ADR Wales publishes analysis of the Supporting People Programme

ADR Wales analysts within Welsh Government have published a new Government Social Research report showing the findings from data analysed from the legacy Supporting People Programme. This programme has now been replaced by the Welsh Government Housing Support Grant.

The report explores the demographics of people who accessed support and outlines the findings from linked data analysis from five local authorities in Wales covering the period from January 2003 to January 2020. Supporting People Programme data was linked with healthcare datasets to understand the possible impact of the programme on healthcare use.

The analysis builds on an earlier 2016 Supporting People data linking feasibility project and 2018  emerging findings report.

The Supporting People Programme provided housing-related support to help vulnerable people avoid homelessness and live as independently as possible. It set out to prevent problems by providing help as early as possible through two main types of support:

• Long-term maintenance support helped people keep or gain independence (and avoid the need for more costly interventions such as entering care).
• Short-term preventative services helped people avoid homelessness, often during a time of crisis.

The ADR Wales team within Welsh Government, worked with de-identified Supporting People Programme data held within the SAIL Databank to understand the wider implications of the Supporting People Programme. The findings will help inform future research and our understanding of the potential impact of the Housing Support Grant going forward.

This story was originally published on ADR Wales.