In a decade, the program, owned by Barcelona City Council and managed by Sant Joan de Déu Serveis Socials and the UTE Suara Cooperativa Pere Claver, has provided housing in 76 apartments to 116 people who had experienced long-term homelessness
Housing is a basic right that is included in both the Constitution of the Spanish State and in the Declaration of Human Rights of the United Nations (UN), which the government has signed.
Despite this, this Thursday, World Homeless Day, it is important to remember that in Spain there are still at least 28,552 people living on the streets, according to the latest data published by the National Institute of Statistics (INE) for 2022. Of these, 51% are men and more than a quarter, 26.8%, arrived there after becoming unemployed, which reminds us that anyone can find themselves in a situation of social exclusion.
To address them, more responses are needed from the public administration, as well as collaboration between them and social entities such as, for example, the one that has been woven into the Primer la Llar program, which is now ten years old in Barcelona.
This program, which at the time was a pioneer in Spain, draws on the experience of the revolutionary project that clinical psychologist Sam Tsemberis implemented in the 1990s in New York. For the first time, it was understood that what was needed to be able to accompany people in a situation of homelessness was to offer them a safe roof and, from there, they could begin their own path to transform their lives, each according to their own rhythms, needs and realities.
Since it began its steps in Barcelona in 2015, the Primer la Llar program, a city council service managed by Sant Juan de Déu Serveis Socials and the UTE Suara Cooperativa and Pere Claver grup, has provided housing for 116 people in 76 apartments.
Intercooperation between the city council and social entities
The materialization of this program has been possible thanks to the close collaboration between the city council of Barcelona and the social entities of the city that work with people in a situation of homelessness, as highlighted by different people involved in the program in an emotional event that took place recently at the Espai Fontana de Gràcia to celebrate the ten years of life of Primer la Llar.
An inter-cooperation that was born before the project even started, when both the council and the organizations showed their willingness to join forces to make it a reality, explained Maite Mauricio, an expert in homelessness at Suara Cooperativa and who participated in the event as a representative of the Barcelona Homeless People Network.
An argument that was agreed with by Sònia Fuertes, Commissioner for Social Action at the city council, who emphasized that this project was pioneering within the Spanish state, so there were no previous experiences and everything had to be done. That is why this collaboration was so essential.
To reaffirm this vital inter-cooperation, the start of the day included a round table discussion with Javier Martínez, manager of the Municipal Institute of Social Services, Mònica Almiñana, Manager of the Barcelona Healthcare Consortium and Gerard Capó, Manager of the Barcelona Housing Consortium, who explained how these administrations have worked together during this decade to offer a response to the people served in this program.
Transforming lives
“I wanted to talk about emotions, which even if you already have a safe roof over your head, are like a roller coaster,” said Javier Matitos, a participant in Primer la Llar, during his speech, who wanted to highlight the transcendental work that workers do by accompanying them in any state of mind.
This is precisely the crux of the Primer la Llar program, where the person being served is put at the center, since they are the ones who lead their life projects through decision-making and decide which process they want to follow according to their pace, reality and need. Therefore, the task of the workers is to accompany them throughout this journey.
During the event, a video was also shown in which, in addition to the participation of workers and people being served, the neighbors of the latter also intervened, highlighting the need for more programs like the Primer la Llar program. “He is a very communicative person and, since he has entered the community, he has only done work for the community,” defends Pilar in the video, who adds: “He is a neighbor who has been very good to me because he has stimulated me a lot.”
Anna Domingo, director of the operational services for homelessness at Suara Cooperativa, who spoke at the event on behalf of the UTE Suara Cooperativa and Pere Claver Grup, also wanted to thank the vital contribution of the people served. “Thank you for everything you have taught us: because from each of you we have learned something that has made us better professionals and, above all, better people”, he argued.
Equalizing in rights
For her part, Anna Garcia, director of the Primer la Llar apartments managed by the UTE Suara Cooperativa and Pere Claver Grup, spoke about the importance of all people having a permanent home for themselves. “The importance of this program is that when you give them a safe roof, you equalize their rights with the rest of society”, defended Garcia.
Therefore, on this World Homeless Day, from Suara Cooperativa we hope that Primer la Llar continues to be a reality and that this program can be expanded both in Barcelona and throughout the Catalan territory. Housing should not be a private good, but rather, as a fundamental right enshrined in the Constitution, it should be accessible to all people regardless of their reality or situation.
