What Specific Problems Do Homeless People From Ethnic Minority Backgrounds Face?

Causes and impacts of homelessness

Question :

What specific problems do homeless people from ethnic minority backgrounds face?

Recent advances are being made in the implementation of policies and generating awareness in the United Kingdom’ populations, where majority of the people are victims of problems like homelessness, misuse of substance, institutional care, street drinking and begging. Although the number of people who are homeless, is small, yet the overall cost and the impact they cause to the society is enormous and that can be attributed mainly to the type of chaotic lives that they lead (Suzanne, F. 2013). The increase in the cases of homelessness is because of the economic changes, cutbacks in the social programs and the shortage being faced to afford shelter for lower income households. The potential people who possess the risk of facing homelessness are the single mothers, people from minor ethnic backgrounds, battered women and their children, youths that have been abused, handicapped and disabled elders and the families of the workers, who have lost their jobs (Daly, G. 2013).

Homelessness is both causes and is caused by circumstances of poverty and social exclusion, the prevailing financial problems, deterioration and lack of work in physical and mental health. The local authorities have the responsibility to prove home and shelter to majority of the families. In case of not being able to provide all the people with shelter, atleast some of the people can be helped with accommodation. People who are from minor ethnic backgrounds, reside in a most disadvantageous society and are at the major risk of homelessness. In comparison to the other factors responsible for the cause of homelessness, there are ethnic minority communities that also contribute to social boycott and also lead to people being banished from their residing places. Each of the community has its own different socio economic and cultural patterns that must be in terms with the population and should be understood and supported by all. Failure to consider and understand the specific needs of the various ethnic minority increases the risk to ethnic inequality and the disadvantage associated with the policies and the practices that work in the favour of ethnic communities. Therefore, it is important for the local authorities to plan out strategies that would work in the favour of homeless people. Simultaneously it is also important to include complete appraisal of the equalities implications of each component of the strategy and to organize a systematic approach for the efficient delivery of the services that are culturally competent and are responsive towards the needs of the community divergence. This entire process requires structured and strategic development of the policies that are sensitive enough to fulfill the needs of al the homeless people and simultaneously cater to their requirements.

The ethnic minority population refers to the people who hail from the visible minority background as well as the people belonging to the white minorities (the Irish, the Gypsies and Travellers). The ethnic minority population is majorly concentrated in certain geographical areas like the larger urban centres. 45% of the total ethnic population resides in the region of London while 13% of the population is found in West Midlands, 8% in the South East, 8% in the North West and 7% in Yorkshire and Humber. The ethnic minority communities have varying patterns of household accommodation and the size of their composition. The average household size of Black Carribean and Whites is about 2.3 people per household. Rest of the ethnic minorities excluding the White Irish Group tend to have larger families as compared to the Black and White Carribeans (Office of Deputy Prime Minister 2005). The Pakistani, Indians and the Bangladeshi households are the largest with higher number of family members per household and their density is overruled by the population size of the Black Africans. Regarding household composition, South Asian individuals are essentially more averse to live alone than individuals from other ethnic minority foundations or from the White populace. In the ballpark of 90% of all South Asian families with youngsters live as couples (with or without other relatives) and few are solitary folks. South Asian family units are likewise the undoubtedly to live in three-generational families. By differentiation, 54% of Black Caribbean families with subordinate youngsters and 46% of Black African families with ward kids are solitary folks. In the White populace, some 75% of families with ward youngsters are couples and the rest of solitary folks (Office of Deputy Prime Minister 2005). The Black Africans/ Carribeans represent the most severely represented population that is homeless. Almost 10% of the homeless population and account for 2% of the population of England. Research has also shown that unemployment among the BME population was steeply increasing during the 19^th century. The particular ones among the BME family who were unemployed were the Pakistanis, Bangladeshis and Black Carribean males. This rate of excessive unemployment still continues to be more than the White British populations and this has led to prevalence of several health related problems like depression, anxiety, malnutrition and mostly poverty related homelessness (Margaret, G., Roger, D. and Agnes, F. 2011).

Socio-economic and cultural patterns of ethnic minorities

Homelessness has many definitions. The legal definition of this term is strictly based upon the principle that a person or even a household lacks the “license to occupy” a home or it is not feasible of legally permissible to occupy their current home. In order to determine the possibility of any of these issues, the judgement is required. Because of interrelated hindrances to economic independence that fluctuate by racial and ethnic gathering, for example, institutionalized separation and generational neediness, minorities have unequal access to quality lodging, livelihood, and training. These social prohibitions leave minorities more inclined to have littler money related cushions to fall once again on in crisis circumstances; to dwell in poor, isolated, and perilous neighborhoods that need community assets; and to experience homelessness. Dark and in addition American Indian or Native Alaskan families are incredibly overrepresented in protected homeless populaces, confronting the most serious hindrances to lodging steadiness. Hispanic families are reasonably overrepresented, while white and Asian family units are underrepresented contrasted and their offer of the general population (ICP 2011).

