Homelessness

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At national level / national policy

In 2013, the Luxembourg government adopted the national strategy against homelessness and housing exclusion 2013-2020, which provided the framework for the government's actions to combat all forms of homelessness and housing exclusion.

Now that the strategy has expired, the ministry has commissioned LISER (Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research), a public research institute, to carry out a final external evaluation of the strategy. This evaluation, carried out in collaboration with stakeholders in the field, was finalised and published in 2023. The results of this evaluation confirm that the implementation of the strategy's various actions has led to real progress in tackling homelessness and housing exclusion in Luxembourg.

As a result of this process, a number of innovative projects have been launched, including Housing First, and favourable conditions have been created to increase the capacity to accommodate homeless people and ensure that care is tailored to their needs.

Through the 2023-2028 coalition agreement, the government is committed to implementing a coordinated, cross-cutting and inclusive strategy to combat homelessness and housing exclusion during the legislative period, known as Housing Led, which aims to integrate a household into suitable housing while offering support that meets its needs.

  • Counting the homeless

With the signing of the Lisbon Declaration in June 2021 on the creation of the European Platform to Combat Homelessness, the Luxembourg government has reiterated its commitment to combating homelessness and housing exclusion in all its forms.

In order to better determine the needs in the fight against homelessness, since 2022 the Ministry has commissioned Inter-Actions, a non-profit association, to carry out biannual physical counts of homeless people in Luxembourg: in spring, when temperatures are milder, and in winter, during the opening of Action Hiver. After initial experiments in the capital, the field of action was extended to include the area of Esch-sur-Alzette and the beneficiaries of the Winter Action.

All the professionals in the field and organisations recognised for their expertise in the area of homelessness were involved in this action. The use of this specialist staff is a key element in the success of the counts, given that, in addition to counting people, the aim is to gather socio-economic data in order to have more information on the trajectory of the people concerned so as to better target measures in their favour.

  1. October 2022: https://mfsva.gouvernement.lu/fr/publications/etude-analyse/rue.html
  2. June 2023: https://mfsva.gouvernement.lu/fr/publications/etude-analyse/rec23.html
  3. December 2023: https://mfsva.gouvernement.lu/dam-assets/publications/rapport-etude-analyse/etat-des-lieux-sans-abrisme/recensement-des-sans-abris-2023/recensement-des-sans-abris-2023.pdf

At international level

The Solidarity Division is a member of the European Platform to Combat Homelessness. This platform was launched at a high-level conference in Lisbon in June 2021, co-organised by the Portuguese Presidency of the Council of the EU, the European Commission and the European Federation of National Organisations Working with the Homeless (FEANTSA). On this occasion, Luxembourg signed the ‘Lisbon Declaration on the European Platform against Homelessness’ launching the platform.

In this declaration, the partners agreed on the following objectives:

  • no one should have to sleep rough for lack of accessible, safe and appropriate emergency accommodation;
  • no one should live in emergency or transitional accommodation for longer than is necessary for a successful transition to a permanent housing solution;
  • no one should be able to leave an institution (e.g. prison, hospital, care home) without being offered appropriate housing;
  • evictions should be avoided as far as possible and no one should be evicted without help to find a suitable housing solution, if needed;
  • no one should be discriminated against because of their homeless status.

The Platform initiative is also a concrete outcome of the Action Plan on the European Social Rights Base and helps to deliver on the renewed commitment of EU institutions, Member States, civil society and social partners, made at the Porto Social Summit in May 2021, to a strong Social Europe.

By supporting mutual learning between policy-makers and practitioners, the platform will help to exploit EU funding opportunities, strengthen evidence and monitoring of homelessness, disseminate and promote good practice and review progress towards ending homelessness by 2030, as set out in Principle 19 of the European Social Charter.