[homeles_ot-l] Homeward Trust Edmonton & Stats

Thu Nov 27 15:48:58 EST 2008

FYI…Here are some ideas and breaking news from Edmonton.

Lynne Browne

Coordinator, Alliance to End Homelessness (ATEH)
147 Besserer Street, Ottawa, ON K1N 6A7 
HYPERLINK "mailto:lbrowne at ysb.on.ca"lbrowne at ysb.on.ca,  613-241-7913 ext 205

www.endhomelessnessottawa.ca  

Homeward Trust Edmonton –  More at HYPERLINK "http://www.homewardtrust.ca/"http://www.homewardtrust.ca/ 

Funding available to date has been a partnership of all three levels of government, the private and not-for-profit sectors. HYPERLINK "http://canada.gc.ca/" \nThe Government of Canada through the National Homelessness Initiative has contributed over $44 million to the Homeward Trust Edmonton since inception. HYPERLINK "http://www.gov.ab.ca/" \nThe Government of Alberta has provided $1 million per year since Homeward Trust Edmonton was established, and HYPERLINK "http://www.gov.edmonton.ab.ca/" \nThe City of Edmonton has contributed close to $1.2 million dollars towards funding on an annual basis. Homeward Trust Edmonton also must raise a significant amount of money from the philanthropic, corporate, and general public to be able to fund all the activities in the Community Plan.

Homeward Trust Edmonton was launched in June 2008 and stems from the amalgamation of Edmonton Housing Trust Fund (EHTF) and the Edmonton Joint Planning Committee on Housing (EJPCOH). It brings together EHTF’s recognized financial and funding expertise and EJPCOH’s in-depth community planning and research experience. In order to help open doors and build hope, Homeward Trust Edmonton will: 

* Determine the needs and priorities of the community with respect to the continuum of housing, support services, and other needs, including identifying the gaps in housing and developing a Community Plan to reflect community needs. 

* Consolidate and leverage public, not for profit and private sector funding streams for housing initiatives in Edmonton to meet the highest priority needs identified in the Community Plan. 

* Implement a mechanism to allocate funds on a transparent basis to priorities set out in the Community Plan, including funding for emergency, transitional, and long-term supportive housing units, as well as support service needs. 

* Be responsible for monitoring and evaluating all funded projects and demonstrating accountability to the funders. 

* Build and promote community awareness around housing and homelessness issues. 

* Fund formal research projects and gather information regarding housing and homelessness issues and best practices. 

* Conduct consultation activities with a broad range of stakeholder groups to understand community needs, funding priorities, build community capacity, and assess the impact of funded projects. 

* Engage the Aboriginal community to ensure strong representation and a more effective engagement model. 

Homeless Count 2008

HYPERLINK "http://www.homewardtrust.ca/uploads/2008%20Final%20Homeless%20Count%20Report.pdf"http://www.homewardtrust.ca/uploads/2008%20Final%20Homeless%20Count%20Report.pdf 

[November 25, 2008]

Homeless numbers reach 3000 mark 
Edmonton: Homeward Trust Edmonton is today releasing the The Homeless Count, which took place on October 21st, revealed that 3079 people are homeless in Edmonton, this is an 18% increase on the 2006 (2618) figures. 
*      The number of absolute [1] homeless increased by almost 5% or 88 to 1862 and the number of sheltered homeless [2] increased by approximately 44% or 373 to 1217.
*      There was a significant increase in the number of families enumerated in 2008 as compared to 2006 (133 compared to 79). This represents an 87% increase (34) in the number of Absolute Homeless Families. There was also an increase in the number of shelter spaces available for women and children over the same period. 
*      There have been increases in the number of children and seniors over 65 yrs of age living on the street. 
*      The Count recorded a significant decrease in the number of turnaways in 2008.  Only 52 people were turned away as compared to 256 in 2006.  In addition, the number discharged with no home to return to dropped to 72 from the previous count of 113.  Turnaways are not included in the homeless tally.  There were no turnaways from housing providers. 
*      There was an increase in the number of shelter spaces available from 2006, of those available spaces, a large number are reserved for women and children, this is reflected in the increase in the number of homeless families: 50% increase (20) in the number of Sheltered Homeless Families. 
*      The vast majority of the 3079  total homeless figure is single aboriginal men between the ages of 31-54; 

   _____  

 [1]Individuals and families who are absolutely homeless (having no housing alternatives)” and; 

 [2]  Individuals and families who are the sheltered homeless (living in emergency accommodations and expected to be 'on the street' at the end of their stay).”  

News coverage…

Homeless stats demand action

The Edmonton Journal

Published: Wednesday, November 26

There's little comfort and a whole lot of worry in the latest report showing almost a 20-per-cent increase in the number of homeless people in this city since 2006.

More at 

HYPERLINK "http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/opinion/story.html?id=6c9d7c8b-5ffc-4f32-b9b4-fc45fc37d790"http://www.canada.com/edmontonjournal/news/opinion/story.html?id=6c9d7c8b-5ffc-4f32-b9b4-fc45fc37d790 

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