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The purpose of this paper is to discuss the current state of provision for homeless people in Prague.

This is primarily a narrative account, though supported by and referenced with contemporary Czech social policy scholarship. It first traces the roots of the current situation through the history of the Czech legal framework for citizenship; the effects of communist-era ideology, when homelessness was simply hidden; and the post-communist (new-era) economic and political climate. The range of existing services is then described and analysed with respect to the difficulties in the demands posed for people in this situation.

The paper outlines the current approach with outreach (“terrain”), engagement (“threshold”) and “accommodation” (support and rehab) services; and the challenges in transition from one to the next. Many systemic barriers remain for the re-integration of homeless people, stemming from attitudes within the community and amongst professionals, as much as a sheer lack of resources, or the psychological and emotional difficulties of the homeless themselves.

There are few papers published internationally on homelessness in the new EU states. The similarity in the structure of services to what are sometimes called “staircase models” may therefore be instructive.

Older people who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness, have been the ‘forgotten homeless’ in policy debates and service provision. They tend to be less visible and less vocal than other groups, and low priority has been given to the impact of homelessness on their health and well‐being. Through the Older Homelessness Partnership Programme two national charities, The Housing Associations Charitable Trust and Help the Aged, funded seventeen innovative projects throughout the UK to provide services for this user group. The homeless charity Crisis contributed to an evaluation of the Programme. This paper explores the complex and multiple needs of older homeless people, which challenge the popular myth of the older homeless person as an archetypal "tramp" figure.

At the turn of the twenty-first century, a “new orthodoxy” in explaining homelessness had emerged in the field of homeless research. Combining structural and individual factors, the consensus is that people with personal problems are more vulnerable than others to the structural conditions of becoming homeless.

Drawing on a three-year ethnographic study of older homeless people (aged 50 years and above) in Singapore, this chapter highlights three issues with this new orthodoxy. The first is the continued reliance on a strict dichotomy of structural and individual factors. This strict dichotomy does not reflect the realities in people’s lives. The “individual vulnerabilities” of older people in the study had structural dimensions that must be considered as well. The second is the framing of individual vulnerabilities as individual pathologies. This way of framing homelessness results in the assumption that there is something deficient with all people who are homeless that requires correction. Such a view is encapsulated in the compulsory institutionalisation and rehabilitation of rough sleepers in Singapore. The final and most fundamental issue is the problematic association of individual vulnerabilities with one’s heightened risk of becoming homeless. Older people in the study did not become homeless solely because they had more personal problems or issues than others. Rather, multiple pathways (or life events) that encompass both structural and individual factors weakened their ability to draw resources from work, family and friends and government assistance. Homelessness occurred when older people in the study ran out of all these three options.

This research documents the responsibilities and stresses of people with homeless relatives. Health and housing problems create a variety of challenges and sometimes burdens within families which are particularly stressful for family caregivers who are actively involved with helping homeless adults.

Our study and data examine stress proliferation and stress buffering among people with homeless relatives using quantitative data from 118 interviews, mostly with parents and siblings of homeless adults.

Quantitative data from 118 interviews, largely from parents and siblings of homeless adults, show that people who spend more time or money helping homeless relatives experience higher levels of stress. Stress levels are also higher among those who help a homeless relative with activities of daily living and those who work to prevent harm that involves a homeless relative. Stress derived from efforts to prevent harm is associated with stronger social support to people with homeless relatives.

Social and health service providers can provide helpful social support for both homeless people and for people with homeless relatives, particularly in circumstances where harm reduction is required.

Young homeless people have mental health needs. Research and national policies have highlighted that accommodation providers need to offer holistic interventions to encourage this vulnerable group to break the cycle of homelessness. Currently no research literature documents how homeless shelters respond to mental health needs. This research was intended to address this research question.A postal questionnaire was sent to 132 managers of homeless shelters, achieving a response rate of 64.4%. Frequencies and descriptive statistics were calculated, and written data was analysed using content analysis. Mental health problems were highly prevalent, and homeless shelters responded in a variety of ways (use of GP services, internal services, referring to external services, in‐house outreach services, no service provision, etc). Only 27.1% of managers of homeless shelters reported that their services were sufficient to meet their young people's needs. These findings reflect the need for inclusion of mental health in homeless shelters' strategic objectives, and development of commissioning of local partnerships with health agencies.

This paper aims to explore how homelessness affects access to information serving higher‐level needs such as identity formation and social interaction.

A multi‐disciplinary literature review informed the design of 18 semi‐structured interviews as well as their subsequent analysis. The interview data were intended to be qualitative and exploratory since they addressed a perceived gap in the information and library science literature.

Findings present the ways in which interviewees managed to access information and the way such information helps socialisation and well‐being.

The study focused on individuals who were potentially more confident and resourceful. The study is also limited to Glasgow which has relatively good provision for the homeless. Further research in a different locale and among less confident individuals would be necessary to corroborate findings in this regard.

