WOMEN and HOMELESSNESS on Woman's Hour now!

[YesTonightJosephine]

I am in tears listening to this ...

No words!

[ I was not too sure where to post this ... ]

BBC Radio 4 - Woman's Hour, Co-parenting, Homelessness and women, Dr Jessica Taylor

I am not interested in debating women versus men.

Street homelessness is on the rise. We can all see evidence of it everywhere. People hidden homeless is also on the rise, although not as easy to spot.
We desperately need to be addressing the housing issue in this country.

And having worked in MH services for decades, my experience is that men are less likely to be able to access MH and housing support which isn't necessarily a primarily sex-based issue, but because women are more likely to be primary care-givers so are seen as more of a priority than men

True and false. True, that having dependant children often does mean more access to MH and housing support, and yes the primary care-giver is more commonly the woman.

However recent years have seen an increase in homeless childless/childfree women (and those with adult DC, like the woman mentioned in this thread), and it's often worse for these women. Because historically single homeless people tended to be men, many if not most single homeless support services are setup for men. Many hostels are therefore mixed sex, which leaves homeless women very vulnerable.

Also people released from prison after serving sentences for the most serious crimes, like child sex abusers, are often prioritised for housing over other homeless people. This type of offender is more commonly a man. (The nature of their crimes means probation and other authorities need to know where they are and settled housing makes that possible.)

Prisoners should be prioritised for housing.

Its a net benefit to society as a whole compared to the alternative

this is a meaningless quote though - why support a woman, friend, colleague, sister, neighbour, for whatever reason, for the sake of it, because she is a woman,
a nonsensical paradigm

I* *agree. Nobody, male or female, should be homeless. Everyone should be safely housed.

The help not being ‘ideal’ isnt a gotcha.

@Treaclescourer Not being ideal is one hell of an understatement! Basic safety without high risk of murder and sexual assault, isn't much to ask for and need. Especially, but not only, people who've fled DV and families with young children. Hobson's Choice isn't a real choice.

Prisoners should be prioritised for housing.
Its a net benefit to society as a whole compared to the alternative

Everyone should be housed including ex prisoners, but I disagree that the most seriously violent criminals including murderers and child sex abusers should be prioritised above other homeless people like single parents, people fleeing DV, and the disabled.

Prisoners with longer sentences are prioritised for housing, although some of them do not get housing either.
If you are sentenced for a short sentence, usually non violent, then you are not prioritised for housing. Women are sentenced to 8 weeks for theft crimes for example, lose custody of their kids, lose their job and home, and are entitled to no housing when they come out. Peoples lives are often destroyed by short sentences.

For God's sake, don't you understand some people are totally unable to 'follow up on support'. That's the nature of some mental illnesses, like depression for one, autism along with depression, people with undiagnosed learning difficulties and these are legion. That's before you look at the reasons they are homeless. I was quite right, you really are ignorant whilst purporting to be knowledgeable - a dangerous combination.

I'd just like to add, you don't have to be unemployed or have mental health issues to end up homeless.
There is a massive housing crisis in parts of the UK, my home city being one such place. The council do nothing other than take back handers for more and more student housing leaving nothing for families and locals.
My landlord sold my home of 12 years last year, rents had increased by over 50% in the preceding 18 months. I have a professional job and met the criteria of 30 x monthly rent but I was up against, and I'm not joking, up to 150 applicants per property. As a single income household obviously couples were more attractive. It was honestly the most stressful time of my life, Id just turned 50 and was facing homelessness for the first time in my life on a salary of 40k because there are so few properties. I only managed to find somewhere through sheer luck in the end after a tenant gave notice to a friend of mine.

I'm a retired housing needs officer. The letter sent is factually correct, the test of being in priority need is whether the applicant will suffer more when street homeless than another person. This lady will have been told exactly why she isn't in priority need, will have been given advice about securing accommodation, and can appeal the decision if she feels it is wrong in law. These sort of decisions are made daily by housing needs officers, because the legislation says that is what the local authority has to do. It's been that way since 1977.
Factually it's correct, legal letters of this nature have to be just that. It doesn't mean that the person dealing with her has no sympathy, but they can't work a miracle.
Lastly if you feel so strongly about the legislation then join a campaign group rather than make the person who wrote the letter feel worse than they already do. It's a very stressful job and even when doing your best it often results in abuse from the customer.

