What is Housing First?
Housing First is a model that offers immediate, permanent, independent housing to people experiencing chronic homelessness — particularly those with complex needs including mental health issues, substance use disorders, or histories of trauma — without preconditions such as sobriety, treatment engagement, or life skills completion.
How Does it Differ from Traditional Models?
Traditional models of homelessness support use a "staircase" approach — people must move through stages (night shelter → hostel → transitional housing → permanent housing), demonstrating readiness at each stage. Housing First reverses this: stable housing is provided first, with support offered flexibly to help maintain the tenancy.
The Evidence Base
Housing First has strong international evidence behind it. Studies in the USA, Canada, Finland, and the UK consistently show that Housing First achieves significantly better housing stability outcomes than treatment-first models, and leads to improvements in mental health, substance use, and quality of life — without higher costs to public services.
Housing First in England
England has seen growing adoption of Housing First principles, supported by government funding pilots and guidance from Homeless Link. Local authorities in Staffordshire and Cheshire are increasingly incorporating Housing First into their homelessness strategies, working with housing providers to secure suitable properties.
How Axient Housing Supports Housing First Principles
Axient Housing supports Housing First principles by providing stable, well-managed accommodation for people with complex needs. We work with referring organisations to ensure that properties are suitable, that residents receive the support they need, and that tenancies are sustained rather than ending in further homelessness.