Partners and country profiles

Groundswell, England

Groundswell exists to enable homeless people to take more control of their lives, have a greater influence on services and play a fuller role in our community. We have been at the forefront of creating innovative client-centred participatory action research since 1996. All of our research and commissioned work is delivered by peer researchers who have lived experience of homelessness and are trained and supported by Groundswell.

In 2010 we started an innovative health advocacy service (HHPA) to support people experiencing homelessness to access healthcare. Activities include a health advocacy service where people experiencing homelessness are support to access health care, health promotion activities, campaigns and research on homelessness and health. Through our progression program we support over 40 volunteers with experience of homelessness and 2/3 of staff members have been homeless before.

Key statistics regarding homelessness in England

The following chart gives a picture about the main figures regarding homelessness and the risk of homelessness in England:

Case study -Groundswell

Here you can read a fictional story based on several-life cases. By this we would like to draft a typical situation that a person experiencing homelessness in older age can face in England. (Darren is a pseudonym.)

Darren had a heroin dependency, for which he has been receiving support, including a methadone prescription, for more than five years. He experiences mental ill health, including severe anxiety, but, because he has been unable to maintain long term abstinence from heroin, he has been unable to access mental health support, either from his doctor or from specialist services. His doctor advised that he may be able to access support if he engages better with the drug recovery service. Because of his heroin dependency, Darren’s doctor was also suspicious that Darren was exaggerating about the severity of his back pain, believing that Darren was lying in order to get a prescription for strong painkillers. As a result, Darren lost trust in medical services and avoided them as much as possible.

After being evicted from his home, Darren was sleeping rough in London for a week, before being discovered by a homeless outreach team. They supported him to complete a homelessness application at his local authority. Because of his COPD, he was accepted as being in priority need for statutory housing support. He was moved into temporary accommodation – a flat, owned by the local authority. Though he had a housing support worker there, she was unable to visit frequently. After a month, a drug dealer and his friends found out about Darren’s flat and forced him into letting them use it to sell drugs. Darren stopped using the recovery service and began using heroin daily again. After a few weeks, he was assaulted by one of the men in his flat.

Darren was admitted to hospital but discharged himself before he had sufficiently recovered. Afraid to go back to the flat, he returned to sleeping rough, this time with an unhealed arm injury. He had no phone, so the outreach staff were unable to locate him for two weeks. When they found him, his arm was in a cast; he had received no further medical treatment. He told the outreach worker that he wanted to have his own flat again. However, the local authority said that he was incapable of maintaining his own accommodation. His outreach worker then referred him to a hostel.

Darren has been living in the hostel for five months. He has been supported to re-engage with the recovery service and is currently not using heroin, He has also registered with a new doctor and is being supported to attend outpatient appointments for his long-term health conditions. He finds it difficult to manage his mental health in the hostel but has not been given any options yet for more permanent accommodation.

Caritas Trieste, Italy

The Caritas Trieste Foundation operates in the area of ​​the province of Trieste with a particular focus on poverty reduction and social inclusion through services and projects. The Foundation carries out activities in the sector of social solidarity, hospitality and social assistance. The Foundation has a solid voluntary base, in fact the organization currently engages about 100 operators and 450 volunteers. The Caritas Trieste Foundation works in cooperation and partnership with local and regional public administrations to promote and manage projects and services.

Key statistics regarding homelessness in Italy

The current population of Italy is 58 770 122 and 96 197 people are registered as homeless. Among them 50 724 use canteen and dormitory services according to the National Institute of Statistics, 2022.

4 out of 10 are foreign citizens. They are mostly men with an average age of 41.6 years.

Among homeless foreign nationals, 61% are from the African continent, 22% have European citizenship while 17% have Asian origin. Morocco, Nigeria, Mali and Somalia are the countries from which the most homeless foreign nationals come from. Reading the population registers, it emerges that the 96 197 are resident in 2 198 Italian municipalities but 50% is concentrated in 6 municipalities. These municipalities are Rome (23%), Milan (9%) Naples (7%),Turin (4,6%), Genoa (3,7%) and Foggia (3%).

Another look at the phenomenon of poverty and housing exclusion is given by the Caritas Report 2022. During 2022, 227 556 people were assisted at the more than 2000 Caritas Listening Centres in all over Italy. Of these 23 976 (16,2%) were homeless people. Compared to 2021 there is an increase in absolute value of almost 1,500 people. They are mainly men (72.8%), foreigners (66.3%), unmarried (45.1%), with an average age of 43.7 years and encountered mainly in facilities in northern Italy.

