Homelessness Prevention and the Welsh Legal Duty: Lessons for International Policies

Peter K. Mackie

Housing Studies, 2015, vol. 30, issue 1, 40-59

Abstract: The paradigm shift in international homelessness policies towards a prevention focus has resulted in proven benefits to society and most importantly to individuals at risk of homelessness. Across the developed world, homelessness prevention is being pursued with vigour alongside existing homelessness interventions and yet there has been no pause for a systematic evaluation of how prevention fits alongside existing systems. Wales provides the first case where homelessness services have been systematically reviewed since the prevention turn. This paper critically examines the implementation of homelessness prevention in Wales, identifying how deficiencies echo emerging global concerns about the prevention turn. Drawing upon evidence gathered during a review of homelessness legislation in Wales, the paper examines the extent to which emerging proposals for legislative change will overcome problems with prevention. The emerging Welsh homelessness prevention and alleviation duty is seen as a desirable and replicable model of prevention, albeit it offers no panacea to the social tragedy of homelessness.

Date: 2015
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

Downloads: (external link)
http://hdl.handle.net/10.1080/02673037.2014.927055 (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:taf:chosxx:v:30:y:2015:i:1:p:40-59

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.tandfonline.com/pricing/journal/chos20

DOI: 10.1080/02673037.2014.927055

Access Statistics for this article

Housing Studies is currently edited by Chris Leishman, Moira Munro, Ray Forrest, Alex Schwartz, Hal Pawson and John Flint

More articles in Housing Studies from Taylor & Francis Journals
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Chris Longhurst ().