Homeless outcomes are â€˜inspirationalâ€™

HARP describes SCWNS outcomes as ‘inspirational’.

HARP (Southend’s Homeless Charity) has released its impact report on the Southend Church Winter Night Shelter [‘SCWNS’] partnership over last winter.

The bare facts are interesting. They show that 400 church volunteers from 7 local Christian organisations gave shelter to 124 homeless people (95 male and 29 female) for an aggregate total of 2,042 nights. Not only did they give shelter, but they served 2,589 evening meals and 1,860 substantial breakfasts. Which ever way you choose to look at it, our volunteers, taking an example from Jesus, have confronted suffering, physical risk, hunger and loneliness - and refused to allow it in our town.

HARP’s report rightly describes these as ‘truly inspirational outcomes’.

And yet, the SCWNS only does what it says on the tin (if I may borrow a phrase). We provide shelter and food, but without trying to address the deeper issues involved. This clearly the right thing approach. Better perhaps to do the simple stuff really well, than to attempt something more ambitious and fall short. But we are entitled to ask what these deeper issues are, and whether SCWNS actually does anything to help. Again the statistics speak clearly:

54% of our guests reported mental health issues, predominantly depressive illness
41% reported physical health issues, many caused by their homelessness
24% were misusing alcohol
13% admitted to misuse of other potential harmful substances
11% had learning disabilities

Although it may appear that SCWNS contributes little towards alleviating these problems, the truth is more complex. I will again offer some statistics

54% of our guests had - as at 28 March 2017 - a positive housing outcome. Put bluntly, they were no longer on the streets. Some will have reverted since then, but others will have been helped to find somewhere more secure. Of the people who remained homeless…

10 were referred to treatment services

10 were signposted to group therapy

8 were helped to find employment or training opportunities

6 were registered with local GPs

Although it’s true that SCWNS on its own did not achieve any of these outcomes, it has nevertheless been an essential part of the process. If becoming homeless can be compared to stepping off a small cliff, then the way back could be seen as a flight of steps. What SCWNS does is simply to help our people up the first few steps. So perhaps it’s no big deal. But actually, you can’t get onto the upper steps without first climbing the lower ones.