Cascais is Changing

9th European Research Conference
Homelessness in Times of Crisis
Warsaw, Friday 19th September 2014
CASCAIS IS CHANGING
Ricardo Caldeira
Câmara Municipal de Cascais
(Cascais City Hall)
Portugal
ricardo.caldeira@cm-cascais.pt

38.696827415273375 latitude
-9.420730769634246 longitude
The Capital

POPULATION
- 206.479 Inhabitants (2011)
- Municipal Council with the higher growth in the last 10 years
-3.500 news inhabitants for year (average of last decade)
- 6th Council national level with more population
EDUCATION
- Third highest rate of university graduates in the country
- The lowest taxes of school dropout for elementary students (2,7%)
- The lowest taxes of school dropout for second grade students (5,6%)
TERRITORY
- 97 Square km (divided in 4 Parish’s)
- Two thirds of Cascais is natural reserve
-One third of Cascais has a view of the sea
- 7th place at national level as municipal council with the best quality of life (within 308 municipal councils)

ECONOMY
-4th place on municipal council richness ranking (2009)
-7th less industrialized municipal council in the country (2008 - 308 councils)
-277 business for square KM
-2,3% of Gross National Product (GNP) is produced in Cascais
 1% Agriculture
 17% Industry
 82% Services
SOCIAL DEVELOPMENT/COHESION
-Local network with 110 entities (NGO and public agents)
-24 thematic networks- Homelessness, domestic violence, handicap people, first infancy, health promotion in schools(….)
-4.045.607,69 € - Municipal investment in social development ( 4% of global municipal investment)
3.653.218,0€ - Housing, social and health resources, individuals, families and groups
319.612,0€ - Intervention in communities and territories
72.777,€ - Knowledge, communication and local governance

BACKGROUND (UNTIL 2010)
Homelessness was not in the local political agenda;
Homelessness intervention wasn’t as important as other social issues;
The local partner’s intervention towards homelessness was not aligned with common goals or methodological principles;
The number of homeless people was a speculative one;
The social measures to deal with homelessness were the same as the ones to deal with other social issues, disregarding some specificities of homelessness;
The intervention didn´t produce real changes in people’s lives;
There was only one specific local response to deal with homelessness, with financial aid from the city hall.
No strategic intervention

ACTION PLAN (2010-2013)
Assumption
of the local
network
2010-2011
Alignment of local action plan with the methodological principals and goals of the national strategy for homeless people;
Definition of a procedure scheme and territorial organization regarding intervention;
Diagnosis of the nature and dimension of the homeless people (local census) and maintenance of a data base on active cases ;
Intervention based on quality of action and follow-up;
Ensure financial support to the action plan. 2012-2013
New/ adjusted measures
Training

ACTION PLAN (2014-2018)
Reinforce the local network
2014-2018
Quality intervention focused on tailored measures;
Enhance prevention and immediate intervention;
Define goals for intervention on structural, institutional, relationship and personal risk factors and triggers for homelessness;
Attract new partners for the network.

ACTION PLAN – Simplified scheme of procedures
COMMUNITY
(citizens, civil forces, ONG, private sector)
Identifies a homelessness situation
INFORMS PARISH COORDINATION FOR HOMELESSNESS INTERVENTION
ASSIGN A CASE MANAGER
Cascais/Estoril
Alcabideche
Parede/Carcavelos
Legal aid
Health care and access to medicines
Hygiene care
Food
Clothing
Public space maintenance
Emergency housing
Money
Transportation
RESOURCES FOR INTERVENTION
S. Domingos de Rana

2010
13
87
42 - WHITHOUT CASE MANAGER
100
42%
2013
4
72
76
28 -WHITHOUT CASE MANAGER
36%
Decrease
HOMELESS PEOPLE IN CASCAIS
0,04% of council inhabitants

2013
76
IMMEDIATE QUESTION:
Why to invest in a reality that statistically represent’ s only 0,03% of the population?
Because reality It’s made of people, who have the right to live the plenitude of their life’s;
Because for the construction of a cohesive territory all percentages count;
Because it’s not an isolated investment, it’s part of a local public policy towards territorial cohesion, by the reduction of social, economic and educational/cultural gaps of individuals and groups/communities;

2011
24
3
41
44
110%
Increase
2012
29
2013
HOMELESS PEOPLE IN CASCAIS – NEW REPORTS - Evolution by years
Economic and financial crisis as background scenario
2010
21

LOCAL PUBLIC INVESTMENT – Evolution by years
2011
2012
2013
2010
70.180,0€
70.180,0€
141.311,0€
88.368,0€
1,92€ for person/day
Average of 2,63€ for person/day
43.236,0€
GRANT
2014
104.511,0€

LOCAL PUBLIC INVESTMENT – Sources by responses
2011
2012
2013
2010
35.000,0€
2014
35.180,0€
35.180,0€
43.236,0€
62.895,0€
35.180,0€
53.180,0€
35.180,0€
69.331,0€
35.000,0€
35.180,0€
Housing First
Emmergency/transitional housing (6 mont’s up to a 1year)
Case management
Basic services support (hygiene, food, health)

New approaches
Housing First Pilot Project (October 2012);
Changes in the grade criteria’s for the access to municipal social housing program by homeless people
Enhance prevention
New results
5 homeless people that lived in the streets for more than 5 years and that had a diagnosis of mental illness, were relocated in 1 room apartments in the local community;
In 2013 - 15 people left their homeless condition due to the relocation in municipal social houses (1 room apartments).
Reduction of the % of new homeless situations due to socioeconomic privation.

MAIN CHANGES/ RESULTS (2014)
Bring homelessness in Cascais into the local political agenda;
Mobilize financial resources for the intervention;
Align the local partners intervention to common goals reinforcing their action towards homelessness, within the scope of the Portuguese National Strategy for Homelessness;
Bring homelessness intervention to the same level as other social issues in Cascais;
Assign a case manager to 70% of registed homeless people;
Introduce new social measures to deal with homelessness;
Reinforce the local net service support for homeless people;
Produce real changes in people’s lives.

KEY ASPECTS OF CASCAIS INTERVENTION
Local political engagement to ending homelessness;
Financial support available;
Local Network;
Exchange of experiences with national and transnational partners;
Intervention based on evidence that individual approaches with net services support, achieve better results for homeless people towards a path of changing.

MAJOR CHALLENGES
Development of new approaches regarding employment and social activities for homeless people;
Efficiency and impact analysis as key concern regarding public investment;
Maintain the financial investment for the action plan;
Tackle the risk factors and triggers for homelessness (structural, institutional, relationship, personal) – Social Investment package – European Commission
Development of a national/ transnational partnership for a housing first national program within the scope of the financial investment of Europe 2020.

CHANGING THE PRESENT
It’s possible, it’s not a statement
It’s imperative for the maintenance of individual rights and dignities;
It’s a “building” in permanent construction;
Defines a different and more balanced future for Cascais inhabitants (Cascalenses)
This is one of the reasons why CASCAIS IS CHANGING

Cascais is Changing

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