In March 2022, the fio.PSD Observatory carried out a mini survey among its members to investigate the presence of people over 65 among the homeless population. For 10% of the organisations in the fio.PSD network, people over 65 represent half or more of the service users.

The increase of the elderly population among the homeless is due to: 

• the progressive ageing of the homeless population - as well as the population in general
•  the premature ageing and the deteriorating health conditions due to life on the street
•  the slide into extreme poverty with loss of housing for many elderly people with severe disabling diseases and low income.

Case study – Caritas Trieste

Here you can read a fictional story based on several-life cases. By this we would like to draft a typical situation that a person experiencing homelessness in older age can face in Italy. (Mario is a pseudonym.)

Mario found himself out of work under particularly unfortunate circumstances: due to his strenuous work over the years, he developed lumbosciatica and, in addition, exposure to pollution left him with a chronic cough, which worsened in the last period.

In addition, the loss of his job has affected Mario's general well-being, the sudden uncertainty of the future and the feeling of helplessness have accentuated his isolation and pushed him into a relapse after years of a good stable course with the addiction department of the health authority.

For a while, he got by on his meagre savings, got in touch with the Caritas Listening Centre, started shopping at the Caritas social supermarket (Emporio della Solidarietà), and got help from a welfare office to apply for the inclusion allowance.

While the pneumology examinations continue, Mario receives another piece of bad news: exposure to pollution, dust and chemicals have contributed to his developing chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). An examination is scheduled to assess the exemption from paying the co-pay fee: in the case of a chronic or disabling disease, the health authority of residence grants the right to exemption on the basis of the disease certification, issuing a certificate that defines the disease with its identification code and the list of services eligible for exemption. The reference ministerial decree is 329/1999 (Regulation containing rules for identifying chronic and disabling illnesses).

Mario can now benefit from exemption from paying the co-pay fee and will have appropriate investigations to monitor the disease and its complications and to prevent further aggravations.

In the meantime, the addiction service where Mario had been followed for years was able to activate a training course for him, including an apprenticeship in the workshop of a bakery.

He has applied for disability and is awaiting the outcome. In the meantime, a network of supportive friendships has built up around him.

From Streets to Homes! Association, Hungary

From Streets to Homes Association implements pilot projects to showcase ways out of the current housing crisis. We initiated the first Housing First program in Hungary. We campaign for local and national policy change. Our From Huts to Homes program uses vacant municipal apartments, renovated in cooperation with the partner municipality, NGOs, donors and future tenants (homeless persons living in the given district). Our second housing program is a Social Rental Agency pilot called Housing Now!. The agency manages 12 homes, utilizing all of which as affordable social rentals for its clients, at an average rent of 40-70% of the market rate. The members of the housing agency also mediate between owners and tenants to reduce risks on both sides; provide guarantee for the maintenance of the flat; and negotiate about renovations if needed.

From Streets to Homes Association provides housing and social work to people and families who experienced homelessness. Half of our tenants are aged 50 years or older. From Huts to Homes accommodates most of our elderly clients. In this program the organisation provides apartments and intensive social work focusing on individual needs. In 2021 they started to introduce new services like care work and catering especially to the older clients.

BMSZKI, Hungary

According to the results of February 3rd research, which is a survey asked from service users of Hungarian homeless service providers, the proportion of those who are over 60 years has increased from 11% to 40% between 1999-2020. In the meanwhile the proportion of those who are between 50-59 years is quite high: 31%. Many of them have got serious health problems and unable to work.

The proportion of elderlies who use the shelters of BMSZKI is rather high. Because of that we have put emphases on move forward procede for older, vulnerable people with income, to have access for the temporary hostels where they can experience safer condition and have opportunity to stay in during the day as well.

Besides, BMSZKI operates an inpatient facility for homeless people in order to provide adequate access to health care and ensure the necessary facilities to recover from acute health problems and chronic illnesses that require ongoing care. There are hospital departments at Szabolcs Temporary Hostel, with chronic internal medicine and the nursing department. Here, in addition to medical care we provide social work and mental health support. There is another unit in this hostel where people with high care needs can be accommodated while they wait to be admitted to a nursing home.

