Nouvelles du mois de juillet, 2010

Feature: Support for National Housing Plan Grows

Just prior to President Barack Obama leaving Washington to attend the G8 and G20 Summits in Ontario, he delivered the first plan to end homelessness in the United States. The United States Interagency Council on Homelessness (USICH), including Executive Director Barbara Poppe, unveiled and submitted to the President and Congress the nation’s first comprehensive strategy to prevent and end homelessness. The full report is titled Opening Doors: Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness.

“As the most far-reaching and ambitious plan to end homelessness in our history, this plan will both strengthen existing programs and forge new partnerships,” said USICH Chair and HUD Secretary Shaun Donovan. “Working together with Congress, state and local officials, faith-based and community organizations, and business and philanthropic leaders across our country, we will harness public and private resources to build on the innovations that have been demonstrated at the local level nationwide.”

“No one should be without a safe, stable place to call home and today we unveil a plan that will put our nation on the path toward ending all types of homelessness.”

By combining permanent housing with support services, federal, state, and local efforts have reduced the number of people who are chronically homeless by one-third in the last five years in the US.

“Communities across the country have stressed the need for federal leadership to prevent and end homelessness,” said Poppe. “For the first time, the nation will have goals, strategies, and measureable outcomes that will guide us toward a fiscally prudent government response. Local, state, and federal governments cannot afford to invest in anything but the most evidence-based, cost-effective strategies.”

Although Canada remains without its own national housing plan, pressure is growing across the country. The latest effort to re-engage the federal government is Bill C-304, an act to ensure secure, adequate, accessible and affordable housing for all Canadians. The legislation will go into its third reading in the House of Commons on October 7, 2010. Introduced by NDP MP for Vancouver East, Libby Davies, the Bill has been steadily gaining support across the country, including the development of a Facebook group advocating for its passage.

The Canadian Housing and Renewal Association (CHRA) and the New Brunswick Non Profit Housing Association have also engaged in formal efforts to garner support for the Bill by urging their membership to ask their local MPs to support Bill C-304. The CHRA has also provided delegates from its recent Congress in Québec City with postcards to send to Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Social Development, encouraging her to support the Bill.

Encouragement is also coming from the Senate which recently unanimously adopted a comprehensive, 283-page report that calls on the federal government to implement a national housing plan, poverty reduction strategy and other measures on income, health, education and training. The federal government now has until September 20th, 2010 to respond.

In From the Margins sets out 74 practical recommendations including a number that speak directly to the needs of at-risk and homeless youth. “Senator Art Eggleton and his committee have prepared a vital blueprint for social and economic renewal, and it is gratifying to see that the full Senate has unanimously backed the strategy,” said Michael Shapcott, Director of Affordable Housing and Social Innovation at the Wellesley Institute. “Now, the federal government is required to consider carefully and respond fully.”

In 1976, Canada signed the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, a legally binding treaty which commits federal leaders to making progress on fully realizing the basic human right to adequate housing. In spite of this commitment, Canada is the only G8 nation without a national housing strategy.

Sadly, the more than $1 billion spent on security for the recent Summit in Toronto could have built thousands of units of affordable housing across Canada.

Community Spotlight: Victoria Y Assists Youth At Risk

Victoria, BC

In this fifth year of Eva's Initiatives Award for Innovation, three winners were recognized for their outstanding work with homeless youth. These incredible winners have already been profiled in Housing Again. Choosing just three winners was tough as all the nominees do amazing work with youth. One of this year’s runners up is the Youth Outreach Services at the YMCA-YWCA of Victoria (British Columbia) for their work with at-risk youth.

The Victoria ‘Y’ is a charitable, community-based association of volunteers and staff working together to provide quality community leadership, programs, services and education to individuals and families. Janet Champion, Manager of Youth Outreach Services states that for the past 40 years they have worked with at-risk youth by providing shelter, transitional housing, supported independent housing, food, clothing, and access to health services and counselling. All services are delivered through a client- centered, harm reduction model.

The Outreach Services have helped young people like Angela, 26, who was already five months pregnant when she found out that she was expecting. She was couch surfing, staying in shelters, and sleeping outside. Immersed in both the street scene and her addictions, she had become pregnant while working as an escort.

Angela was set up with a “First Reach” counsellor at the Y who had to provide an immediate response to Angela’s situation. She was quickly moved into the Y’s emergency housing so that she could receive adequate prenatal care and be connected to drug and alcohol counselling.

First Reach is the only service that specifically works with pregnant youth who are experiencing homelessness in Victoria.

By the time she was seven months pregnant, Angela had significantly reduced her substance use and her counsellor had helped her obtain a safe place to live. At term, Angela gave birth to a healthy baby boy and was connected to the Y’s Infant Development Program.

Angela and her baby remain connected with First Reach. A focus has been placed on recovery, parenting skills and long-term housing options. Angela’s son is healthy and thriving and his mother shows signs of becoming a strong leader in her family. Most importantly Angela now identifies with her strengths and remains open to asking for help whenever she needs support.

News Briefs: Yarmouth Youth Get New Home
Yarmouth Youth Get New Home

Yarmouth, NS

Federal support to the Tri-County Women’s Centre will allow a total of 45 homeless or at-risk youth in the Yarmouth area in Nova Scotia to benefit from a new transitional housing and emergency shelter facility. The Tri-County Women’s Centre will receive over $346,000 through the Government of Canada’s Homelessness Partnering Strategy to purchase a residential home and turn it into a new transitional housing and emergency shelter facility.

Ontario Renters Spending Half of Income on Housing

A new report, Where's Home? 2010 found that over 260,000 Ontario households are spending more than half of their income on housing. The report, co-authored by ONPHA and CHF Canada Ontario Region, studied affordable rental housing across 22 communities in Ontario and highlighted the urgent need for increased investment in Ontario's affordable housing sector.

Waterloo Report Finds Role for Everyone in Ending Homelessness

Waterloo, ON

Everyone has a role to play in ending homelessness and promoting housing stability in Waterloo Region – all levels of government, non-profit groups, the private sector and community members, a new report says. The report card and its workbook have been created by the Homelessness and Housing Umbrella Group to bring awareness to the issues of homelessness and housing in Waterloo Region.