Presentation given by Gerhard Eitel, Vienna City Council, Chair of Eurocities Homelessness working group at a FEANTSA seminar on "Glocalisation of homeless policies? How local authorities can strengthen their homeless strategies through transnational cooperation", hosted by the Committee of the Regions, May 2006

1. Glocalisation of homeless policies
Brussels May 11, 2006
Benefits for local
authorities to be part of a
transnational Forum on
homelessness
Gerhard Eitel, Vienna Social Fund (City of Vienna)
(Coordinator of the EUROCITIES working group
“Cities´ strategies against homelessness”)
Glocalisation of homeless policies/ May 2006
Benefits for local authorities Page 1

2. EUROCITIES
working group on homelessness
Cities participating
1,800,000
1,600,000
1,400,000
1,200,000
1,000,000
800,000
600,000
400,000
200,000
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3. Strategic objectives
overall reduction of the number of
homeless people
elimination of homelessness for families
abolition of long-term homelessness
(more than 2 years in transitory
institutions) homelessness.
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4. Operational objectives
developing European quality standards in services
for homeless people as well as in services to prevent
homelessness and to sustain accommodation
identification of good practices on empowerment
processes
In order to address the numerous problems leading
to homelessness, the Working Group pointed out
policy recommendations based on a comparison and
analysis of cities’ strategies to prevent and tackle
homelessness
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5. Tools of analysis
Tool 1 Local offers
Tool 2 Schemes on local support
Tool 3 Schemes of selected services
Tool 4 Schemes of framework conditions
Tool 5 Descriptions of selected services
12 Contributions of each tool to collect
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6. Local offers (Stockholm)
O ffers for hom eless O ffers for non - hom eless
people people
Tem porary program m es to Support to prevent
accom m odate hom eless people hom elessness
R esidential Hostels Eviction Prevention
S upervised accom odation in Rent subsidies
apartm ents
Easily affordable (com m unal) housing
A ccom panying program m es Program m es to safeguard
sustainable accom m odation
Streetwork Easily affordable (com m unal) housing
Shelter guarantee Housing agencies for people w ith low incom e
D ay Centers
S pecific m edical care
Auxiliary program m es
S pecific training and em ploym ent program m es
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7. SUPPORT FOR THE HOMELESS IN GLASGOW 2004
Independent housing
1854 FLOATING M Health Families Alcohol Resettlement
SUPPORT SERVICES 30 64 10 1750
(places)
542 CLIENT SPECIFIC WOMEN Y People M Health Families Alcohol Drugs ARBD Ex Off Resett
SUPPORTED 53 12 23 49 22 2 255
89 37
ACCOMMODATION
1330 LONGER TERM GCC
GCC HAC
TEMPORARY TEMP FURNISHED FLATS
FLATS/BEDSITS 30
1300
ACCOMMODATION
Salvation
857 EMERGENCY GCC 70 GCC GCC
GCC GCC GCC B&B
(M) ASSESS Army
BEDS/ ASSESSMENT 199 (M) 248 (M)
CLOSING
72 (F) 16 (16/17) 200
52 (M+F) M+F) 12 (M)
CENTRES
156 DIRECT HOSTELS
TALBOT 67 SALVATION ARMY
VOL SECTOR BEDS (M) (89 BEDS) (M+F)
LAURIESTON
LODGING BARNARDOS SIMON
DAY CENTRES and WAYSIDE CITY (SA)
HOUSE STREET TEAM COMMUNITY
CENTRE MISSION
STREETWORK MISSION (16-25) STREET (30 places
TEAM max)
2885 places to live Services for the homeless in Glasgow
Glasgow Homelessness Partnership

