Today we are publishing a paper called Individuals with multiple needs: the case for a national focus. This paper is co-designed with our partners, the Making Every Adult Matter (MEAM) coalition, and sets out the case for why more should be done for the 58,000+ individuals experiencing multiple needs (those facing overlapping problems of homelessness, substance misuse, mental health problems and offending) and, importantly, what and how this could be done.

The issues that the paper presents were raised in a series of interviews with senior civil servants across relevant government departments and then discussed at a Roundtable that determined key questions and potential ways forward.

The key questions set out in the paper are as follows:

1. What is the cohort of people with multiple needs?

2. What is the case for central government to intervene on this issue?

3. What would a national framework look like?

4. What are the costs and when will they reduce?

5. Which interventions work and why?

After the Budget announcement in March on the Government’s intention to integrate spending for vulnerable groups, we hope that this paper will further this discussion, with practical recommendations and proven solutions for the next Government.

Please view the full paper here.

See also MEAM’s blog about the paper and related blog from our Director, Andrew Barnett, on the MEAM collaboration’s success in achieving change.