Running Head: A proposal on managing homelessness in society 1

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A proposal on managing homelessness in society 2

A proposal in managing homelessness in society

Background
Most countries experience many challenges such as hunger, poverty, terror attacks, drug and
substances abuse and most importantly, warfare. Most people have felt the effects of these
calamities in society through various ways; for instance, a relative, friend or even a family
member big subjected to one or more of these epidemics. The effects of exposure to this can
leave an individual in a devastating state which might later render him or her jobless, homeless
and in languishing poverty. It is therefore essential to ensure that such vulnerable individuals in
the society are supported not only psychologically but also economically to enable them to
regain their social and economic stability. It is for this reason that formulating a proposal on how
to address homelessness in society becomes crucial.
Introduction
Several events in recent years have rendered several community members homeless. This could
be attributed to the loss of jobs, thus interfering with a person's income, loss of parents,
particularly in depended young people, war, mental illness, among other cases. Therefore, it is
the responsibility of every community member to take care of disadvantaged individuals. As one
of such members, I would establish a housing facility to accommodate the affected people to
ensure that the total population of homeless people is significantly reduced in a period of one
year (Ravenhill, 2016, p. 25).
Similarly, mental health complication is also contributing a significant number of homeless
populations across countries and regions where effective treatment measures have not been
implemented and enforced effectively. For example, in the United States, veterans who became
homeless due to mental disorders were reported to be about fifty-eight thousand, this figure
accounts for about thirteen per cent of the total population of homeless people countrywide.
A large number of homeless veterans suffer from mental disorders resulting from post-traumatic
stress disorder, many of which have attributed their trauma from war experiences. The figure
ranges up to eighty per cent of homeless mental cases. Therefore, this should serve as an insight
into several stakeholders and humanitarians on focusing on the treatment of mentally unwell
patients to reduce homelessness resulting from such cases.

Objective
The objective of this program is to provide housing facility, food, and other necessities to
homeless people and encourage the able ones to become more productive. Provision of basic
needs will ensure that an individual’s health is established; this will enable one to focus more on
developing their capabilities. Young individuals will be offered an opportunity to pursue their
studies, and after school hours or during holidays and weekends when they are free, they will be
requested to engage in few productive activities such as participating in co-curricular activities.
A proposal on managing homelessness in society 3

Due to harsh economic times which we are living in, it will be appropriate to ensure that non-
disabled people in the housing program engage in productive activities to enable them to sustain
their lives as soon as possible. This will see that the sustainability cost is distributed equally
among several individuals. In the process, thus, running and operating the facility will become
affordable and efficient. Therefore, it is similarly essential to ensure that the homeless are not
ideal once their mental and physical health is in good condition.
This will include encouraging the homeless to seek employment that can at least provide thirty-
two working hours in a week. Individuals will be provided with opportunities to work in
organizations partnering with the foster home facility. Additionally, developing other technical
skills will be essential in ensuring that one can create job opportunities for him or herself, for
instance, starting small sustainable businesses and so on. The importance of this is to enable one
to develop his or her financial abilities. Once an individual is capable of meeting his or her own
basic needs, then it becomes a measure for one to move out (Macnaughton et al., 2015, p. 279).
Targeted groups for this facility will include the vulnerable members of society, such as disabled
and young people. This is because in most cases, these groups comprise people who are helpless
and are desperate for assistance. Therefore, much preference will be awarded to such individuals.
However, this does not imply that any homeless adult with a sound mind will not be admitted
because once an individual experience healthy life, they start to avoid the cycle of either street
living or addiction to certain destructive habits.
Similarly, homeless drug and substance abusers will not be denied the opportunity. However,
their admission will equally be dependable upon their willingness to abstain from such habits.
Therefore, rehabilitation programs will be offered to affected individuals to ensure they lead a
healthy and productive life.
Additional services such as rehabilitation and mentoring programs will also be offered to ensure
that chronic addicts are adequately redeemed from the habit. People will be taught the dangers of
engaging in drug and substance abuse habits and the benefits of leading a healthy life free of
drugs. This will, however, be voluntary to individuals who are ready to change. This way, the
housing program will provide stability and correction facilities to the affected person, thereby
increasing their success through accountability and self-sufficiency (Macnaughton et al., 2015,
p. 280).
Resources and costs requirements
To facilitate this program running and sustainable, most of the financial support will significantly
be raised from donations and grants from the public, government and other humanitarian
organizations such as the united nation organizations. This will not only be limited to finance but
also any support such as mentoring, training, and provision of learning facilities. This means that
the facility will have to partner with community well-wishers, government and nongovernmental
organizations in its operations.
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Therefore, the program will first be registered and legalized by the federal authority as a
community-based organization. Registered organizations have their operations monitored and
supported by the government whenever it is necessary. The organization will have to elect or hire
a qualified management team that will oversee the operation of the program. The duties of the
management team will involve resource collection from good wishers and allocating it in the
organization (Sanjek, 2017, p. 315).
Engaging the community in this program is what makes it even more useful. The society will be
educated through public lectures, seminars and rallies to realize the importance of the program.
Once the community members appreciate the program, then fitting and integrating it into the
society will become easier.

Donations in the form of clothing and food from the society will be welcomed to ensure that
society does not feel left out on this project. This will consequently build healthy relationships
between the homeless and the surrounding community. This is essential because it will enable
easy absorption of the homeless people back into society once they have developed their
financial and societal statuses.
Similarly, community services such as non-profitable or religious based assistance to the
organization will be initiated to ensure able and willing members of the society can contribute to
the success of the program. Individuals or corporate donors in the community will be able to
offer life their assistance through public fundraising and involvement in recreational,
counselling, or medication aids (Lee & Ferguson, 2019, p. 239).
Assessing the progress and success of the program at the end of the year will incorporate several
considerations. For example, comparing the financial ability of an individual at the end of a
specific period can enable one to determine if the program is enabling homeless people to
establish their skills or not. This will involve checking whether an individual has secured a job in
one year or not. Also, determining the social status and how an individual relates with colleagues
and society in general can provide vital information on whether the person deserves more
accommodation or not.
When a person proves fit to settle on his or her own, then the individual will be free to leave.
However, when individuals move out, they can still come back for assistance whenever it is
necessary. Those individuals who will appear to have difficulties in fitting into the society in
terms of financial and sociological parameters will extend their accommodation period in the
foster homes.
Conclusion
Eradicating homelessness is a collective responsibility that every member of the society needs to
participate in fulfilling the task. Individual contributions may not always be financial assistance
because most of the affected persons require additional care such as psychological support,
training and mentoring. Similarly, the government has a significant role in ensuring that its
citizens are not only protected but also enabled in sustaining meeting their basic needs. When all
stakeholders corporate and work together in attaining a common goal of providing basic wants to
homeless people, then the process becomes swift and effective. This way, I believe that the issue
of homelessness will be solved adequately within a short time.
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References

Lee, W., & Ferguson, K. M. (2019). Multisectoral Collaborations to Address

Homelessness. Homelessness Prevention and Intervention in Social Work, 239-254.

Macnaughton, E., Stefancic, A., Nelson, G., Caplan, R., Townley, G., Aubry, T., … Goering, P.

(2015). Implementing Housing First Across Sites and Over Time: Later Fidelity and

Implementation Evaluation of a Pan-Canadian Multi-site Housing First Program for

Homeless People with Mental Illness. American Journal of Community

Psychology, 55(3-4), 279-291.

Ravenhill, M. (2016). The Culture of Homelessness. London, England: Routledge.

Sanjek, R. (2017). Federal Housing Programs and Their Impact on Homelessness. Housing The

Homeless, 315-321.