Barcelona charity assists more than 3,000 homeless people in 2022, up 22%
Arrels Foundation secured stable accommodation for 268 people
fundació arrels
NGO finds 1,195 homeless people living in Barcelona
549 volunteers scour the Catalan capital’s streets with Fundació Arrels
Almost 900 homeless sleeping on Barcelona’s streets, according to the Fundació Arrels
The Fundació Arrels (Arrels Foundation) – a Barcelona-based NGO dedicated to homeless people founded in 1987 – registered 892 persons sleeping on the streets of the Catalan capital on Wednesday night. More than 700 volunteers – in groups of three or four – combed the city divided up into 160 areas from midnight until 2 am. The initiative aimed at counting people sleeping on the streets: inside ATM lobbies, under bridges, on benches of public parks, in front of private entrances or nearby train stations. Barcelona's local Ombudsman service – an institution for the defence of rights and public liberties – also took part, through the presence of some of its staff among the volunteers. According to Maria Assumpció Vilà, Head of Barcelona's Ombudsman office, the reality certified by the Arrels Foundation is "absolutely unacceptable". "An emergency plan must be launched urgently", she stressed, as the Catalan capital cannot accept having 900 people without a place to sleep.
Working for those at the other end of the social scale
The Fundació Arrels (Arrels Foundation) works to assist Barcelona homeless people. Just in the Catalan capital there are more than 2,000 homeless people. The foundation receives 65% of their funds from private citizens and companies.