We are also trying to focus on developing services to meet the needs of clients with higher care and support needs at other temporary hostels of BMSZKI. In order to this next to social workers care workers are employed in more and more of our services.

Key statistics regarding homelessness in Hungary

The population of Hungary is 9 604 000 (National Census in 2022. https://nepszamlalas2022.ksh.hu/).  Each year since 1999, a unique survey research process is carried out among the users of the Hungarian homeless service sector. On the same day in every year a survey conducted among rough-sleepers, service users of night shelters and temporary hostels (ETHOS 1-3 categories). It is not a census about the people living in homelessness but the results gained from the research give us a profile about the characteristic and passage of this living situation.

There are about 10,000 beds in emergency and temporary accommodation for homeless adults.

In addition, in 2021 there were 4171 placements for families (or single parents, mostly mothers) with children – they are not considered homeless in Hungary, but in fact they are housed in a social service.

Age of homeless people: in 2020, 71% of the respondents of the February 3rd survey were over 50 years of age, about 40% over 60, 8% over 70! The average age of homeless people has increased considerably over the past 25 years (https://www.tarki.hu/sites/default/files/2022-03/TRIP_2020_Gyori_Peter.pdf).

Barriers to housing

• lack of affordable housing (Hungary has one of the lowest rate of social and municipal housing in the EU)
• lack of financial support for housing
• lack of financial support for everyday living

Social benefits are scarce and very low level, people unable to get a well paying job cannot pay for other accommodation than a homeless shelter.

Health care

Homeless people have health insurance because of their vulnerable situation – thus in theory they can access the same health care as any other citizen. However, mainstream health care struggles with funding and capacity issues – one often has to wait a long time before receiving specialized care.

Other barriers are lack of an address or having an address in a different town than where they live. Their entitlement is normally where the address is. Stigma and discrimination offer make it difficult for homeless people to access services.

There are specialized outpatient medical centres for homeless people in bigger cities.

Case study - Hungary

Here you can read a fictional story based on several-life cases. By this we would like to draft a typical situation that a person experiencing homelessness in older age can face in Hungary. (János is a pseudonym.)

János is a 50-year-old man who comes from a rural village. At the age of 18, he moved to Budapest for work purposes. At the beginning he worked in the construction industry, applying his learned trade, and shared rented accommodation with his colleagues. When he was 24, he moved in with his partner. They had a child together, but over the years, the relationship broken, and John moved out, living separately from his family. He stayed in Budapest, living in rented accommodation. His contact with his child was regular, and he also paid child support until the child turned 18. Meanwhile, his parents passed away, and he jointly inherited their house and land with his sibling, who later bought out his share.

He first experienced health problems around the age of 40. He often had shortness of breath and had to deal with serious back pain related to a work accident. As a result, he missed out on several job opportunities, and his housing situation became unstable. That was the first time he came into contact with the homeless support system when he had to move to a temporary shelter. In these facilities people have to share room with others, and in some periods he did not get on well with some of his roommates.

Besides, he was no longer able to do physically demanding work, so he started to work in a kitchen of a restaurant. This job provided regular income again. At this time, he applied for housing support through a grant offered by the homeless support organization. The support was enough to cover six months' rent and the deposit for a room. Homeless service providers strive to help individuals return to independent housing through such financial support opportunities. However, due to the rise in rental prices and the reluctance of landlords to enter into written agreements in many cases, these possibilities are becoming more and more limited.

At that time, János regularly consumed alcohol, and he continues to struggle with alcohol-related issues. When he talks about it now, he mentions that in the construction industry, it was common to drink together after a tough day. The impact of alcohol misuse is most noticeable in his mood. When not drinking, he gives the impression  of a restless, quiet man. However, if he consumes alcohol, he talks a lot, and it becomes very difficult to follow his train of thought.

He lost his job due to his poor health, and once again, his housing situation became unstable. At that point, he turned to the local Family Support Service. However, due to the inadequacy of available support resources, the Family Center could not contribute to a real solution for the housing crisis. Among the financial and in-kind support, crisis assistance is available in situations where your livelihood is threatened, but it can be a one-off or short-term benefit.  Additionally, support can be claimed for regular housing or medication expenses, but these amounts sufficient to cover only a small portion of utility or medication costs. Some municipalities also offer debt management support if there are unpaid bills, or rent subsidies can be claimed, but this is usually available only to tenants who live in social flats owned by the municipality. As János did not have a registered address in the dwelling where he was living at that time, he was not eligible for any of these benefits. Therefore, the family support service directed him to a homeless service provider organization to address the housing crisis.

