Housingfirst.fi offers information about Finnish homelessness and long-term homelessness, their characteristics, the housing first principle in the Finnish context, actors fighting homelessness in Finland and about the Finnish national programmes to reduce long-term homelessness.
The site works as a tool for the development process in the Name on the door project during the years 2010-2012 and is a database for everyone interested in and working with the housing first principle.
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28.11.2011 Short films about homelessness available online
Two short documentaries about homelessness, made for the project "Name on the door", are available with English subtitles.
01.11.2011 Professor Suzanne Fitzpatrick's seminar presentation at the Finnish national seminar on homelessness
Professor Suzanne Fitzpatrick from Scotland's Heriot-Watt University visited the Finnish national seminar on homelessness, held in Tampere on 18th October 2011.
29.08.2011 Key observations of the Name on the door project are now published
Some important observations and conclusions from the first year of the Finnish Name on the door project have now been published. These observations are to work as recommendations for the long-term homelessness reduction programme for years 2012-2015.
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In existing welfare service system housing services are mainly those categorized as staircase models. In these models individuals should graduate through a social rehabilitation process in order to earn their own housing.
The housing first principle suggests a paradigm shift to this usual approach. According to the principle, instead of being an ultimate goal housing is considered as a first step, a basis and a precondition for the start and for the success of the social recovery process.
The HF-principle has spread from the U.S. to Europe. Also in Finland some HF-services have been put into place in recent years. These units have successfully housed long-term homeless people with severe mental and substance abuse problems who have been living in streets for a long time in inhumane living conditions.
In the HF-model individual's housing is secured with supportive treatment services. The HF-model has evidence-based results from the U.S. which have proved that the model is effective especially in enhancing housing retention. |
30.08.2011 Programme Leader Kaakinen: "it is time to end homelessness"
The Programme Leader of the National Programme to Reduce Long-term Homelessness in Finland, Juha Kaakinen outlines the programme backround and results and the housing first principle in an interview published in the webpage of the Social Innovation Europe.
18.08.2011 Housing first approach outlined first time in the European level
A European level housing first evaluation and mutual exchange project outlines the housing first approach in European welfare contexts during the years 2011-2013. Read more about the project on housingfirst.fi.
04.08.2011 Housing first principle challenges traditional housing services
The Finnish National Programme to Reduce Long-Term Homelessness has since 2008 adopted the housing first principle as an alternative to traditional staircase housing services.