Reducing evictions and abandonment

Eviction and abandonment project - FAQs
Good practice in reducing eviction and abandonment from hostels

Homeless Link has been awarded funding by the Oak Foundation to deliver a project to reduce evictions and abandonment from homelessness services over a three year period from January 2009. 

Unplanned moves from hostel accommodation and other supported housing projects (in the form of evictions and abandonment) often result in people returning to street homelessness. Repeat homelessness for this very vulnerable client group could be prevented, resulting in better outcomes for homeless people and cost savings for the agencies that support them. Policymakers and commissioners will also benefit from better evidence about what works in sustaining tenancies within hostels and other supported housing projects for rough sleepers.
 
The ultimate goal of the project is to reduce the number of evictions and abandonments from hostels and other supported accommodation for homeless people by developing evidence-based solutions and disseminating these widely.
 
The project is funded for three years as follows
 
Year one (Jan-Dec 2009) – the research:
  • Undertake detailed qualitative and quantitative research to identify what factors create evictions and abandonment
Year two (Jan-Dec 2010) – the trials:
  • Trial five new solutions in hostels/areas across London
  • Disseminate the learning to commissioners, voluntary sector service providers and policy makers
Year three (Jan-Dec 2011) – the change:
  • Undertake a Change Programme to embed good practice across the homelessness sector.

Research

The research has now been completed, and the findings are available in the report Staying In – Understanding evictions and abandonments from London’s hostels.


Good practice

You can find out more about reducing evictions and abandonments, including tips for frontline workers and case studies of effective services, by visiting our good practice webpage.

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