Hoarders ‘need mental health support, not removal’

Clearing hoarders is a “total waste of public money” because they fill rooms so fast, an expert has warned as Scotland launches a more compassionate approach to forced hoarders.

Local authorities spend hundreds of thousands of pounds a year cleaning up clutter, according to Linda Fay, who specializes in chronic disorganization and hoarding.

He has seen five cases of suicidal people after a jury has committed suicide, as well as people who have committed suicide after their possessions have been confiscated.

He has now set up a task force – including police, fire services and local authorities – to create a more thoughtful response to hoarding.

He said, hoarders are usually smart, fly a lot, creative and wealthy people – realizing that she helped a retired doctor and a woman with a cupboard full of unopened boxes from Jenners, the old Edinburgh department store.

“With hoarding I think we are today where we were with autism maybe ten years ago,” he said. “Now we have guidelines and we have a way of help and support for autism. I think we need to find something similar on the hoarding because it takes time and resources. We need to share the resources that we have them and use them in a better way.”

Fay became interested in fundraising more than a decade ago when she started a scrapping business and discovered that instead of helping people neatly she was treating mental illnesses.

He trained in America and founded Life-Pod, a public interest company called upon by councils across central Scotland to support the wealthy in their area.

One of those he helped was Ron Smith, who had filled his house in Edinburgh with a large and valuable collection of model aircraft equipment. Fay said his council estate was full, he had nowhere to sleep in the kitchen and it took him forty-five minutes to remove his bed so he could sleep at night. Smith was keen to recycle, he said, the sachets from his soup packets were saved to serve as notepads and envelopes.

Fay said the city council gave Smith two weeks to vacate his house, suggesting that he select the things he wants to keep because the rest will be thrown away.

He said his response was to plan to kill himself – taking his letter to the council office where he suddenly saw a social worker who knew about Fay. He said: “When he plans to kill himself, that is not an isolated incident. People died due to suicide because of the shelter. ”

After his intervention, Fay said, the council canceled the permit and he was able to get back the kitchen area and half of the other two rooms. He noticed, as with the collection of others, the things collected did not mean that the house smells bad or is not clean.

Smith has since passed away and his collection, some of which was saved, is being returned with other fans.

Fay emphasized that there are reasons why someone behaves so strangely and resists much explanation.

“Things have a purpose,” Fay said. “Their things convey a sense of comfort, safety, security and a sense of identity. So people feel, and I’ve heard people say this to me over and over, that they feel like their property is part of them. And when they are asked to release them, they feel like they are being asked to lose a limb.”

They can also claim that human-like virtues are caused by things, he said. Past trauma such as being neglected at a young age can leave people strongly attached to possessions and unable to discard them without strong feelings of guilt.

“Usually, the approach from the community organizations is to remove people’s homes which, along with the great trauma, is dangerous for those affected and is a complete waste of public money,” said Fay. “With a 100% recurrence rate, it’s not an efficient or effective procedure.”

Iriss, a Glasgow-based charity, is spearheading Scotland’s new hoarding group, which has already been bought by authorities in Stirling, Lanarkshire and Glasgow.

Kerry Musselbrook, program leader, said: “Dealing with the health and safety issues surrounding fundraising behavior is complex and is not a job that can be done by one person or one organisation. .We will continue to bring more partners into the group and our ambition is to create a pan-Scotland, fundraising approach.

“People are desperate for national guidelines and practice tools that are based on evidence and experience to manage risks, and better serve people who collect and their families, communities and workers.”