Research has shown that the South Asian (Pakistani, Indian and Bangladeshi) communities try to reside in the urban cor areas in order to ensure their safety and also maintain closeness to their family, friends and community people. They also prefer to be near their place of worship, medical facilities and other resource centres. This means that the housing is inclined to be fairly restricted spatially. It has however been predicted that the concentration of such groups will increase if not intensify. One one hand there is evidence stating that the people belonging to the minority communities face rejection from the society and are declined place of stay. However, in certain cities, the populations belonging to these minor communities only tend to bring about middle class housing on developments in the inner city locations, leading to urban regeration (Gill, P. and Wildt, G. 2003).

It is known that the Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) households are the most overrated one among the list of homeless populations. Over the period 2001-2 to 2005-6 the average percentile of the Black applicants increased from 28-36%. In order to study this abnormal increase in the number of homeless people, a methodological approach was followed and it comprised of four stages. The very first stage involved the review of the existing secondary information that was available on the prevalence of homelessness among the community of Blacks. This stage was followed by the second stage which included the consultation phase with the existing service providers within a specific area of borough. This was done either by using an existing pro forma or by conducting personal interviews. As a part of the third stage, some of the Black households were selected and they were interviewed. This was followed by a series of recommendations and accompanying programs that aimed in evaluating the effectiveness of those recommended programs. The major legislative framework that covers all the policies governing the housing Acts: 1996 Housing Act, 2001 Housing Act, 2002 Homelessness Act and 2004 Housing Act. The code of guidance on homelessness provides instructions and guidelines that the local authorities should follow in order to exercise their control as well as help in providing shelter to the homeless people. The Act of 1996 ensures that the advise and the guidelines related to prevention of homelessness is available to everyone in the specific area, free of charge. Along with this motive this legislation also instructs the authorities to assist the individuals and their families who are homeless or threatened with homelessness due to their minor ethnic backgrounds. The Act of 2002 was a more advanced and revised version of Housing Act and it ensured a more strategic approach to tackle and prevent the homelessness and also strengthen the help that was being made available to the people who were homeless.

Unemployment among BME populations

At the point when practicing their capacities identifying with homelessness and its aversion, nearby powers are under a statutory obligation to guarantee that their arrangements and techniques do not segregate, specifically or in a roundabout way, on grounds of race, sex, sexual orientation or incapacity (Shusu  2012). Powers should likewise guarantee that their arrangements what’s more techniques don’t separate on the premise of whatever other ground which is not material to an individual’s lodging application, including sexual introduction, religion or conviction. Powers ought to likewise watch significant codes of practice and receive a formal fairness and differing qualities approach identifying with all parts of their homelessness administration to guarantee equity of access furthermore treatment for all candidates (Shusu  2012).

Neighborhood powers and some lodging bodies have an obligation to dispose of unlawful racial segregation and to advance race equity in all parts of their administrations. The reason for this aide is to aid neighborhood powers and their accomplice organizations in the improvement of comprehensive, proof based and practical homelessness administrations for their nearby ethnic minority populaces, to handle the over-representation of ethnic minority family units among those acknowledged as homeless by nearby lodging powers (Office of Deputy Prime Minister 2005). At present, individuals from ethnic minority foundations are around three times more prone to ended up homeless than their White partners. Among the ethnic minority populaces, those of Black African and Black Caribbean birthplaces are twice as liable to be acknowledged as homeless as those of Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi birthplaces. Such over-representation of ethnic minority families in homelessness insights is found over all areas in England. It is thusly basic that nearby powers and their accomplice offices create extensive systems to better forestall and react to homelessness in ethnic minority groups (Office of Deputy Prime Minister 2005).

