Health needs audit

Homeless Link is delighted to have received funding from the Department of Health's Third Sector Investment Programme to deliver a project to improve access to healthcare for homeless people.

Background to the project

We published the Interim Findings from the project in October 2009. For more details about the project, please read on...

The health needs of homeless people have been well documented. Homeless people face barriers to accessing mainstream services and as a result experience poor health. Addressing health inequalities and improving the access of services for homeless people are key objectives of the Government.

The introduction of the Joint Strategic Needs Assessment (JSNA) has provided very welcome opportunities to influence the local strategic environment. However, additional support is required to ensure that the third sector provides evidence to support their advocacy and to help local commissioners see how working with homelessness services can assist them in improving the health of their local community.

The project will develop an audit tool which will enable homelessness agencies to evidence the health needs of their clients to better inform commissioning of future services, through local strategies such as the Local Area Agreement (LAA) and JSNAs.

How will the audit work?

The project is working with one PCT area per English region. The audit tool is being piloted in three Primary Care Trust areas during September 2009. After a review process, it will be piloted in a further six PCT areas before being rolled out as a nationally replicable tool. Participating areas include Southampton, Leeds, Bristol and Ashton, Leigh & Wigan.

Undertaking the audit involves asking clients to complete a short survey about their health and inputting data directly into the online survey tool. Partnerships in each PCT area can then use this data to inform relevant strategic opportunities and health provision for homeless clients.

Aims of the Project

Homeless Link believes this project will improve the capacity of homelessness organisations to advocate for health services for homeless people. We believe it will facilitate partnerships across the sectors and increase the understanding of the health needs of homeless people among local strategic commissioners. It will present an opportunity to make a real difference to the health of people who are often invisible to the communities they live in.

In summary, the project will lead to:

  • improved data about health needs of homeless clients
  • improved capacity of agencies to inform commissioning of health services
  • more responsive services to better meet the needs of homeless clients
  • improved engagement between voluntary and statutory partners in health commissioning
  • improved opportunities to raise issues and influence national policy on health and homelessness.

progress to date

In October 2009 we published Interim Findings from the first stage of the pilot. This short report is based on data from three agencies who participated in the pilot in Leeds, Southampton and Wigan and provides a snapshot of clients' health needs in these areas. The findings will be built on in 'wave 2' of the audit which commenced in November 2009.

The other 6 pilot areas are:

  • Sunderland
  • Birmingham
  • Brent
  • Bristol
  • Lincolnshire
  • South East Essex

Further Information

Please contact Helen Mathie, Policy Projects Manager at Homeless Link on 020 7960 3043, or by email.