The case for supported housing

Last week, the National Housing Federation (NHF) published a landmark report looking at the impact of supported housing on the health and well-being of its residents and on wider public services. It reveals that more than half of people ready to move on from supported housing are being “blocked” by a lack of suitable homes. 

At the same time, the research shows that when people do get the opportunity to move on from short-term supported housing, they can thrive. Each year, 50,000 people are resettled from transitional housing into long-term tenancies, half of whom have significant previous experience of homelessness, housing instability or have spent time in institutions.

“The benefits of supported housing are undeniable”

The support offered to them by supported housing helps them to access the advice and services they need to live independently in their new home. One example of this in last week’s report is Joe. He has bipolar disorder, was at risk of homelessness and had made attempts to take his life. Having been offered a six-week placement in a supported housing scheme, he was able to make longer-term plans for the future. He said that supported housing enabled him to “access support that made me feel safe and think about my longer-term goals”.

He told researchers he is now optimistic about his future and wants to become a peer support worker to help others with similar experiences.  

Not only does supported housing provide transformative opportunities for its residents, it also benefits our society as a whole. This new research estimates that if supported housing ceased to exist tomorrow, it could cost the taxpayer more than £2.5bn annually and mean increasing pressure on a range of other services, including psychiatric units, residential care and prisons. 

Supported housing providers have made it clear that the environment they are operating in has been getting tougher, with costs rising across the board.

Homeless Link’s Keep Our Doors Open campaign highlights the impact of these issues and questions the long-term viability of homelessness services if an uplift in funding to mirror rising costs is not made available.

In a recent NHF survey, 69% of supported housing providers said they would build more homes if conditions allowed, but cited financial viability as the top barrier. This gives a sense of both the ambition of the sector, and the reality of its situation. 

The benefits of supported housing are undeniable – it is a tried and tested way of helping people in crisis and improving lives. With rough sleeping increasing by 26% in the past year, we should be embracing each and every opportunity to end homelessness and rough sleeping for good.

Supported housing offers us exactly that. 

Eddie Hughes, former under-secretary of state for housing and rough sleeping