The causes of homelessness among the black people are many. Some of the major reasons are parents, friends or relatives asking their other family members to leave their community post pregnancy, breakdowns in relationships and over crowding of the residential areas. In a research conducted by Somerville in 2001, it was found that, whilst there had as of late been various studies in Britain particularly about BME homelessness, the quality and amount of this data was a long way from satisfactory. The analysts highlighted an absence of understanding of the reasons for BME homelessness and prescribed that exploration ought to be attempted to distinguish the principle courses that BME individuals of distinctive ages and of diverse ethnic gatherings take after, done and finished with homelessness. The absence of such thorough, national examination makes it hard to legitimately evaluate the reasons for BME homelessness (Somerville, P., Steele, A., and Sodhi, D. 2001). The BME households are seven times more prone to be located in the overcrowded conditions as compared to the households of the Whites. People from the Bangladeshi origin are more likely to suffer from overcrowding with 50% of their children residing officially in overcrowded situations. Often there has been enough evidence of “hidden homelessness” which refers to the conditions in which people sleep on the couches, sofas or tables of friends or relatives and therefore fall in the category of the BME households. The main reasons for overcrowding and “hidden homelessness” are the failure of housing legislation and organizations of the housing that fail to recognize the need for extended families to be placed together in larger homes. This case may also occur when people are unaware of their rights and the practices that apply to their lives and come under the housing and homelessness legislation Acts. Concealed homelessness can make conditions prompting statutory homelessness. Case in point, in situations where weights on the host family unit bring about them asking the “concealed” homeless family to leave, the recent generally have no occupancy rights and are regularly compelled to make a homeless application. Investigate on BME homelessness in Scotland8 found that a breakdown in existing connections appeared to be a typical contributory element in homelessness (Garvie, D. 2004). This incorporated a weakening or breakdown seeing someone in the middle of more established and more youthful parts of the more distant family, now and then exacerbated by congestion. Case in point, one more seasoned Chinese man reported that living respectively with his child’s family had set such an unendurable strain on the family that his little girl in-law had left home, abandoning him to care for three adolescent youngsters. Another factor contributing to homelessness of BME is social exclusion. If people suffer from issues like unemployment, poor skills, less income, criminal record, family breakdown or ethnic minority, then it is more likely that they are excluded from the social community. Ethnic minority can also be termed as the “Racial harassment” (Office of the Deputy Prime Minister 2003). There has been development of certain areas like the “no go” areas that forbid the BME people to enter. Thus, BME population is four times more likely to suffer from racial harassment as compared to the whites (Office of National Statistics 2001; Garvie, D. 2004).

Conclusion

Since homelessness aid projects are intended to help families, it is vital for policymakers and experts to see how families encountering homelessness settle on lodging choices, especially when they choose not to utilize accessible administrations. This study investigates those choices utilizing as a part of profundity subjective meetings with 80 families selected in safe houses over four destinations give or take six months after they were allocated to one of four conditions (lasting lodging appropriations, task based transitional lodging, group based fast re-lodging, or typical consideration). Recognizable neighborhoods close to kids’ schools, transportation, family and companions, and dependability were vital to families crosswise over conditions. Program limitations on qualification compelled family decisions. Financed lodging was the most fancied mediation, and families rented up at higher rates than in different investigations of poor families. Respondents were minimum agreeable in and well on the way to leave transitional lodging. Instability connected with group based quick re-lodging produced extensive uneasiness. Crosswise over intercessions, numerous families needed to make troubled bargains, frequently prompting further moves. Strategy proposals are advertised (Fisher, B., Mayberry, L, Shinn, M. and Khadduri, J. 2014). 

Reference

Daly, G., 2013, Homeless: Policies, Strategies and lives on the streets, Routledge.

Fisher, B., Mayberry, L, Shinn, M. and Khadduri, J., 2014, Leaving Homelessness Behind: Housing Decisions Among Families Exiting Shelter, Housing policy debate, Vol. 24, no. 2.

Garvie, D., 2004, The black and minority ethnic housing crisis, viewed on 16^th January 2015, www.shelter.org.uk.

Gill, P. and Wildt, G., 2003, Chapter 4: Ethnic minority: Health and housing, Radcliffe Publishing.

ICP, 2011, The struggles of homeless minority families, viewed on 16^th January 2015, https://www.icphusa.org/index.asp?page=55&americanalmanac=2&story=80&pg=338.

Margaret, G., Roger, D. and Agnes, F., 2011, Working with Adults at risk from harm, Chapter 6: Insecure accommodation, Mc Graw Hill International.

Office of Deputy Prime Minister, 2005, Tackling Homelessness Amongst Ethnic Minority Households: A Development Guide.

Office of National Statistics, 2001, UK Census 2001 and Office of the Deputy Prime Minister: English House Condition Survey 2001.

Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, 2003, Housing and Black and Minority Ethnic Communities: Review of the evidence base.

Shusu, 2012, Homelessness among black communities in the London Borough of Islington: Report for London Borough of Islington.

Somerville, P., Steele, A., and Sodhi, D., 2001, Homelessness among Black and Minority Ethnic People: A Scoping Exercise for Shelter (unpublished).

Suzanne, F., 2013, Pathways into multiple exclusion homelessness in the United Kingdom, Parity, Vol. 26, no. 5.