William - Experiencing chronic homelessness

William is a homeless man in his mid-50s who has been in and out of prison and uses a drop-in centre regularly for food, company and respite from the street.

He also has mental health and addiction issues. With the help of the friendly people at the drop-in centre, William is able to address some of his demons including his drinking and the need to reduce his debt.

One of the challenges for William at the moment is his health. William is experiencing increasing pain from years sleeping on the streets and would like a bed, but not the burden of paying rent and maintaining a house. He recalls his prison times as good times – it guaranteed shelter, a routine and a social life. Occasionally his possessions and money are stolen by other ‘streeties’, which makes him angry.

In the past, he has been trespassed from some services due to his angry outbursts. He is adamant that he doesn’t need help from services, and has had bad experiences with services in the past. He reports that the people at the drop-in centre however are friendly, and he likes them as they sometimes help him navigate services.

In his words

"The lady would say, ‘you’re spending all your flipping money on drugs and alcohol’ that was her attitude just going in all the time… just was rude and she definitely was showing attitude, if she didn’t have her attitude and was able to hold her tongue or her opinion as a professional… that might have been easier."

"There’s underlying mental health issues in relation to sometimes why I’m drinking… it’s not just clear-cut that: ‘ah he just chooses to drink and that’s as simple as that,’ cos it’s not like that."

"I was often borrowing money from friends to have enough money for food and stuff on top of rent. Without some of the friends I’ve got I would’ve gone hungry."

His strengths

• He’s social and is very street-savvy
• He’s a survivor and resilient in the face of hardship in more than one area of his life
• With support he is starting to make small changes.

How can we support William to thrive?

• Help him access a supported living environment.
• Provide financial capability support for transition periods (in/out of prison).
• Offer flexible, ethical and easy-to-use total money management, for when he needs it, or for when he is being targeted by other streeties for cash.
• Create opportunities for him to belong to a positive community, such as a volunteer job at the drop-in centre, or some purposeful activity.
• Develop a pathway and empower William to facilitate a peer-led group programme such as MSD’s MoneyMates programme, as a peer support person for the homeless, and utilise his ‘street-wise’ skills in a positive way.