Housing first

What is Housing First?

The Housing First ideology sees housing as fundamental human right, and it provides effective and evidence-based tool for preventing and ending homelessness for the most vulnerable groups. It does this by addressing the issue of homelessness with an effective solution – housing support services.

How does it work?

Housing First provides social rental housing with professional support. This support is provided for the Košice pilot Housing First project by the non-profit organization Všetci pre rodinu, n.o.

This professional multidisciplinary team adapts its services to clients according to their needs and provides tailor-made solutions that are sensitive to individual circumstances and traumas. In addition to social workers, the team includes a paramedic, a psychologist, and a lawyer. Clients pay proper rent for housing from the first moment they become a part of the community and neighbourhood.

In addition to paying rent, families will also show a commitment to being a good neighbor receiving professional support.

In return, they receive a home, privacy, and the opportunity to truly change their life situation.

In Europe, housing is already a well-known tool for ending homelessness

  • Up to 80-95 % of clients retain such housing.
  • A safe home improves the quality of life and health.
  • It makes it easier to find and keep a job.
  • A quality system of social rental housing is demonstrably beneficial and less expensive for both society and for local governments. The Košice project aims to be a stepping stone – the beginning of affordable housing in our country.

Implementation of the pilot project Housing First in Košice

JANUARY – JUNE 2020 in cooperation with an expert from the Platform for Social Housing who implements Housing First projects with Czech cities and municipalities, we prepared a pilot project, Housing First, for families in Košice
JULY 2020 The Košice City Council approved the leaseof flats for the implementation of the project
AUGUST – SEPTEMBER 2020  The DEDO Foundation and the architect Ing. Arch. Jana Fazekašová cooperated on the design for the new homes
OCTOBER – DECEMBER 2020  in cooperation with the Housing Company of the City of Košice, the reconstruction of housing units in the given localities is ongoing
OCTOBER – NOVEMBER 2020  preparation and implementation of mapping the housing need of families with children – finding out the current number, situation, and needs of families in acute housing shortagein shelters in the city of Košice
DECEMBER 2020 – JANUARY 2021 meetings are taking place with the mayors of the city districts in which the apartments are located
DECEMBER 2020 – JANUARY 2021 talks and meetings are taking place with potential neighbors in respective localities
DECEMBER 2020  10 families are selected by lot to receive a fresh start in their new home
JANUARY – FEBRUARY 2021 adjustment period – 10 families of the Housing First project for families in Košice settle into their new homes
JANUARY – FEBRUARY 2021 in cooperation with the Institute for Labor and Family Research, research on the results and effects of the Housing First approach on individual families involved in the pilot project in Košice begins.
We are gradually introducing the Housing First approach into the care process for families hit by housing shortages in Košice. We believe that the pilot project will be successfully implemented in Košice and this model solution will continue to expand. We will look to increase the number of rental apartments with professional support for families with children and other target groups (homeless seniors, disabled homeless people, young people, adults after the end of alternative care without a home, etc.). We will be able to offer this support to other cities or municipalities to end homelessness in their territory and gradually solve the problem of individual and family housing deprivation in a real and permanent way.

FAMILY BELONGS AT HOME

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