Housing First

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Housing First is a policy that offers unconditional, permanent housing as quickly as possible to homeless people, and other supportive services afterward. It was first discussed in the 1990s, and in the following decades became government policy in certain locations within the Western world.[1] There is a substantial base of evidence showing that Housing First is both an effective solution to homelessness and a form of cost savings, as it also reduces the use of public services like hospitals, jails, and emergency shelters.[2] Cities like Helsinki and Vienna in Europe have seen dramatic reductions in homelessness due to the adaptation of Housing First policies,[3][4] as have the North American cities Columbus, Ohio, Salt Lake City, Utah, and Medicine Hat, Alberta.[5][6][7][8][9][10]

Housing First is an alternative to a system of emergency shelter/transitional housing progressions. Rather than moving homeless individuals through different "levels" of housing, whereby each level moves them closer to "independent housing" (for example: from the streets to a public shelter, and from a public shelter to a transitional housing program, and from there to their own apartment or house in the community), Housing First moves the homeless individual or household immediately from the streets or homeless shelters into their own accommodation.

Housing First approaches are based on the concept that a homeless individual or household's first and primary need is to obtain stable housing, and that other issues that may affect the household can and should be addressed once housing is obtained. In contrast, many other programs operate from a model of "housing readiness" — that is, that an individual or household must address other issues that may have led to the episode of homelessness prior to entering housing.

The Housing First strategy is a comprehensive solution incorporating support for homeless people in all aspects of their personal and social life. It does not intend to provide housing for the people in need and forget about them.[11][12][13][14] The Housing First philosophy is a paradigm shift, where quick provision of stable accommodations is a precondition for any other treatment to reduce homelessness. Meanwhile, this approach relies on layers of collaborative support networks that promote stability and eliminate factors that cause or prolong homelessness. The support system addresses issues such as healthcare, education, family, children, employment, and social welfare.[15][16]

  1. ^ "1.2. The History of Housing First". Housing First Europe Hub. Archived from the original on 2022-06-17. Retrieved 2021-09-11.
  2. ^ "Housing First". National Alliance to End Homelessness. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  3. ^ "'It's a miracle': Helsinki's radical solution to homelessness". the Guardian. 2019-06-03. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  4. ^ Copeland, Joe. "The city that solved homelessness | Crosscut". crosscut.com. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  5. ^ Nickelsburg, Monica (2018-07-19). "The cities making a dent in homelessness — and what Seattle can learn from them". GeekWire. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  6. ^ Shuler, Samantha. "'Vicious cycle' of mental illness, homelessness can be stopped with help of empathy |Opinion". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  7. ^ Walker, Micah. "Franklin County homeless shelter population up, challenged by lack of affordable housing". The Columbus Dispatch. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  8. ^ "Utah Reduced Chronic Homelessness By 91 Percent; Here's How". NPR.org. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  9. ^ Garrott, Luke (2022-03-28). "SLC to extend moratorium on homeless shelters for another year while city council signals discontent with current strategy". Building Salt Lake. Retrieved 2022-07-17.
  10. ^ Gregersen, Leif. "How A Small Canadian City Took On Chronic Homelessness". Next City. Retrieved 24 August 2022.
  11. ^ Guirguis-Younger, M.; McNeil, R.; Hwang, S. W. (2014). Homelessness and Health in Canada. University of Ottawa Press.
  12. ^ Gaetz, S.; Dej, E.; Richter, T.; Redman, M. The State of Homelessness in Canada 2016. Canadian Observatory on Homelessness Press.
  13. ^ Quirouette, M. (2016). "Managing Multiple Disadvantages: The Regulation of Complex Needs in Emergency Shelters for the Homeless". Journal of Poverty. 20 (3): 316–339. doi:10.1080/10875549.2015.1094774. S2CID 155529754.
  14. ^ Katz, A.; Zerger, S.; Hwang, S. W. (2017). "Housing First the conversation: discourse, policy and the limits of the possible". Critical Public Health. 27 (1): 139–147. doi:10.1080/09581596.2016.1167838. hdl:1807/76596. S2CID 147118255.
  15. ^ Laird, G. (2007). "SHELTER - Homelessness in a growth economy: Canada's 21st century paradox". Sheldon Chumir Foundation for Ethics in Leadership.
  16. ^ Fowler, P. J.; Hovmand, P. S.; Marcal, K. E.; Das, S. (2019). "Solving Homelessness from a Complex Systems Perspective: Insights for Prevention Responses". Annual Review of Public Health. 40: 465–486. doi:10.1146/annurev-publhealth-040617-013553. PMC 6445694. PMID 30601718.