Costs

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapter

Abstract

The costs of homelessness are multifaceted and are greatest, in terms of health, well- being, life chances and quality of life, for people who experience homelessness in general, and particularly for those who experience recurrent and sustained home- lessness (Culhane, 2008; Pleace and Culhane, 2016). Research has often reported the human costs of homelessness, centring on health and unfulfilled, damaged and, when homelessness is repeated or long-term, often shortened lives. Research on costs in a financial sense began to emerge in relation to apparent failures in stra- tegic responses to homelessness, centred on the USA and then on the relative cost efficiency of different models of homelessness service, particularly concerning the relative costs of Housing First compared to other forms of homelessness service. This chapter explores the development of research on the financial costs of home- lessness, considers the links with particular political and ideological constructions of homelessness as a social problem and discusses ways forward that can take better account of the multiple, intersecting costs of homelessness.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationThe Routledge Handbook of Homelessness
EditorsJoanne Bretherton, Nicholas Pleace
Place of PublicationLondon
PublisherRoutledge
Chapter23
Pages256-265
Number of pages10
ISBN (Electronic)9781351113113
ISBN (Print)9780815362104
Publication statusPublished - 22 May 2023

Publication series

NameRoutledge Handbooks

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