The Impact of the Global Economic Crisis on Homelessness in Spain. the Experience of Madrid

With more than three million inhabitants, Madrid is one of the largest European cities. Like in other major industrialized cities, Madrid has a significant number of homeless people. There are an estimated 2,000 homeless people in Madrid, among them roofless people without a shelter of any kind (homeless people in the strict sense of the ETHOS classification), and those people living in shelters specifically aimed at this population. This contribution analyzes the recent evolution of homelessness in the city of Madrid, paying particular attention to the impact of the global economic crisis since 2008. Data are drawn from the Survey Night of the Homeless in the City of Madrid between 2006 and 2012. In addition, the analysis presents the evolution of the profiles of the homeless people from before the crisis until now. This paper discusses the emerging trends regarding homelessness on the streets of Madrid in recent years and whether there has been a real change in the magnitude and the modes of homelessness. Given the persistance of the economic crisis in Spain, it can be expected that homelessness will remain an urgent social issue to be dealt with by the city of Madrid.