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Single homelessness: an overview of research in Britain
Fitzpatrick, S. Kemp, P., and Klinker, S.
(2000), The Policy Press: University of Bristol,
ISBN 1 86134 2136,
68 pages, £10.95, (paperback)
Review by Paul Higate
In the face of unprecedented material well-being, hundreds of thousands of citizens continue to live in primitive conditions, ranging from dwellings unfit for human inhabitation, through 'sofa-surfing' to rough sleeping on the street. Alongside these deeply polarised conditions is a flourishing 'homelessness industry' that has, until recently, failed to take a measured step-back, to reflect on the considerable volume of research that it has generated over recent years. However, it is now possible that a hiatus has been reached. Single homelessness: An overview of research in Britain (Fitzpatrick et al, 2000), together with its two sister publications, may well signal the timely consolidation of the fragmented and disparate legacy of patchwork research in this most fundamental of areas. (These complementary reports are: Klinker and Fitzpatrick (2000), A bibliography of single homelessness research, and Klinker et al (2000), A review of single homelessness research, both published by The Policy Press).
This brief report is intended for a wide audience including practitioners, policy makers and research commissioners. It is organised around nine chapters and introduces the reader to accessible summaries covering: the context of homelessness, the nature and experience of single homelessness, the scale and causes of the problem, predictors of single homelessness, wider aspects of single homeless people's lives, the resettlement of homeless people, and concludes with a series of recommendations. The importance of the overview, as the authors argue, lies in disseminating information around what does and does not work when addressing the needs of homeless people. A further rationale lies in the importance of maximising research energies by avoiding duplication and illuminating areas in which gaps in understanding continue to exist. The structure of the overview is essentially one of synthesis, and in this way it represents a valuable short-hand for a daunting literature. The work easily meets the objectives laid out by its authors, and for this reason does not attract any substantive critique.
However, notwithstanding comments made above concerning its timely appearance, we should be attuned to the relatively fixed and limited paradigm in which debates around homelessness occur. In this way, it remains the case that discussions in the overview (and more generally), are conducted in something of a vacuum whereby levels of misunderstanding and prejudice apparent from the settled population are neglected. If we are to move forward on the issue (current progress is painfully slow and young, vulnerable people arrive into London's King's Cross as these words are written), then there is an urgent need for an educative strategy to be placed at the centre of broader initiatives, not least to offset media distortion. Whilst government can and must do much more in terms of redistribution of resources, we might ask 'what works' in educating 'the public' about the realities of homelessness. Better understanding can only benefit those who fall victim to structural transformations over which they have little or no influence; this needs to become public knowledge.
Paul Higate
School for Policy Studies
University of Bristol
8 Priory Road
Bristol
BS8 1TZ
E-mail: Paul.Higate@bris.ac.uk