I completely understand many people aren’t able to follow up on support plans.

That doesn’t change the fact that unless sectioned there isn’t much else to be done

Their problems are their own, if still able to make decisions themselves others are a bit stuck

I DGAF if it's "factually correct". A G20 nation with social housing and social security says "meh you'll be fine on the streets"

That's disgusting

During the first lockdown we went from lots of visible homeless people, to virtually everyone being temporarily housed.
I do not believe this issue can not be sorted and I think some housing organisations are part of the problem.

If you think that the legislation should be amended then campaign for that. I am merely explaining the legislation. The housing needs officer dealing with this lady has to apply that legislation, and then advise her of the decision. Which is exactly what has happened. She won't be the first or last who isn't in priority need and can't be helped.

Same reason people were "let off" going to the Job Centre They were scared those lower down the socio economic scale would infect their "betters" despite the latter being the group who went on those ski trips

So much of this countries problems come down to lack of housing. I've been saying this for years now. We need to give up on the private sector providing housing, they have utterly failed and its long past time the state should have stepped in and built council housing. And everyone should be housed, it's the most absolutely basic of needs and there is nobody unworthy of a roof over their head, doesn't matter what they do or don't do, to help themselves.

And I feel bad for the council as well. They just don't have anywhere to put people. I'm sure the people working in the housing department don't like turning people away.

Finland didn't just give homeless people flats, though. They put a ton of additional mental health and social support in place, alongside the already existing mental health provision nationally.

A key piece of the model is that, unlike the U.K., people with substance misuse and mental health problems can be forcibly held and compelled to treatment - so most rough sleepers and unhoused addicts and mentally ill people are funnelled into the system and are placed in mandatory treatment programmes, along with housing. Broadly, it appears to have a good level of success in Finland, but ultimately in other counties and municipalities which have attempted to copy it, there’s always been an ethical debate around the rights and wrongs of it.

Well, that all escalated quite quickly!

Just to confirm to those who mentioned something about 'sharing'.

Sharing when you are 50+ is an absolute and total nightmare!

There are clearly a lot of posters on MN who, thankfully will never have any experience of being 'this' close to being without a home.

It can happen to anyone without any kind of safety net, finances, family, depression, anxiety, breakup, breakdown, divorce, separation, redundancy ... a good job that pays you what you are worth!

The list is quite long and most definitely needs to be discussed and debated with care and consideration ... sadly not everyone is prepared to be 'considerate' and 'caring'.

And yes no one should be homeless in 2024!

Just a thought ...

What if we could have :

• long term rental contracts
• rent caps
• end to no fault evictions (still not happened ... )
• agencies who are happy to take sharers that are not students, they seem to only want couples or families or students ...
• no shame and/or stigma to renting in your 50s
• sharing when you are over 50 is not something to be ashamed of but it is

This list could definitely be longer and perhaps MUMSNET HQ should have a think about an honest discussion about all of this and how it is affecting WOMEN of all ages.

I will sign off now as I am still too angry!

Thank you to those who did comment and reply with respect.

A friend of mine is sharing in her forties and finding it a nightmare at her age.

My flatmates, male and female are in their 30s and they think and assume I am in my 40s, I look it ... I am not in my 40s!

Every now and then I slip up with film references, books, World events but they don't really think too much about it ... it works though, just about but I have trained them very, very well and basically I just make the place look really great and I invest in a few key stylish pieces, I don't mind as they let me do what I want, they do agree that I make the flat look fabulous!

It can be hard at times though as I lived with my partner for 20 odd years and before that lived on my own!

I am terrified of what is going to happen in the next few years, truly terrified!

I am sick and tired of paying other peoples mortgages but it is what it is!