The Regulation and Quality of Homelessness Services

Table of contents

This edition of FEANTSA's European Observatory on Homelessness Comparative Research Series provides a detailed insight into the regulation and quality of services provided to homeless people across the European Union. 

The report is the second one in a series looking at how homelessness services operate in Europe, which commenced with the 2018 study on the range and nature of homelessness services in Europe. A standardised questionnaire was sent to experts in 16 current EU member states: Austria, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia and the UK. The report begins by describing the methods used for the research before moving on to present the key research questions. Chapter three focuses on the use of legislative frameworks to set and monitor standards in homelessness services, also encompassing patterns of regulation, guidance and monitoring of services. Chapter four examines the ways in which quality is defined in homelessness services, including consideration of how quality is determined in different service types. The fifth chapter provides a series of summaries, designed to provide both a picture of the specific arrangements within each of the 16 countries and to help give the reader a more detailed picture of the extent of variation in how quality is defined, measured and regulated. Chapter six discusses the findings of the research and considers the challenges in enhancing the quality in homelessness services