Stephen from Shelter Scotland discusses the work they are doing to offer support to those who often get missed out. Transcribed from a conversation with Ruth from Outside the Box. Part 1

“I joined Shelter Scotland about a year ago to help develop a response to people who Shelter Scotland – as it is – found it difficult to engage with. These were people who the service wanted to reach, who have particularly chaotic lives, but don’t have access to phones and computers.

Time for Change

“I’m working with a group of people, who’ve previously been homeless, as a Peer Development Group to give guidance and advice to Shelter Scotland’s work. They’ve called themselves ‘Time for Change’ & written their own manifesto which gives you a sense of what’s important to them and how passionate they are. They’re giving direction on what they would have needed when they were experiencing homelessness. One of the things they’ve highlighted is that there is still a gap between getting advice and making sure that this is acted on. The important thing is that they know that their voices are being heard. And they are. I feel heard, and I wouldn’t be doing this if I didn’t.

What works?

“The Time for Change group have contributed to our active research project. During 2015 we talked to 57 people throughout Glasgow, accessed through 11 different grassroots homelessness services, and asked about their support; what works, what doesn’t work, how they would design their own support.

“78% came back saying that the best thing they have or could have is staff with lived experience: having people who are able to talk to you at that level, people who can challenge you more. If you’ve been through something similar yourself, you know what it feels like to lose hope, to be told no, for folk to give up on you.

The real experts

“Our research has made it clear that being qualified through experience was undervalued. There’s folk with university degrees & that’s fine, we need them too – as long as they care. But we need to understand the value in getting people with lived experience trained & appreciating them as experts in the area. They know what works and what doesn’t work.

Giving people hope

“If you see someone you know sorting their life out, it can give you a lot of hope. They can tell you what worked for them. They can tell you to get out of your bed and to your appointment if you’re struggling in a way that people who haven’t been in that position can’t.

“We need people who can take people by the hand when they need it. I’m all about empowering people to do things for themselves – but there are times when you need to get people to a place where they’re able to do that.

“And we’ve got to remember that there is a lot of benefit from just sitting with someone & having a coffee or a sandwich. It’s about building that trust and giving people the belief that things can change.”

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Watch out for our next blog where Stephen discusses how they are looking to develop homelessness services to reflect this need to involve people with lived experience.

Outside the Box are working with Shelter Scotland to disseminate their work and build the conversation around peer-led support in the homelessness sector. If you would like to be part of this conversation and / or be kept in the loop as the project moves forward, please let Ruth know by emailing ruth@otbds.org.