Just under 20% of Europeans live in social rental housing and it is accepted that questions of social housing, homelessness or integration play an important role within the EU’s social policy agenda. Current policies (eg de-institutionalisation, community care, person centred services, individualised care packages at home) with recent political and economic developments (mass immigration, asylum seekers, financial crisis and recession) have produced huge demands on social housing and staff work. It faces a perfect storm of greater expectation from users, higher demand and more complex needs as institutional care slowly erodes. The project “Towards Person Centred Housing Services in Europe” (TopHouse) tackles the following need: how can we give staff in social housing the training, tools and local networks needed to improve individual needs assessment and housing allocation, whilst improving person centred support? TopHouse project clearly addresses these issues by identifying what these staff need to know to do their job using a PCP manner based on UNCRPD principles. It will produce a series of learning outcomes covering housing assessment, housing allocation, the assessment and provision of non-housing support needs. TopHouse also aims to develop local housing support networks, improving collaborative working between the related agencies in social services, health, education etc, depending on individual needs. TopHouse provides updated, dedicated training and tools to do this job better and the means to promote improved inter-agency working to deliver concomitant related non-housing support on a person centred basis. Specifically TH will produce 1. A set of learning outcomes, covering the underpinning knowledge required by staff to do this role 2. A curriculum and a modular training programme for staff, with a train the trainer course to get things going 3. Dedicated tools around the assessment of housing and non-housing support needs, 4. A guide to successful local housing support networks Results of the TopHouse during the project include: 1. evidence from piloting that certain assessment and allocation processes produce better results, improve user understanding and satisfaction; 2. evidence from staff involved in assessment and allocation that they now feel better equipped to do their job using the project´s tools & training; 3. demonstrable capacity within the partnership to train people in the use of TopHouse products and to train more trainers to deliver this. Our main objective is to validate and then establish the TH training programmes and get them recognised and accredited in whatever way is locally appropriate, and at the same time promote the other TH products too. TopHouse brings together key participants of the housing and support system, gathering all the necessary competences and expertise. With 7 partners from 6 countries, the partnership represents the cultural and social diversity, and captures the various EU approaches towards social housing. Through the TopHouse innovative tools, guide, course, learning outcomes, curriculum and local networks, staff in this key ’borderland’ role will be given for the first time high quality learning opportunities focused on their special role and providing a blueprint for a unique Europe wide shared procedure.
Just under 20% of Europeans live in social rental housing and it is accepted that questions of social housing, homelessness or integration play an important role within the EU’s social policy agenda. Current policies (eg de-institutionalisation, community care, person centred services, individualised care packages at home) with recent political and economic developments have produced huge demands on social housing and staff work. It faces a perfect storm of greater expectation from users, higher demand and more complex needs as institutional care slowly erodes. The project “Towards Person Centred Housing Services in Europe” (TOPHOUSE) tackled the following need: how can we give staff in social housing & support services the training, tools and local networks needed to improve individual needs assessment and housing allocation, whilst improving person centred support? TOPHOUSE project clearly addresses these issues by identifying what these staff need to know to do their job using a person centred manner based on Human Rights principles. The project also aimed at developing local housing support networks, improving collaborative working between the related agencies in social services, health, education etc, depending on individual needs. TOPHOUSE provides updated, dedicated training and tools to do this job better and the means to promote improved inter-agency working to deliver concomitant related non-housing support on a person centred basis. Between November 2017 and November 2019 multiple online and face-to face meetings, multiplier events, dissemination activities, a train the trainer session and pilot exercises in 4 different countries, we have produced a set of very useful and customised tools for all those involved in housing & support : 1. A set of learning outcomes, covering the underpinning knowledge required by staff to do this role 2. A curriculum and a modular training programme for staff, with a train the trainer course to get things going 3. Dedicated tools around the assessment of housing and non-housing support needs 4. A guide to successful local housing support networks. Materials are available in English, Catalan, Finnish, German and Spanish. TOPHOUSE brought together key participants of the housing and support system, gathering all the necessary competences and expertise. With 7 partners from 6 countries (AT/BE/ES/IE/FI/UK) , the partnership represented the cultural and social diversity, and captured the various EU approaches towards social housing. Through the TOPHOUSE innovative tools, guide, course, learning outcomes, curriculum and local networks, staff in this key ’borderland’ role has been given for the first time high quality learning opportunities focused on their special role and providing a blueprint for a unique Europe wide shared procedure. TOPHOUSE has become a learning foundation for the support services sector: we moved participants towards an improvement of housing & support by articulating and successfully promoting a coherent person centred approach. Staff who has used TH products clearly perceived an improved accuracy in the process; service users (Experts by Experience) clearly pointed out that this is the way to go! They felt more respected and empowered. We truly believe that it is possible to provide relevant & credible specialist training to a cross-sectoral group of staff sharing a common function. However, we have just initiated the process and more needs to be done in this respect. All partners have produced detailed exploitation plans and will keep working together for a more integrated and person centred housing and support.