Hungarian homeless service system mainly operates in stair-case model, where low-threshold night shelters and temporary hostels are available. While anyone can enter the night shelter for free of charge if there are available beds, admission to temporary hostel is granted for a low fee and for a maximum period of 2 years.

Due to János's poor health, he was admitted to a temporary hostel where social support was available. He paid the fee from his his wages from casual work.. The support focused on three areas: improving and maintaining his health, achieving a regular income, and setting goals related to long-term housing.

Eligibility for healthcare services (excluding emergency care) is tied to the payment of contributions. However, in connection with social solidarity in certain situations of need, such as homelessness, the State also creates entitlement. In János's case, the social worker issued the necessary certificate of eligibility, allowing him to access healthcare services.

János received healthcare support through the organization's GP Service, and got help in covering the costs of necessary medications. Due to constant back pain and the diagnosed COPD, regular work seemed to be unrealistic, so they claimed for social benefits related to health impairment. János was only eligible for a smaller allowance because he did not have enough registered years of employment for the larger sum. This amount, along with the free meals and medication support available covered his monthly living expenses and hostel fees.

Under these conditions, there is a little chance of increasing his income. Employment at a supported workplace that involves minimal physical exertion would be an appropriate long-term goal; but it is essential that his lung issues are properly managed.

János's low income also determines his long-term housing opportunities. To re-enter the private rental market, he would need a significantly higher income. The number of available supported housing options within the system is negligible, the proportion of social rental housing within the housing stock is very small, typically requiring a registered address in the specific district. Moreover, due to eligibility criteria, individuals living alone have a lower chance of obtaining a lease.

Unfortunately, according to the most likely scenario, János will only be able to address his housing situation in the long term within the homeless service system. Due to the current institutional regulations, these services can provide suitable support primarily for self-sufficient individuals. Only a minority of the institutions can undertake nursing and caregiving tasks. Meanwhile, the proportion of homeless individuals with poor health and older age is continuously increasing within the services.

We aim to use the experiences of this Erasmus+ program to find new perspectives in responding to these challenging and difficult situations

Focus Ireland, Ireland

Since 1990 Focus Ireland provides long-term housing, with tenancy support, for people with experience of being homeless. We now provide homes for over 1,000 households who were previously homeless. A significant proportion of these households are now elderly, while others have support needs typical of people who are chronologically much older due to their homeless experience. In addition to developing our support systems to meet the needs of these people we are active in exploring new approaches to provide such support and ensure the maximum level of independent living.

There are currently 13,531 people officially homeless in Ireland - this is the number of people living in emergency accommodation. This includes 1,490 families who are homeless and 4,027 children. The homelessness crisis in Ireland has increased significantly from 2014-2024. 

Case study –Focus Ireland

Here you can read a case study based on real circumstances for a Focus Ireland customer. Sarah Anne is a pseudonym.

Pathways into homelessness: The care system and private-rented sector

Sarah-Anne lived with a foster family in Dublin City, Ireland until she became pregnant at the age of 16 with her first child. Sarah-Anne’s foster family made her leave the family home when she became pregnant. In Ireland, young people coming from the care system (fostering, residential care or adoption) is one of the key pathways into homelessness in recent years.

The Irish Government has recently committed to a Strategy to End Youth Homelessness, which Focus Ireland is actively working on with the Government through the Coalition to End Youth Homelessness. Scared and pregnant, Sarah-Anne moved in with her boyfriend at the age of 16 in a privately rented apartment.

The lack of social housing over the last two decades has led to economically disadvantaged groups, who previously would have received social housing in earlier decades, living in the private rental market. The private rented market in Ireland has been historically insecure, with a lack of tenancy rights and strong property owner rights. In recent years, this has led to an increase in evictions from the private rented sector as a pathway into homelessness.

Sarah-Anne experienced domestic violence in the relationship throughout her pregnancy. Her boyfriend was violent towards her and others, and she felt scared for herself and her unborn child’s well-being. Her boyfriend was violent towards their landlord and subsequently they were both evicted from the apartment for antisocial and violent behaviour.

The couple moved out with only the clothes they were wearing. All their belongings were moved into storage by the landlord. With nowhere to go, they went to their local authority (council) and told staff they were homeless and had nowhere to go. They asked the local authority ‘’What can you do for us? We have literally nowhere to go’’. This was very distressing for the couple expecting a baby at the time.

