What Factors Contributed to the Growth of Homelessness in the 1980¡¦S and 90¡¦S?

What factors contributed to the growth of homelessness in the 1980¡¦s and 90¡¦s?

This essay explores the different reasons as to why someone may become homeless. Poverty plays an important part in being homeless. According to The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia ¡§homelessness is the condition of not having a permanent place to live, widely perceive as a societal problem only beginning in the 1980s.¡¨

A person can become homeless for a number of reasons, there are also a lot of different types of groups who are affected by becoming homeless. The first group of people who are most likely to be affected by being homeless are immigrants because they may not know the language and they also do not know any one in this country and it is very hard for them to get some money and somewhere to live so they end up sleeping rough.

Another group that is most likely to be affected by being homeless are people who have just been released from a long prison sentence or have been discharged from a psychiatric hospital. As a result of being in prison or hospital for so long there house and jobs have been taken away from them so they do not have any money on them so they can get temporary accommodation or even family or friends who can help them out.

The causes that are listed above are social factors and the main cause of someone being homeless is that parents, friends or relatives are not able to offer them with anywhere to stay. In 1981-1984 45.9% Scottish people said that the main reason of someone becoming homeless is when you family and friend are not able to help you out with accommodation. Another reason for the increase in homelessness in the 1980¡¦s and 90¡¦s was that family disputes and domestic violence had increased.

When people think of being homeless they mainly associate it with someone who does not have a house to stay in but that is not all what being homeless is being homeless also means having no money, no income coming in and no job.

Drug users also are affected by homelessness, they need money so that they can get the drugs they are using and because they spend all there money on getting these drugs and they don¡¦t have enough money to spend on paying the bills and the rent or mortgage so they lose there house and probably even there job.

According to Randall and Brown ¡§there was a rapid rise in rough sleeping in the early 1990¡¦s, and there is a continuity problem of rough sleeping in some large British cities it is estimated that between 2,000 and 3,000 may sleep rough on any night¡¨.

If a homeless person was to go and look for a job it would be very difficult for that person to obtain a job, they don¡¦t have a telephone so nobody is able to get into contact with them, also there is no permanent address for the homeless person and they cannot get washed have a bath and get changed.

However there are homeless shelters for the people who sleep rough, charities and volunteer workers who help with food and some temporary accommodation, clothes and even counselling which is there for them if they need it however these shelters are not very safe ad they are also expensive to organize.

Another important factor that contributed to the growth of homelessness in the 1980¡¦s and 90¡¦s was the fact that there were teenagers who were moving to London and they could not find any work or any type of benefit to hep them so they just slept un cardboard boxes or just on the footpath and they begged for money as this was the only way to get hold of some even though it may not have been very much.

Between 1988 and 1990 the mortgage payments rose quite high and people who owned there own house could not afford to keep up with the mortgage so they were also left homeless.

Unemployment reached quite high in the 1980¡¦s and jobless people did not have any money or any sort of income coming in and could not afford to live like that so they also ended up homeless.

The youth is another important group who are affected by homelessness. There parents might be in jail and having drink problems or any other problems which means it is difficult for them to look after there children, these children do not go to school so they miss out on there education which is very important especially if they want to get a job and do something with their life. Some children may even get thrown out of their house because their parents are not happy with their behaviour and have just about had enough.

It just seems that not enough is being done by the government to improve the help that is needed for these homeless people. There needs to be permanent houses by the local council to ensure that the homeless have somewhere to stay and they should encourage and help the homeless get a job.

Bibliography

„« Loveland. I (1995) housing homeless persons, Oxford: Clarenden Press.

„« Polakow.V and Guillean. A (2001) International perspective on homelessness, America: Greenwood Press.

„« Stewart. J (1975) of no fixed abode vagrancy and the welfare state, Manchester: Manchester University Press.

„« Watchman. P.Q and Robson. P (1986) developments in homelessness and the law 1983-85, the planning exchange.

„« 2003 The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, Columbia University Press. Answers.com http://www.answers.com/topic/homelessness.

Bibliography: „« Loveland. I (1995) housing homeless persons, Oxford: Clarenden Press. „« Polakow.V and Guillean. A (2001) International perspective on homelessness, America: Greenwood Press. „« Stewart. J (1975) of no fixed abode vagrancy and the welfare state, Manchester: Manchester University Press. „« Watchman. P.Q and Robson. P (1986) developments in homelessness and the law 1983-85, the planning exchange. „« 2003 The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition, Columbia University Press. Answers.com http://www.answers.com/topic/homelessness.