Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Chaotic lives underlie troubles of homeless

A strong link between sleeping rough and other "chaotic life experiences" was found in a new study of Britain's homeless people called Understanding Complex Lives.

Nearly half of those surveyed had spent time in institutions, had drug or alcohol dependency or had been involved in "street activities" such as begging, prostitution or shoplifting. Almost two in five have attempted suicide.

Theresa McDonagh, the report's author, said the two-year study of 1,286 homeless people highlights the need for workers in health, housing and social services to collaborate more effectively to prevent clients winding up on the streets.

"Homelessness comes quite late in the day in the story of their lives getting more and more difficult," she said. "Usually they'll have had lots of low-level contacts with different agencies, but still fall through the cracks."

Read The Independent article here. And read the entire report here.

1 Comments:

At 5:37 AM, Anonymous Anonymous said...

lmost two in five of Britain's homeless people have attempted suicide, research has found.

Understanding Complex Lives, a survey of 1,286 homeless people and 452 follow-up interviews, found a strong link between sleeping rough and other "chaotic life experiences".

Nearly half of those surveyed – by researchers from the Economic and Social Research Council, Joseph Rowntree Foundation, Homeless Link and the Tenants Services Authority – had also spent time in institutions, had drug or alcohol dependency or had been involved in "street activities" such as begging, prostitution or shoplifting.

rhi

 

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