Barcelona is promoting aid of up to 1,500 euros so that vulnerable families don't have to spend two years on pensions.

BarcelonaBarcelona City Council's emergency temporary accommodation model has been around for a while. collapsedDespite being a resource designed for stays of a maximum of six months, the majority of vulnerable people who have lost their homes and take advantage of it end up spending two or more years in rooms. In many cases, entire families must live together in the same room in one of the city's lower-category boarding houses. A reality that the council has been seeking to reverse for some time and against which it announced its first measure this Thursday: increasing the financial aid received by some of those staying in hostels to make it easier for them to leave boarding houses and find housing.

In mid-July, the City Council will launch a new emergency social benefit of between 800 and 1,500 euros per month—depending on whether the household consists of two or more people—aimed primarily at families with children who have been in emergency accommodation for more than six months and who, despite having their own accommodation, are still unable to find accommodation. In total, the city council estimates that the aid will help between 700 and 1,000 people—about a third of those currently in hostels in Barcelona—leave their temporary emergency accommodation.

"We want to offer opportunities for families to develop their own path," Sònia Fuertes, the City Council's Commissioner for Social Rights, told reporters. She believes that this new benefit will help people who "need a little push to find housing." The city council's aim is for this aid—limited to a maximum of twelve months—to serve as a lever for people in temporary accommodation to enter the housing market and, from there, become eligible for regular rental assistance.

In addition to living in temporary accommodation for more than six months and proving a minimum income, to qualify for this benefit, you must be registered in Barcelona, ​​have valid documentation, be listed in the city's registry of applicants for social housing, accept social support, and comply with an individualized improvement plan. With this last requirement, the City Council aims to guarantee support while receiving the benefit, to help them with aspects such as finding work or completing paperwork and community networks.

They will be able to live outside of Barcelona.

To make it easier for these people to find a place to live on their own despite the lack of affordable housing in the city, the City Council is avoiding stipulating that the new rental contract partially financed with this aid must be for an entire address or even be located in Barcelona. Thus, the benefits and support for families will be maintained even if they choose to live in other municipalities, share an apartment with others, or rent rooms.

Despite admitting that the tourist pension system is not optimal and hoping to facilitate the exit of approximately 400 cases from the emergency temporary accommodation system, the City Council's social services assume that this model cannot be stopped from the outset because demand remains high. "Unfortunately, we cannot change the system today with the current situation," they point out, explaining that on average, approximately 150 new people need emergency accommodation each month. To start with, the 3,000 people the City Council houses daily in a hostel—at an average cost of €1,000 per person per month—will not be reduced, but the turnover will be increased so that fewer and fewer people spend more than six months in this situation, who currently account for 63% of the total.

More measures to reduce the burden of pensions

However, the City Council maintains its intention to progressively reduce the weight of pensions in the emergency accommodation system. Therefore, beyond the new benefit, the City Council plans to present other measures in the coming months, such as a collaboration agreement with social organizations to offer alternative accommodation. Furthermore, it also aims to ensure that people with more complex cases who are currently in emergency accommodation alone or as a couple without children and who are unable to arrange financial assistance that would allow them to establish themselves can spend the necessary months at the Short Stay Center of the Barcelona Center for Urgencies and Social Emergencies (CUESB), where it accompanies the CUESB.

A few days ago, Barcelona's Ombudsman, David Bondia, also proposed other options in a report, such as: The tourism sector will get involved by providing hotel rooms or some tourist apartments for emergency accommodation.; allocate a portion of the tourist tax to fund part of the 38 million euros the City Council allocates to temporary accommodation, or, alternatively, for organizations such as Fira de Barcelona and Port de Barcelona to "become actively involved" in strengthening this network of emergency accommodation.