Joint project aims to eliminate long-term homelessness in Espoo

The project work began in February 2025 with preparation and mapping work. In a newly completed tendering process, Hoivatie Oy was selected as the service provider for the City of Espoo, and two of the company’s employees will spend half of their workday on the project. The Western Uusimaa Wellbeing Services County is implementing the project as its own project work and has recruited two employees for the project.

Next, the project will move on to outreach work, as project workers will visit different sites in Espoo to meet homeless people. The aim is to obtain a more detailed picture of the service needs of the target group and to develop operating practices between different actors.

The project will also increase cooperation with landlords to prevent evictions and provide assistance in particular to young housing applicants in accepting housing offers and applying for housing-related services and subsidies. In addition, the activities of organisations providing housing advice and services operating in the Espoo region will be mapped during the project.

The City of Espoo and the Western Uusimaa Wellbeing Services County receive discretionary government grants for the implementation of the project from the Programme to eradicate long-term homelessness set up by the Ministry of the Environment. During the programme, the city and the wellbeing services county will build shared permanent operating practices for eradicating and preventing long-term homelessness so that the number of long-term homeless people will not increase after the programme period.

Further information

 Making use of ecosystem thinking in developing cooperation to eradicate and prevent long-term homelessness in Espoo project (EKOPIPO):

• Anne Savolainen, tel. +358 40 353 3582
  Housing Manager, City of Espoo
• Tapio Nieminen, tel. +358 50 328 6764
  Director of Services, Social services for adults, Western Uusimaa Wellbeing Services County
• Päivi Jouttimäki, tel. +358 40 636 9210
  Project Manager, Making use of ecosystem thinking in developing cooperation to eradicate and prevent long-term homelessness in Espoo project (EKOPIPO), Western Uusimaa Wellbeing Services County