The findings confirmed a fundamental research assumption that homeless individuals would pursue higher‐level needs alongside more basic physiological needs. This has practical implications for public libraries' service provision to homeless populations, and also suggests there is greater room for collaboration between libraries and homeless service agencies.

The paper addresses a gap in the literature concerning homelessness and higher‐level needs. This has implications for the provision of information and services within both public libraries and organisations serving the homeless. Findings also challenge widespread assumptions regarding the “otherness” or distinctiveness of people who are homeless.

This article aims to describe methodological issues in relation to the definition of homelessness and the drawing of samples of young homeless people in four European countries. The purposes of the research project were, first, to make a comparison of different homeless situations facing young people in these four countries, and second, to introduce early intervention and action planning methodologies developed in the UK and The Netherlands to other countries in the study – Portugal (a family welfare society) and the Czech Republic (an ex‐communist regime redeveloping its welfare policies).

After extensive discussions and key worker interviews with local agencies, 54 homeless young people were interviewed in each country. Each sample was intended to be purposive in that it should recruit homeless young men and women from those born in that country from the dominant (white) ethnic group, born in that country from minority ethnic groups, and young people not born in that country. A major issue was how to define homelessness in order to be able to recruit across the spectrum of homeless youth.

The purposive samples recruited in the four countries reflected the availability of services in those countries and levels of family support. Whilst young homeless people in The Netherlands and the UK were mostly living in supported housing, in Portugal they were living as “hidden homeless” and in the Czech Republic on the streets or in squats.

The methodological difficulties encountered during the project are themselves a useful lesson learnt, for the creation of trans‐national understanding and politicy.

Nevertheless, despite the very different circumstances of limited services in Portugal and the Czech Republic, it appeared that both early intervention methods and key working approaches could be applied broadly across the EU.

Transnational studies of youth homelessness are rare and therefore produce particularly useful insights for research, policy and practice.

Notwithstanding heightened awareness of the issues faced by homeless people, the notion that homelessness is the result of individual failings and weaknesses persists. The purpose of this paper is to challenge that perception by giving voice to this marginalised group and exploring the mechanisms through which they made and remade as homeless and may be protected.

Semi-structured interviews (n=23) were carried out with a sample of homeless people who had accessed a range of homelessness services in the study area.

It is argued that largely deprived of the private sphere, which arguably renders them in most need of public space, homeless people find themselves most subject to scrutiny, surveillance, social disapprobation and exclusion.

The authors reiterate that rather than simply being associated with rooflessness, homelessness is as a function of ongoing geographical marginalisation and social alienation.

The authors suggest that dedicated spaces for homeless people to occupy during the day continue to be in need of development because, whilst not unproblematic, they can disrupt processes associated with homelessness.

Further resources should be directed towards homelessness and the issues that arise during daytime for homeless people.

The paper supports the literature which highlights the spatial practices by which stigmatised groups come to be separated from mainstream society.

Homelessness has been a growing problem in many countries since the 1980s. The purpose of this paper is to examine homeless peoples’ perspectives on public library services, and to compare these with the attitudes of library staff.

Eight interviews have been conducted with rough sleepers and formerly homeless library patrons to examine their experiences, needs and expectations or the library. In addition, four library staff have been interviewed about their attitudes to services for members of the homeless community.

Most rough sleepers and formerly homeless patrons who participated in this research viewed the public library as a safe place because it offered a welcoming atmosphere, access to a variety of resources and services targeted at the homeless. Nonetheless, sleeping has always been a major reason for their use of the library. Most staff members agreed that providing services targeted toward rough sleepers changed the dynamic between staff and the homeless patrons, but there was some disagreement between staff members about whether targeted services were the most appropriate approach.

Understanding homeless and rough sleepers’ expectations for public library services may be useful in revising policy and developing services for this community. In particular, developing partnerships with organisations supporting the homeless is an effective way of developing relevant services for this often-marginalised group.

Little research has considered public library services from the perspective of homeless people. This research is intended to fill that gap.

This paper explores the experiences of people who have been homeless and in contact with learning disability services. The research adds to the very limited evidence, particularly in the UK, on how services can better meet the health and social needs of this group. All people with learning disabilities who were homeless and known to either local social services or health learning disability services in a large city in the North East of England were identified. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted with 14 participants at their current accommodation. Content analysis was used to identify common themes. Interview data indicated that breakdown of social support was the main cause of homelessness, and that in temporary accommodation people with learning disabilities were vulnerable to exploitation by other residents. Concerns were also expressed about the quality of housing, mental health was a recurring theme and the importance of ensuring that people with learning disabilities receive adequate treatment for these difficulties is discussed. Access to health care in general is facilitated by support in arranging and attending appointments. Mediation services may play a key role in preventing people with learning disabilities from becoming homeless through relationship breakdown. The study also suggests that improvements in temporary accommodation are needed, including housing designed specifically for people with learning disabilities, in order to react effectively to episodes of homelessness.