Authored by Lotte Henriksen, Head of Social Affairs, Department of Social Affairs and Employment, City of Aarhus, Denmark
Reducing homelessness requires more than housing policies alone. For nearly two decades, the City of Aarhus in Denmark has worked systematically with Housing First. The key takeaway from this work is clear: stable housing is a necessary foundation—but not sufficient on its own. To create lasting change, support must be close to where people live and gather.
Equally important is an honest recognition that major system changes take time. Aarhus is still in the middle of a broader paradigm shift and continues to learn and adapt along the way. Tackling homelessness requires both long-term commitment and continuous learning.
Housing First as a long-term strategy
Since 2007, Aarhus has applied Housing First as a strategic shift away from traditional staircase models. The core principle is simple: housing is not a reward for progress—it is the starting point for positive change. Citizens experiencing homelessness are therefore offered access to ordinary, scattered housing, followed by tailored, evidence-based support.
In Aarhus, Housing First support is delivered through methods such as Critical Time Intervention (CTI), Intensive Case Management (ICM), and Modified Assertive Community Treatment (MACT). These methods are combined with outreach-based social work and close collaboration with civil society organisations and local businesses. Together, this strengthens social inclusion, housing stability, and the ability to maintain everyday life in one’s own home.
Success requires actors to move closer together
Homelessness cannot be reduced by a municipality acting alone. Success requires actors to move closer together—across public services, civil society, and the private sector. In Aarhus, this insight has led to strong cross-sector collaboration at both national and local levels.
Volunteer organisations, outreach workers, municipal leaders, and private actors all play a role in combating homelessness. Social investments from local and national funds have further enabled the development and scaling of new solutions, with a focus on lasting social value rather than short-term outcomes.
While Aarhus has come a long way and the long-term approach has delivered measurable results, it has also highlighted the complexity of homelessness, particularly in a university city with a large and constantly changing population of young people. This calls for new and more integrated responses.
The Street’s Quarter: a shared responsibility
These learnings have shaped Aarhus’ newest initiative, The Street’s Quarter (Gadens Kvarter), where many of the city’s most marginalised citizens already gather. Here, public services and civil society organisations are co-located to create one coordinated entry point.
Early experience shows that close daily collaboration and shared presence improve coordination and continuity, making support more coherent for citizens. The Street’s Quarter reflects a clear belief that reducing homelessness is a shared responsibility—it is a city-wide task. It also reflects a response to the need for even more integrated, on-the-ground support.
When citizens, civil society, businesses, and public institutions stand together, cities move closer to becoming good places for everyone.
