Porto Municipal strategy to tackle homelessness: more solidarity restaurants, more long-term housing and more rehabilitation programmes

The Municipal Executive has approved, this morning, the Municipal Strategy for Homeless people 2020-2023, during a private meeting. Long-term housing, an increase in the number of available beds at the Temporary Reception Shelter Joaquim Urbano, the opening of two additional solidarity restaurants, namely in Boavista and downtown, as well as the strengthening of capacity building and social and professional integration programmes are amongst the priorities. 

This was the first face-to face Executive Meeting in Porto City Hall since the pandemic started, still in a private format.

Councillor for Housing and Social Cohesion, Fernando Paulo described the work by the Municipality ever since it is in charge of the National Strategy for the Integration of Homeless People (NPISA), in February 2018.

More housing means that there will be fewer people living in the streets. A protocol was signed with the Private Social Solidarity Institution SAOM - Serviços de Assistência Organizações de Maria. Porto City Hall already cooperates with this charitable organisation in other areas, and now it will ensure the implementation of the project "Porto Sentido - Housing, Capacity Building, rehabilitation". This project is also carried out with other two entities of the city, namely Santa Casa da Misericórdia do Porto and the Província Portuguesa das Franciscanas Missionárias de Nossa Senhora.

This programme foresees that a maximum of 40 homeless people or at risk will be provided housing and social and professional rehabilitation, capacity building and training till 2022.

In view of the importance and dimension of such initiative under the application process to European funding, Porto City hall took on the commitment to be the main social investor, co-financing this project in 30% of its net asset value, in the amount 200 thousand euros.

Also in this area, the Municipality of Porto has an ongoing protocol for long-term housing with Benéfica e Previdente - Associação de Socorros Mútuos and with Santa Casa da Misericórdia do Porto, with capacity for 17 people total.

Establishing housing solutions for these citizens is a priority for the Municipality, which identifies different means of implementation, such as the "Housing First" system or similar for long-time homeless people with mental illness or addition problems, long-term housing with socio-professional integration or interim housing to transition to an active life.

 The same strategic document also features the increase in the number of vacancies in the National Continuous mental Health Care Network of the Portuguese National Health System, both in domiciles and in retirement homes.

Although the city already provides around two hundred slots in temporary accommodation centres, run by several entities within the Porto Strategy for the Integration of Homeless People (NPISA (NPISA), the staying in these facilities is longer than expected because "there are no supplementary solutions that enable the evolution to more adjusted levels of integration".

Within the Municipal Strategy, the Temporary Reception Centre Joaquim Urbano, managed by Porto City Hall, played an important role in the most acute time of the pandemic so far, by enhancing the response capacity in a short period of time, albeit temporary.

At present, the Joaquim Urbano Temporary Reception Centre can accommodate 35 people, but the Strategic document voted today approved the increase in the number of available beds, between 2020 and 2021.

In addition, the municipal strategy foresees the extension of the solidarity restaurants network, to meet the goal of replacing meals in the public space.

"Two additional solidarity restaurants will open, namely in Boavista and downtown, to cover the four strategic areas in town, as defined in the meal distribution route assessment in Porto, performed by NPISA Porto", as stated in the Strategic Document.

It is worth mentioning that the Municipality already has two restaurants running; at the facilities of the Hospital da Ordem do Terço, in Batalha Square, and another at the Reception Centre Joaquim Urbano. Also in these venues, the meal distribution capacity has been gradually extended.