Alongside people experiencing housing instability and homelessness: A reflection of four stories of Local Area Coordination

Permission has been given for stories to be shared, but names changed to respect privacy.

I have the upcoming privilege of talking about my passion for Local Area Coordination at the brilliant Housing LIN conference in Newcastle this month. In doing so, I wanted to share what I think works well in terms of community-centred support for people experiencing housing instability and homelessness, so I reached out to our fantastic LAC Network for examples of good practice. Four LACs immediately came forward with stories they had permission to share detailing the experiences of ‘Sara’, ‘Jim, ‘Lisa’, and ‘Barry’, all of whom had felt the sharp shock of housing-related issues in different ways.  

Before I share more reflections on their stories, I wanted to highlight findings from the Hull/Sheffield Uni NIHR‑funded multi-site evaluation of Local Area Coordination (opens new window) that feel relevant here. The study found that Local Area Coordination works because it is built around time and trust, and because the LAC role is designed to work in a non-hierarchical, principled, and person-centred way. The evaluation also highlighted how people choose to work with a Local Area Coordinator without a need for assessment and no eligibility test to get in the way of a conversation. These features were highlighted as being crucial in preventing people from falling through the gaps of fragmented systems. It also confirmed that Local Area Coordination’s strengths-based approach (i.e. recognising and working with people’s skills, existing connections, and talents) is the basis of helping people resolve their concerns. These aspects create what the researchers described as an ‘insulating buffer’, like a protective relational layer between the person and the overwhelming complexity of the public service system.  

I was reflecting on these findings when I read the four stories sent to me, trying to connect the dots between people’s situations, their experience of Local Area Coordination, and the research. The stories were well-constructed, deep, thoughtful, and layered. I’ve picked out aspects that are relevant to my argument here, but have not done them justice of course.

Sara's story

Let’s begin with Sara in her early 70’s, whose story revealed to me how invisible housing insecurity can appear. Living with COPD and trapped in a coercive and abusive relationship, her home was not a place of safety, yet leaving it felt inconceivable.  Her story highlights how difficult it can be for older people to recognise lifelong experiences of domestic abuse, especially when historically this has not been acknowledged by services and peers. Following an introduction from her GP, she connected with her Local Area Coordinator who met her where she was at and walked alongside her with patience, at her pace, and building trust over time. When the abuse escalated to the point she feared for her life, Sara had someone to call who already understood her situation. Her Local Area Coordinator then supported her through the transition she eventually made away from that home and into independent living. Naturally this included a lot of focus on the emotional shock, the practicalities, the rebuilding of confidence, and the steady reconnection to community life over time. Ultimately Sara’s story reminded me that change is possible at any time of life, and that safety and housing security can be regained regardless of age or circumstances.

Jim's story

Jim’s story reminded me how fragile housing security can be during periods of mental ill health. After a psychotic episode, he was evicted from his supported accommodation. Other placements subsequently failed, inaccurate records labelled him ‘high risk’, doors were closed as a result, and eventually he ended up sleeping rough in a local graveyard. His Local Area Coordinator, who had met him some months before at a food bank, stayed alongside him throughout all of this, helping him advocate, exploring options, coordinating services, and ensuring his voice was heard. Jim and his Local Area Coordinator eventually worked together to challenge the wrong decisions that had been made, gathered evidence from mental health and primary care, corrected misinformation, and found a housing provider willing to listen and assess fairly. He was accepted immediately and moved in just before last Christmas. Like Sara, a new housing solution was achieved, but only because a trusted and local relationship with his Local Area Coordinator held him steady through months of rejection, pain, and confusion.

Lisa's story

Lisa’s story showed me a different side of housing insecurity, the kind shaped by disability, trauma, and fear. Her situation had left her housebound in a first-floor flat, unable to safely use the stairs. She was told that, for whatever reason, adaptations weren’t possible, so she only had one option which was to find somewhere else to live. Lisa had previously experienced racially aggravated abuse in other areas she’d lived and had only just found a community where she felt truly safe. The standard response would have been for her to be moved to whatever property became available. However, Lisa and her Local Area Coordinator were able to take a different approach. Together they worked slowly and patiently, with Lisa in the lead expressing her preferences and arranging for Housing to allow her to bid only in areas she felt safe, ultimately securing a bungalow on her own street. Adaptations were put in place, removals organised, and finances sorted. Naturally, this was a lot for anyone to arrange but, bit by bit, it was made possible with her Local Area Coordinator alongside her as her champion, helping her to coordinate and advocate. Lisa now lives independently and can get out and about as part of her community again, rebuilding a sense of safety, identity, and contribution.

Barry's story

Finally, Barry’s story reminded me that being securely housed is not just about what is going on in your house, but outside your front door too. Barry was living in fear after being targeted with vandalism and ongoing anti-social behaviour outside his flat, whilst juggling health conditions, falls, debt, and the aftermath of a stroke. Feeling concerned, Barry’s neighbours introduced him to his Local Area Coordinator who respected his clear wish to stay in his home. Over the following year, Barry’s Local Area Coordinator walked beside him through benefit claims, hospital discharge, OT assessments, falls prevention, repairs, debt worries, transport concerns, ASB reporting, and rebuilding his confidence after major health setbacks. Importantly, they also focused on strengthening Barry’s natural network of supports (his neighbours), recognising that his sense of belonging, his pride in his garden, and the mutual support he shared with others were really important protective factors for his good life. With increased income, reduced debt, adaptations in place, a Blue Badge, telecare, and renewed independence, Barry eventually ended up getting a car and regaining a level of freedom he thought he’d lost.

Putting people before processes

As I read these, I was struck that across all four stories, the same pattern appears. Local Area Coordination works because it is shaped around relationships, not transactions. Local Area Coordinators are locally present and have time (something the research repeatedly highlights as essential), and use it to build trust, understand people’s lives in context, and stay alongside them for as long as needed. Because there is no referral, people don’t have to pass a threshold or justify their struggle, which means no artificial barrier to opening up earlier. Because there is no assessment, the relationship remains non-hierarchical and human. Because the practice is genuinely place and strengths-based, people’s gifts, networks, natural authority, ideas, and connections are what shape their way forward. And because the approach sits between community and services, Local Area Coordinators can help to bridge gaps, and support people to access their rights, navigate complexity, and prevent escalation into crisis.

I am so grateful for these four people for allowing their stories to be shared, because they really do bring home the reality of what works well and why. Whilst bricks and mortar form the places we call home, housing stability itself comes when people feel safe, connected, understood, and supported in their neighbourhoods. The research I talked about really reflects what these four stories demonstrate; approaches like Local Area Coordination create the conditions in which people are able to live their vision of a good life and remain part of the communities that matter to them. It offers something that cannot be engineered or prescribed through forms, thresholds, or time‑limited interventions.  It is something akin to a human anchor, a reliable champion, a talented and experienced professional who is “there”, who shows up, and sees people for who they are - citizens with hopes, skills and dreams and with contributions to make.