The local authority arranged for an outreach worker from Focus Ireland to come and speak with the couple to offer support. Focus Ireland is an organisation who offer housing and homelessness support for economically vulnerable groups who cannot afford to rent their own home either in the private market or who would have difficulty in renting with the local authority or council.

Social Welfare Support 

During this time, Sarah-Anne was receiving a weekly social welfare payment for the unemployed. The current weekly payment for a single person is €185.60. This is a mean-tested payment and evidence of proof of income (or no income) must be provided to the Department of Social Protection through social security records. In addition, when a child is born, parents in Ireland are entitled to a monthly non-means tested payment referred to as Child Benefit. This is a monthly payment of €140 for one child.

Child Benefit is one of our longest-running social welfare payments. It was first introduced in 1944 and was originally only paid to fathers with three or more children under age 16 as an anti-poverty measure for large families. Parents or guardians of children under 16 years of age can receive Child Benefit. You can get Child Benefit for children aged 16 and 17, if they are in full-time education or full-time training, or have a disability and cannot support themselves.

Intentional Social Mix

After four months of living in emergency homeless accommodation, Sarah-Anne was offered a Focus Ireland property. The local authorities or councils work collaboratively with Focus Ireland to refer people to social housing tenancies. The social housing waiting list is usually very long, however different groups such as families, homeless households, people with disabilities, the elderly and those with medical issues may be prioritised in certain local authorities. Ireland has 31 local authorities and each one has different operating procedures and policies.

This can make it challenging for agencies such as Focus Ireland to work with local authorities and support people in different parts of the country. Due to this factor, support is ‘’patchy’’ in different parts of the country and social support from the local authorities can vary greatly. Sarah-Anne lives in a housing estate or development with a social mix of people from all walks of life. This idea of intentional social mix is referred to as our Meascan Model of Housing.

Sarah-Anne’s local authority is Dublin City Council - this local authority is particularly responsive to homelessness as most of Ireland’s homelessness is concentrated in Dublin City, and more 1 and 2-bed apartments are available in Dublin City compared with other parts of the country.

Furthermore, Dublin City Council reserves a small number of social housing properties for people over 55 years of age - older people are prioritised on the social housing list in this area. Unfortunately, this is not the case in every local authority area. 

Focus Ireland Supports

Today, Sarah-Anne continues to live in a Focus Ireland property where Focus Ireland acts as the landlord and provides social care support if needed. Sarah-Anne initially had the support of a Focus Ireland social care worker visiting weekly. The social care worker provided Sarah-Anne with advice on how to access social welfare payments, public transport and access public healthcare. They provided other general support such as parenting education courses provided in our Family Centre for parents and advice on meal preparation and financial budgeting.

This support is no longer needed for Sarah-Anne, however the door is always open for social care support if needed in the future. Sarah-Anne now has five children and lives with her new partner. She calls the Focus Ireland property her ‘’forever home’’.

Sarah-Anne said ‘’When the letter arrived from Focus Ireland, it was the first ray of light for us. It’s been a life-changing experience to get offered our own home - I cherish it. We’re living beside all classes of people, people working, older people who are retired, young families, all kinds of people and we actually fit in. We don’t stand out’’. A key principle in Focus Ireland’s housing development policy is ‘’intentional social mix’’ meaning that Focus Ireland customers or clients are placed in areas living with other people from a variety of social backgrounds.

This principle is building on mistakes of the past, where larger social housing apartments or houses in Ireland tended to group people of the same social background together. This resulted in many areas of high deprivation, antisocial behaviour and poverty. Intentional social mix yields better results, resulting in mixed and balanced communities.

Focus Ireland offers unique supports; including homelessness prevention to advise people on how to stay in their accommodation and avoid homelessness, and tenancy sustainment support to help them maintain their tenancy after a period of homelessness. This is crucial for people with experience of homelessness to help transition them to stable accommodation and help them maintain it.

The long-term goal is for Focus Ireland customers to transition to stable accommodation, whether provided by Focus Ireland, the Local Authority or private rented market. In line with our values, it is hoped that with our support, customers will eventually lead independent and empowered lives, where they use the knowledge and support of Focus Ireland to advocate for themselves and navigate public services.

To read more about Focus Ireland’s services please visit Focus Ireland | Challenging homelessness. Changing lives.