People experiencing homelessness often have multiple and complex health and social care needs that require support from many services. However, accessing and coordinating this support can be difficult when services are disconnected geographically or relationally. Often the person who is experiencing these challenges is the one who has to reach out for help, and this can be extremely hard for someone also managing day-to-day homelessness.
 |
| During our workshop, More Than Minutes visually captured our discussions, providing a dynamic summary. These visuals encapsulate key insights and recommendations, offering an engaging snapshot of our collective journey towards transforming support for people experiencing homelessness. |
Over the past two years, our team has been working with services that provide support to people experiencing homelessness in rural and coastal areas of North East England. Our goal has been to explore innovative ways to improve access to care and support for these vulnerable people. Here, we share our research findings, shed light on the challenges faced by people experiencing homelessness and present our co-produced recommendations for creating a more effective and holistic (whole person) support system.
What does hospital data tell us?
To understand why people experiencing homelessness in the North East often turn to emergency care services in rural and coastal areas rather than seeking alternative forms of support, we examined hospital data on people attending emergency care services who had no recorded address. We discovered that there are many contributing factors, including struggles with alcohol and drugs, mental health issues, and challenging social situations. These challenges often occur at the same time, exacerbating their complexity and approaches to treatment.
What is stopping homeless people accessing services?
While this numerical data provided valuable insights, it did not uncover the underlying reasons behind the lack of engagement with other support services. To gain deeper insights, we interviewed people experiencing homelessness as well as those providing support in rural and coastal areas. The interviews aimed to explore experiences with emergency care services, overall health, social lives, and past traumas. They revealed significant barriers to accessing services, such as limited resources, transportation challenges inherent to rural areas, and the isolation often felt in coastal communities. Additionally, rigid service criteria and thresholds prevented people from receiving the support they urgently needed, further compounded by the sparse availability of services in these regions.
What is the current picture?
A comprehensive and integrated approach tailored to the rural and coastal context was needed to provide effective support to people experiencing homelessness in these areas, so we mapped out existing services and their collaborative relationships in the areas. Our findings showed a fragmented system, with many services operating independently and lacking essential connections to the core network of services necessary for addressing the unique challenges faced by people in rural and coastal areas.
How do we address the gaps?
In response to these gaps, we organised a workshop at the Community Hub in Cramlington, Northumberland, bringing together over 70 people including professionals from health, housing, social services, local authorities, law enforcement, emergency response, and third-sector organisations, as well as people with lived experience of homelessness and mental health issues in these regions. Together we developed recommendations for a more effective and collaborative approach to supporting people experiencing homelessness in rural and coastal areas. Seven key areas for recommendations were identified:
What does hospital data tell us?
To understand why people experiencing homelessness in the North East often turn to emergency care services in rural and coastal areas rather than seeking alternative forms of support, we examined hospital data on people attending emergency care services who had no recorded address. We discovered that there are many contributing factors, including struggles with alcohol and drugs, mental health issues, and challenging social situations. These challenges often occur at the same time, exacerbating their complexity and approaches to treatment.
What is stopping homeless people accessing services?
While this numerical data provided valuable insights, it did not uncover the underlying reasons behind the lack of engagement with other support services. To gain deeper insights, we interviewed people experiencing homelessness as well as those providing support in rural and coastal areas. The interviews aimed to explore experiences with emergency care services, overall health, social lives, and past traumas. They revealed significant barriers to accessing services, such as limited resources, transportation challenges inherent to rural areas, and the isolation often felt in coastal communities. Additionally, rigid service criteria and thresholds prevented people from receiving the support they urgently needed, further compounded by the sparse availability of services in these regions.
What is the current picture?
A comprehensive and integrated approach tailored to the rural and coastal context was needed to provide effective support to people experiencing homelessness in these areas, so we mapped out existing services and their collaborative relationships in the areas. Our findings showed a fragmented system, with many services operating independently and lacking essential connections to the core network of services necessary for addressing the unique challenges faced by people in rural and coastal areas.
How do we address the gaps?
In response to these gaps, we organised a workshop at the Community Hub in Cramlington, Northumberland, bringing together over 70 people including professionals from health, housing, social services, local authorities, law enforcement, emergency response, and third-sector organisations, as well as people with lived experience of homelessness and mental health issues in these regions. Together we developed recommendations for a more effective and collaborative approach to supporting people experiencing homelessness in rural and coastal areas. Seven key areas for recommendations were identified:
- Long-term funding and resources: Campaign for sustained funding and increased resources to support comprehensive and ongoing assistance for homeless people.
- Coordination, connectivity, and communication: Establish robust ways to coordinate, foster better connectivity between services, and improve communication channels to ensure a seamless and integrated support system.
- Accessible services - pathways to support: Develop clear and accessible pathways for homeless people to access a wide range of support services, including health, housing, social services, and mental health resources.
- Building trust and co-developing services with lived experience: Foster trust and inclusivity by actively involving peoples with lived experience of homelessness in the design, development, and evaluation of support services.
- Trauma-informed practice: Implement trauma-informed approaches across all support services, recognising and addressing the underlying trauma experienced by homeless people.
- Improved data sharing: Establish efficient data-sharing agreements for support services to ensure comprehensive and up-to-date information, enabling better coordination and informed decision-making.
- Staff retention and wellbeing: Prioritise the wellbeing of support staff by providing resources, training, and support to prevent burnout and turnover, fostering continuity of care.
