutions available.

In addition to housing, Housing First should be integrated with the rest of the service system and services to avoid the model’s support work remaining as individual projects or solely in the hands of homelessness actors. There is a need for cooperation networks that go beyond homelessness work. Preventing homelessness and ensuring continuity of housing should be part of prevention, remediation and harm reduction work.

Finland as a former model student?

The central starting point of the project is, as the name suggests, the adaptation of the Housing First model, which means, in particular, making use of the available structures and operating models in the implementation of the model. This means that different countries may have different ways of working on housing first, depending on their service systems or other structures, as long as the key principles remain the same. In this way, existing resources can be optimally used.

In the Finnish Housing First model, the above-mentioned elements have been fairly well established and the aim of ending homelessness is no longer considered unrealistic. Homelessness has been falling steadily in our country, while elsewhere in Europe the curve has even been rising steeply.

One of our key success factors has been precisely the structures in place and the way they have been used, backed up by the political will behind the model. There has been a desire to do things differently.

Affordable publicly subsidised housing has been provided, and homelessness work has also been integrated with other services. We have made a long-term effort to prevent homelessness through housing guidance, debt counselling, general housing allowance and other social benefits. These factors that promote and sustain systemic change in homelessness work are missing in many other countries.

However, changes are currently taking place in Finland that are putting the very basis of homelessness work at risk.

Cuts to social benefits, general housing allowance, housing guidance and other safety nets are increasing the risk of homelessness and reducing the capacity to prevent homelessness, as well as to provide support and housing stability after experiencing homelessness.

The planned reduction in publicly subsidised housing could mean that the access to affordable housing could become an almost unrealistic dream, as in other European countries.

Continuity of homelessness work must be secured

This brings us back to the current housing crisis, which has also been recognised by the European Commission.

Among other things, the Commission is working on a plan to promote affordable housing, which will form part of the Commission’s recently launched anti-poverty strategy. The new Commission has also created the post of Housing Commissioner, whose main task will be to promote the construction of affordable and publicly subsidised housing in European countries.

For Adapting Housing First, EU action will provide an important impetus for systemic change. At the same time, it is important to stick to what works and make the most of the opportunities available.

Sources:

Demos Helsinki (2022) A new systems perspective to ending homelessness. Housing First Europe Hub. https://housingfirsteurope.eu/publication/publication-a-new-systems-change-perspective-demos-helsinki/

Gerull, Susan (2021) Evaluation: Housing First Berlin. ASH Berlin. Institute of Applied Science. https://housingfirst.wp.tri.haus/research/evaluation-housing-first-berlin/

Pleace, Nicholas (2016) Asunto ensin –opas Eurooppa. Housing First Hub. https://ysaatio.fi/aineisto/asunto-ensin-opas/

Roggenbruck, Christian (2022): Housing First: An evidence review of implementation, effectiveness and outcomes. AHURI, Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute Limited, Melbourne. https://www.ahuri.edu.au/research/research-papers/housing-first-an-evidence-review-of-implementation-effectiveness-and-outcomes