Finding the Way Home Independence, choice and control homeless and service providers that while most of the people “ Ifnloutwetrieg somorroe ,abechomesomneof ouasrwssesselesuadnwmgniktanrasyyoerewohwelpoepgnomafeilebdaerpsediwasawerehTwith support needs who became long-term homeless wanted clients, it’s institutionalisation, that’s it, they came to live independently in their own home and could do so with from industrial schools, but if it were only starting the right support, housing-led was not the answer for tomorrow and you were asking me which model everyone. housing-led services were not always thought to introduce, all the way I’d be like housing-led suitable for people with the highest needs. One reason why and housing-led, don’t create shelters very bad housing-led was not thought to suit everyone was because idea, it’s an institution. there were too many risks to some people’s well-being in a situation where they were not closely and continuously Service Provider. “ I uhiporgedrhouislingweho beuldnetlehwhosgkeintpted “ I eayanothe oanoaeocovtmumenref hhecfanemhatsoatopgelisbu’efnpsiteseooudtstscireaehetiotmtuI,cb,oleeodclonaasenpsilyeacctlwehtshaowPehebchttftoonmteremapsmaeormouopspfouo.a)te2rdnorafeetmdtpenap’ehoneCebapeoeosesl(vcaaAsshySaahwUtwleaahehttslunimwasscileceeitbdeiro,htctmnakid,nsedlup-etorghsontiisnuoomh don’t live alone, don’t choose to live alone and if housing-led style apartment or place to live. I you’ve lost contact with your family it is also think it will depend on the individual, on the normal for people to live in house shares, people assessment, on what they want from us. do it all the time…and that’s before you get to Service Provider. the fact that so many of the people in our houses “ otherly. eekteeinchedgiitn homeonenphosfneeds tlhat comifg,rstmeih’ieiicasiietothaaialhbgnmhaoceasrdfoeee…s’ti,lsneyd…nedavnewuntayrgaptskceyaweaotmrtneodhittunttegsunndvsnltatlldlibnaoatrfs’oetntmoroucwbnsaneehtebroexseslewmsosceleermoomsthewueloypoferpinrLasierveaheTh six years and put him into an apartment meeting their own needs…to say people somewhere and have a floating support worker, it shouldn’t have that choice is not consumer might not be enough for that individual, because choice. they might need more contact. Service Provider. Male with long term experience of living rough, 43. “ I suppose it housing-led would be handy for There were also thought to be some people who were long-term some people, but there are a number of people I homeless who would not want to live independently. suppose would struggle in the supported Sometimes there were thought to be issues of institutionalisation housing, I suppose people would feel on their that could not be overcome, such as with some people who own, like, you know. I’d say most people would were homeless who had grown up in the industrial schools83 or like to be independent but there’s a few who’d be had spent significant time in prison. This group was thought to much happier in the supported housing be so conditioned to institutional living that they found it difficult to exist in live in another context and this need had to be Male with history of long term homelessness, 50s. recognised. For others, it was more a question of choice, a choice that was often discussed in terms of not wishing to be ‘isolated’ by living alone in ordinary housing in the community, a point which is further discussed below. 83 Rafferty, M. and O’Sullivan, E. (1999) Suffer the Little Children: The Inside Story of Ireland’s Industrial Schools Dublin: New Island Books 24
Finding the Way Home
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