News

Many day services for homeless people have been developed on the basis of questionable assumptions, according to a report.

The common assumption that homeless people are unable to hold down a tenancy because of a lack of "life skills" is "open to question", the research by homelessness charity Crisis and the Centre for Housing Policy concludes.

It says research since the 1980s has suggested that this view is mistaken and the needs of homeless people are more multi-faceted.

The report argues that a realistic set of aims for working with those who stay in shelters at night but are ejected during the day needs to be developed.

While the use of more training and education services for homeless people by charities is to be welcomed, the report suggests that funding bodies set unrealistic targets in relation to outcomes. Service providers could end up selecting the most employment-ready people as a result, the authors warn.

The report says Supporting People has created a stable funding source for support services but the focus on housing-related services means day centres and training services still lack a secure funding base.

• Daytime Homelessness available from www.crisis.org.uk