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Housing the homeless: Shifting sites of managing the poor in the Netherlands

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  • Nienke Fredrika Boesveldt
  • Dolly Loomans

Abstract

Contemporary approaches to counter homelessness push for a housing-led model that is seen as more progressive and less punitive than traditional approaches. Few studies have however investigated its translation on the ground. In this paper we aim to do so by studying the implementation of a housing-led approach in the Netherlands; in a context of housing shortages and health care austerity. By building on qualitative interviews with people (previously) experiencing homelessness and professional stakeholders, we argue that while a regular home is a much-needed improvement to emergency shelters and institutions, housing contracts are often conditional and used as disciplinary instruments restricting what people are allowed to do in their own home. Care and screening services are increasingly executed by housing associations and the local police, further entwining housing, care and punishment. Intersecting with local housing shortages and insufficient health care this becomes a barrier to a more effective and humane approach to homelessness. These findings contribute to theories on urban governance by showing how the management of the poor is extended to the private domain.

Suggested Citation

  • Nienke Fredrika Boesveldt & Dolly Loomans, 2024. "Housing the homeless: Shifting sites of managing the poor in the Netherlands," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 61(7), pages 1393-1410, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:urbstu:v:61:y:2024:i:7:p:1393-1410
    DOI: 10.1177/00420980231208624
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Ashraful Alam & Claudio Minca & Khandakar Farid Uddin, 2022. "Risks and informality in owner-occupied shared housing: to let, or not to let?," International Journal of Housing Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 22(1), pages 59-82, January.
    2. Brian Hennigan & Jessie Speer, 2019. "Compassionate revanchism: The blurry geography of homelessness in the USA," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 56(5), pages 906-921, April.
    3. Wouter van Gent & Cody Hochstenbach, 2020. "The neo-liberal politics and socio-spatial implications of Dutch post-crisis social housing policies," European Journal of Housing Policy, Taylor and Francis Journals, vol. 20(1), pages 156-172, January.
    4. Andrew Clarke & Cameron Parsell, 2019. "The potential for urban surveillance to help support people who are homeless: Evidence from Cairns, Australia," Urban Studies, Urban Studies Journal Limited, vol. 56(10), pages 1951-1967, August.
    5. Andrew Clarke & Cameron Parsell & Margarita Vorsina, 2020. "The role of housing policy in perpetuating conditional forms of homelessness support in the era of housing first: Evidence from Australia," Housing Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 35(5), pages 954-975, May.
    6. Deshonay Dozier, 2019. "Contested Development: Homeless Property, Police Reform, and Resistance in Skid Row, LA," International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 43(1), pages 179-194, January.
    7. Wouter van Gent & Cody Hochstenbach, 2020. "The neo-liberal politics and socio-spatial implications of Dutch post-crisis social housing policies," International Journal of Housing Policy, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 20(1), pages 156-172, January.
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