A new Data Insight from the ADR Wales Housing and Homelessness research theme presents findings from research into the underlying causes of death among people experiencing homelessness in Wales.
Currently, the main source of information on this topic in Wales comes from annual estimates produced by the Office for National Statistics. The purpose of the analysis in this Data Insight was to explore the potential of linking administrative data to provide a supplementary source of information on deaths among people experiencing homelessness. It uses data acquired by ADR Wales on people who have sought assistance from a local authority homeless service.
Causes of death identified among people approaching the homeless service are compared to similar studies in Wales using administrative data. The nature and extent of underlying causes of death were found to differ between studies, particularly deaths due to accidents and suicide.
Findings illustrate how researchers define homelessness, and the sources of data being analysed, can influence evidence generated about this group of people.
This was originally published on the ADR website.