Wednesday 24 September 2014

Homeless Children in Alabama Public Schools Hits Record High

On this week’s Thrift Urban Housing Blog I will be discussing the news that record numbers of homeless children and youth were reported in Alabama public schools in 2012 – 13. Although Thrift Urban Housing is limited to the London area, I like to show a wider interest in news that relates to what Thrift Urban deal with.

68% Increase on Previous Year

The US Department of Education released data that shows a 68 per cent increase of homeless students enrolling for Alabama preschools and K-12 schools, the figure stands at 29,749. These figures highlight a growing problem with homeless students in US schools. 

The bigger pictures shows a staggering 1,258,182 students in 34 states are homeless. These states as well as Washington D.C. showed a yearly increase in the numbers of homeless students. Such was the increase in homelessness in Alabama that it actually overtook the rate of increase for the nation.

Children Not Recognised as Homeless

Perhaps one of the more concerning aspects that we have learned from this data is the fact that the US Department of Housing & Urban Development do not recognise 85 per cent of the Alabama children included in the data as being homeless. Instead it prioritises homeless single adults, which may go some distance to explain who the numbers have risen to such heights.

This means that only 13,979 of the 29,749 are eligible for educational assistance through their local schools, but that does not include HUD services such as shelter, temporary housing or assistance. It would seem then, that there is a significant problem with classification and definition of homelessness.

This is perhaps what drew my attention to this article. A homeless child is a homeless child regardless of a criteria or definition and that applies to any age group in fact. It is hard to believe that a developed Western nation as large as the US or the UK could have these problems. Where the privilege of education is lost on children whose emotional health and safety is damaged by homelessness.

Furthermore, the data only accounts for homeless children who have actually enrolled for schools, it does not account for those who haven’t or children who are younger than the age for enrolment, so the figures will likely be much higher than the data suggests.

Thrift Urban Housing

Thrift Urban Housing is a housing charity that supports less privileged people who are in need; people who are capable of taking care of themselves but need solid support in doing so.
These are the kind of situations that a charity like Thrift Urban Housing could really help with. 

If anything it outlines Thrift Urban’s mantra; to help people who can help themselves but need a push in the right direction. We can only assume that many of these homeless children have been let down by the people who should be protecting them, but they are not helpless.


Friday 19 September 2014

A Review of Thrift Urban Housing’s Proposed Fraud Scheme

In this week’s Thrift Urban Housing blog I will be taking a closer look at a new scheme that has been proposed by Thrift Urban Housing. This scheme aim to tackle the problem of fraud against elderly, vulnerable and disabled people who are scammed or tricked into giving up large sums of money to dodgy builders and contractors.

People who are familiar with Thrift Urban Housing may already know that they have several programmes in place already that aim to help people in need. The Building Handyman scheme is significant because it helps people find the right builder for their situation before any kind of fraud can occur.

However, it is not always plain sailing, some people fall victim to fraudsters because they do not have the knowledge of building and maintenance and are therefore taken advantage of. This is where the new Thrift Urban Housing fraud scheme comes into play. For those occasions where people overlook the Building Handyman programme, they may be able to limit the damage done through the proposed fraud scheme.

Not Enough Information Out There

As outlined on the Thrift Urban Housing blog post, there just isn’t enough information out there to help people who have been victims of fraud. It is believed that up to 99% of fraud victims do not know where to turn after becoming the target of fraudsters with many turning to the BBC consumer affairs programmes and other TV shows.

Perhaps the main hurdle Thrift Urban will face with this new scheme is promotion, that is to say, simply making people aware of its existence. The very reason that fraudsters target people in this situation is firstly, because they know the person lacks knowledge of the industry and will not question the price or quality of the job and second, they know that the target cannot do much to retaliate once the fraud is done.

What Thrift Urban Housing Can Do

Thrift Urban aim to provide the retaliatory option that has been desperately missed for too long by pursuing the offending party and retrieving the client’s money. This would be achieved through investigative work and civil claims through the courts that will be fought on behalf of the client. In many cases, fraudsters will have assets or savings that can be targeted for the client   


Thrift Urban acknowledge that the scheme is still in its early stages, but know that spreading the message to fraud victims in the London area that there is an option now available will hopefully provide peace of mind.       

Wednesday 17 September 2014

Is Homelessness Unfortunately Becoming Acceptable?

In light of recent claims on the perceptions of homelessness by an Irish housing charity, Thrift Urban Housing asks whether homelessness is becoming acceptable.

The Public Perception of Homelessness

As a housing charity, which seeks to help people who have the capability to help themselves with their housing needs, Thrift Urban Housing understands the public perception of homelessness. It’s not good.

Too often, the homeless are characterised as lazy, and this is why we need charities such as Thrift Urban Housing, to ensure that the homeless, who have usually just fallen on hard times, which can happen to anyone, get the help they need to get back on their feet.

The Normalisation of Homelessness

However, this perception shouldn't lead to the normalisation of homelessness, as was recently argued by Tony Geoghegan. He is the head of Ireland’s largest voluntary homeless and drug charity, Merchants Quay Ireland.

At the launch of Merchants Quay’s annual review of its services for 2013, Geoghegan suggested that homelessness has become an acceptable aspect of life in Ireland. Specifically, he said that "it has become or it seems to have become acceptable."

Homelessness in Dublin

Looking at the statistics, it seems that the Charity head has a point. Merchants Quay’s recent survey suggested that 150 people sleep rough in Dublin every night.

Furthermore, Merchants Quay revealed that last year, it provided 85,170 day and evening meals out to the homeless – this is an 11% rise.  Meanwhile, they recorded 4,467 instances where people living on the streets sought the help of a GP, nurse, dentist or counsellor through a charity. This is a 35% rise.

The Acceptance of Homelessness is Unacceptable


So is Geoghegan right, is homelessness becoming acceptable in Ireland and throughout the UK? That’s hard to measure. The numbers though, suggest that it is, and that, in Thrift Urban Housing’s opinion is distinctly unacceptable.