A catalyst for collaborative solutions to homelessness and poverty
 
 

Initiatives

Collaborative Management Group

The Challenge

YRAEH has been working on three collaborative HPI-funded projects that focus on Transportation, Capacity Building, and Street Health. In the past, we have had three individual working groups each focusing on these projects as separate topics.  Because of the time commitments for three sets of meetings, it has been difficult to involve management staff directly, which left a gap in the decision-making level.

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Transportation

The Challenge

York Region is large, covering 1,776 km2 between Lake Simcoe and Steeles Avenue. Adequate transportation is essential for access to schools, job skills training, employment resource centres, workplaces, grocery stores, food banks, medical offices, hospitals, social services offices, shelters, and homes.

We are trying to get people out of poverty. And it seems like such a small thing with transportation, but that small thing is so expensive, you know… when you are in Georgina, to go to Newmarket. Newmarket is right in the middle of York region. When you are in Markham or Richmond Hill to go to a court house… honestly, just trying to get custody, or access settled, it’s very difficult. […] They don’t have that money to spend; they are waiting for everything pending. So the money they have to spend on transportation really locks them into system of poverty. Really, it does.

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Street Health

The Challenge

It is well documented that homelessness and poverty can significantly compromise health.  Compared to the general public, people who are homeless or at risk are often more vulnerable to a wide range of physical and mental health problems.  These people also tend to have much greater difficulty accessing adequate, resources, support, and health carei ii.  There is an identified need for greater coordination for improved access to health care support and resources among homeless and at risk people in York Region.

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Capacity Building

The Challenge

The main objective of the Capacity Building project has been to increase the ability of the social support sector to better meet the needs of homeless and at-risk individuals, as well as to prevent and reduce the risk of homelessness through collaborative partnerships. The Capacity Building Working Group narrowed down this objective to focus on housing, outreach, and transitional support (HOTS).  This decision was based on the observation that the nature of housing, outreach, and transitional support encourages staff to support their clients on a very fragmented and individual basis, which can leave staff to feel isolated in their work.

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Newcomers and Immigration

The Challenge

Newcomers to Canada need access to affordable housing to settle successfully, however, increasing numbers of newcomers experience housing affordability problems. This is especially true in large urban areas where newcomers to Canada are concentrating. Newcomers often spend far more of their income on housing than people born in Canada and long waiting lists for social housing often put affordable housing out of reach. This puts newcomers at a high risk of becoming homeless.

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