The problem with Streetlink
Grab a coffee n let's talk about Streetlink, the main way the public is encouraged to help homeless people.
This is coming off the back of a long week trying to ensure people are inside and safe during this early freeze and storm. It has involved working with councils to try and refer people and also putting people in hotel rooms ourselves using our Winter Appeal funds. (Thank you donors!)
Now onto streetlink, (which we are also asked to use as a referral route.) As you can see from this ad, members of the public are encouraged to 'report' people sleeping rough into the app without asking the person's permission.
This information is then sent to local outreach workers who are given the data to try and track the person down, (usually one or two days later.) Obviously no good in a storm!
There are lots of problems with this approach, including the fact it only has a 9% success rate, but the number one problem in our opinion is lack of consent. It only takes 2 minutes to ask someone if they want to be reported to the authorities. But this option is not marketed at all.
There are lots of reasons someone may not want to be reported into services, for example domestic violence. Or perhaps the person is in touch with services, or has been badly let down by them already. We don't know if it would be helpful unless we ask and a person has a right to manage their own life.
In fact, under the Homelessness Reduction Act public bodies have to gain consent before referring a person for homelessness assistance. So why is consent completely left out of the way streetlink is set up and marketed to the public?
This app was born out of the coalition government and a moment in time where 'big data' was seen as a panacea to solve social problems.
This belief still persists and is demonstrated by institutions such as Centre for Homeless Impact which push the importance of big data.
End it with Evidence?
Does it work tho? Well Streetlink has only a 9% success rate in connecting outreach workers with individuals but it has a 90% or more success rate in providing H-CLIC returns. This information is according to Home Connections, who run the app.
What is H-CLIC? This is data on homeless people, shared between local authorities and government to track and monitor the homeless population and the effectiveness of interventions.
So the app is platformed as an immediate solution to homelessness but it is much more effective as a data farmer, feeding central government databases.
All of this without the consent of the people who are homeless. And with the public feeling like they have done the right thing.
We understand that some data is needed to know what’s going on and to shape policy. But we also have to admit when things are not doing what they should. There are better ways.
Rebuilding societal relationships
What would we want instead? One word. Relationships.
More relationships locally so that concerned members of the public would know where someone could get help.
Outreach workers in more relationship with people sleeping out. That means more workers which means more funding.
Better relationships between grassroots organsations and the authorities/services so people can be signposted more quickly and effectively.
And better relationship between people who are and aren't homeless.
People sleeping rough usually know what they need and if asked, will have an answer.
A simple conversation is much more humanising for both parties than reporting someone without permission.
However, with society where it is, the opposite is encouraged. To change this is possible, but in the words of one of our community "it would take a revolution, but a revolution of thought"
