How early is early enough?
Homelessness prevention isn’t just about responding to crisis. It’s about noticing what’s happening before things reach that point.
It might be when someone is starting to struggle with their rent, isn’t sure they understand their tenancy, has lost work, or things at home have changed. It might be when they’re not quite sure what to do next, or who they can ask.
But prevention can start much earlier than that too. It can be about building the knowledge, skills and confidence around money, housing and employment that can help someone feel more prepared and able to deal with things when they do change.
Sometimes it’s about responding to something that’s already happening.
Sometimes it’s about putting things in place before it does.
For us at Your Own Place, prevention means having conversations early, listening to what someone is experiencing and helping them work out what might make a difference.
It also means recognising what people already bring with them. Their experiences, knowledge, skills and ideas about what could work for them and how they make and sustain changes right for them.
We don’t have all the answers, and there isn’t one route that works for everyone. But we do believe that listening early, and working alongside people rather than waiting for things to reach crisis point, can make a difference.
Prevention is also becoming an increasingly important part of the wider conversation around homelessness. Recent guidance from the UK Government highlights early intervention and prevention, including the importance of responding to people’s needs early and taking a more joined-up approach.
So, how early is early enough?
