COMPREHENSIVE CARE PROGRAM FOR HOMELESS PEOPLE
PROGRAM OBJECTIVES: the program aims to provide support to people on the street through an immediate and stable housing solution and comprehensive, individualized, person-centered care that definitively breaks the cycle of poverty.
WHO IS IT ADDRESSED TO: homeless population.
SERVICES OR RESOURCES:
- Accommodation, satisfaction of basic needs and social care.
- Psychological support.
- Legal or administrative assistance.
- Training and employment promotion.
This Program is developed in several phases, moving from a shelter or reception center to an independent home, with the goal of recovering an autonomous and independent life.
This programme is co-financed by the Cantabrian Institute of Social Services of the Government of Cantabria and the La Caixa Foundation.
I NEED HELP, WHAT SHOULD I DO?
If you find yourself homeless:
– Go to the rimary Care Social Services. In each municipality there is a social care unit. For more information, call the Cantabrian Institute of Social Services (ICASS) of the Government of Cantabria: 942 20 77 76
– If you are in Santander you can contact the Princesa Letizia Municipal Reception Centre: 942 20 06 85
You can also contact us: 942 34 34 28.
CONTEXT: THE HOMELESSNESS PHENOMENOM
There is no exact data on the number of homeless people in Spain. According to the latest data from the INE (2012), the number of homeless people was then 23,000. However, this figure only included people who use care centres and canteens, and is therefore considered insufficient.
HOMELESSNESS IN CANTABRIA
The problem of homelessness exists in our region and currently affects around 350 people. The COVID lockdown has been an excellent opportunity to find out the number of homeless people, since all of these people had to be confined like the rest of the citizens through different residential solutions.
This current situation revealed that the existing mechanisms for housing solutions for homeless people in Cantabria were, at that time, insufficient.
This is where this “Comprehensive Care Program for the Homeless” comes from, which was born in the midst of all the housing solutions in the region, as a complement to them, and occupying an empty space at present and which could become a definitive solution for the homeless.
PROPOSED SOLUTION FOR HOMELESS PEOPLE: “HOUSING FIRST SOCIAL CARE MODEL”
Housing First (HF) is an innovative work methodology in the field of social services for homeless people. The basic characteristic of this model is that the care of homeless people has housing as it's starting point. From there, and once the person is housed and thus part of a community, work can begin on other related aspects, always adapted to their particular situation: health promotion, drug addiction care, training and job search, or fostering social and family networks, among others.
Scientific evidence on HF programs applied in the United States, Canada and Europe reveals that HF has very high success rates. These models manage to get an average of 8 out of 10 people off the streets and keep them there over time.
In Spain, there are some very successful applications of the Housing First model. The most notable example is the one carried out by the RAIS Foundation in municipalities such as Barcelona and Malaga.
Now in Cantabria, projects like this one are beginning, developed by the Nueva Vida Association, which places housing at the centre of social care for homeless people.