8. Selected services (Copenhagen)
Conceptual category Operational category Services
Houseless Type Number Capacity/case load
Temporary Temporary housing 7 301
accomodation (3.2) (longer stay)
Temporary housing 1 5
(transitional defined)
Temporary housing (no 9 66
defined time)
Nr of pers Ca. 441
Yr of count 2004
Homeless hostel (3.1) Short-stay homeless hostel 6s 1314
Nr of pers 786
Yr of count 2004
Roofless Stay in a night shelter Short-stay hostel 3 29 of which 18 beds is
and/or forced to spend only for the periode 15/11
several hours a day in a – 1/4
public space (2) Low-threshold/Direct 2 night shelter/cafées 99
access shelter
Nr of pers Ca. 683
Yr of count 2004
Rough sleepers (1) Outreach services 1 team with 19 full-time Closer contact to 450
Nr of pers Ca. 450 (fieldworkers) man-hours on 34 persons homeless persons on the
Yr of count 2004 streets
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9. Framework conditions regarding social
housing and homeless integration (Rotterdam)
Federal Regional Local
•Law of upper limits • Special health care • Social benefits
of rental fees (AWBZ) decentralized • Local housing allowances
• Homeless policy tot regional care • Local grants for the
and grants are insurance offices (non- institutions housing the
decentralized tot profit) homeless
local authorities •Training of housing skills
•Social support for families
•Board of arbitration •Permanent housing for
to check rental fees alcohol and/or drugs
abusers
Local income support for •Permanent housing for
•Costs of rent contract, rent and rent arrears people with metal health
problems
•Costs of furniture, energy and water supply
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10. Description of local services
for the homeless
1. Name of project 10. User involvement in decision making
2. Core objectives: Purpose of 11. Support planning processes
project 12. Staff number and qualification
3. Core service: Strategic action 13. Opening hours:
research 14. Access: How do clients access your
4. Additional support: service
5. Target group and their needs: 15. Annual expenditure of the project
Who the project aims to serve 16. Reasons for suspension
6. Capacity: The number of 17. Research and reporting systems
spaces/people the project can 18. Formal mechanisms of cooperation
work with at any one time with other agencies for
contributing to the homeless
7. Description of accommodation sector as a whole
offered
19. Complaints procedure
8. House rules: Rules of the project
20. Risk assessments
9. Governance arrangement: Who
has executive responsibility for 21. Client information
the project 22. Contracts
23. Other information
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11. The integrated
„chain approach“
a coordinated, integrated and strategic
approach to each homeless person
to support people progress to the
optimum level of independence and
integration
The “Integrated chain” depends on the
specific local situation
yet many of the realised individual measures
of all participating cities are very similar.
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12. Measures needed to realise effective
support for the homeless
•To prevent evictions as many as possible to
avoid the beginning of homeless “careers”
•Effective support for mental ill people
(homeless and non homeless)
•An easy access to affordable flats (e.g.
communal housing) for inhabitants of
transitional hostels
•The offer of unlimited special accommodation
for (former) long time homeless people
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13. Obstacles to provide an integrated
“chain approach” I
´Overall´ obstacles
•Lack of central coordination of all policies and services
•No culture of tackling social problems through a
strategic approach
•No (or a limited) innovative attitude among
policymakers and service providers
•The disregard of prevention
•Inflexibility of regulations in services, accommodations,
etc.
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14. Obstacles to provide an integrated
“chain approach” II
Target group related obstacles
No integrated, multidisciplinary approach for clients
with a dual diagnosis
No (or poor quality) accommodation for special target
groups
- No or difficult access for homeless to other fields of
society (e.g. labour market)
Those at the ‘bottom of the chain’ are thought not to
fit in a chain model. As a result an integrated chain
approach is not developed at all.
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15. Obstacles to provide an integrated
“chain approach” III
Financial obstacles
Cities absorb many homeless people from other
parts of the country without budgets being
transferred.
not enough money to:
1) provide all the (specific) services needed
2) be innovative
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16. Common experience
Social planning takes time
success or failure cannot be measured
within one legislative period
results of social experiments are not
foreseeable
The majority of innovative programmes,
takes a highly positive course
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17. Future challenges
Additional members to the WGH, especially from
member states from South and Eastern Europe
Continuous documentation of achievements to
promote transparency and comparability among
the member cities
To refine the model of an “integrated chain
approach” (based on good practices)
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18. Active contribution to
National Action Plans
To fil the gap between the local level and the
national and European level in the field of social
inclusion policies
Intention to active contribution to National Action
Plans
The “integrated chain approach” as a local
strategy for social inclusion should be fully
reflected in the future NAPincl
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19. Possible partnerships
Search for partners on a European level
Local authoritie´s forum seems possible, if
WGH partnership will continue
Foundation of core (leading) group
Significant added value for municipalities
(e.g. improvement of practical cooperation
between national, regional, and local level)
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20. Thank you for your attention!
If you have any questions,
suggestions or feedback, please
do not hesitate to contact me:
Gerhard Eitel
VIENNA SOCIAL FUND
Communication Unit
International Network and Incentives
A-1030 Vienna, Guglgass 7 - 9
Tel: +431 4000 66703
Mobile: +431 664 5453586
Mail to: gerhard.eitel@fsw.at
www.fsw.at
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