Homelessness System of Care

Throughout 2022, the City of Brantford engaged with the Brantford-Brant Homelessness System of Care network and individuals accessing services to define how we want our services to be experienced by our community as a whole. The hope is that this vision and set of values will support cohesion amongst community partners, and align activities for continued growth and improvement.   

Our Vision

“We envision a community where everyone has a safe place to call home and accessible supports that meet their everyday needs. Together, we achieve this by providing flexible services that respect individual choice, dignity, and diversity.”

Our Values

1. Action-Focused – We are committed to providing time-sensitive and compassionate solutions that support individuals to achieve their goals.
2. Barrier-Free – We aim to deliver accessible services, foster inclusivity, and streamline processes in order to achieve equitable access.
3. Collaborative – We do our best when we work together.
4. Person-Centered – We believe that individuals receiving services are experts of their own experience, and that services should be responsive to their unique needs and strengths. 
5. Respectful& – We strive to foster positive relationships where everyone feels that their individual choices, abilities, and contributions are respected. 
6. Empowering – We encourage individuals to use their voices for self-advocacy by providing clear and consistent resources to help them do so. 
7. Accountable – We build trust amongst our organizations and those that we support when we are genuine, communicative, and transparent with our actions. 
8. Compassionate – We create a community that cares by advocating for others, expressing gratitude, and listening to each other’s stories without judgement.

We continue to engage our community in our Vision and Values, and will apply updates on an annual basis (if required).

Coordinated Access aims to bring consistency to processes that deliver services for those experiencing homelessness or at risk of experiencing homelessness. Core components of Coordinated Access include a Housing-First approach, real-time data about the supply of and demand for housing resources; and a streamlined service delivery approach with clear access points to service,  standardized workflow for triage and assessment; prioritization; and vacancy matching and referral. (Reaching Home Definition)

For more information on Coordinated Access, please visit Built For Zero Canada.

A By-Name List (BNL) is a real-time list of all known people experiencing homelessness in Brantford-Brant.  It includes a robust set of data points that support coordinated access and prioritization at a household level and an understanding of homeless inflow and outflow at a system level.  This real-time actionable data supports triage to services, system performance evaluation and advocacy (for the policies and resources necessary to end homelessness).

 

For more information on By-Name Lists, please visit Built For Zero Canada.

The Homeless Individuals and Families Information System (HIFIS) is a comprehensive data collection and case management system designed to better understand what is happening in our community and to work collaboratively.

First, an individual that is experiencing or at-risk of homelessness engages with an Entry Point. An Entry Point can be any service provider within the BHSC – from an emergency shelter, to the Housing Resource Centre – and is defined as the location where the individual has made their first contact.

 

Reach out to our local Housing Resource Centre by calling 1-888-621-0034, emailing housing@soarcs.ca, or visiting 73 Murray Street. To learn more about their services, you can also visit their website at https://www.soarcs.ca/housing/programs/housing-resource-centre

Staff complete “Entry Point Management” activities with the individual. This includes the completion of consents, creating or updating individual information on HIFIS, and the provision of diversion services. The goal of entry point management and diversion is to learn about an individual’s specific housing situation, and to determine if safe alternatives to housing are available.

If possible, the individual is diverted away from emergency shelter accommodations, and are provided with resources or supports that may help them to access a suitable housing option. If an individual is unable to be diverted, that is when they are approved for admission within emergency shelter accommodations.

After 7 cumulative days of service, the individual participates case planning. Case Planning includes the completion of an assessment and triaging individuals to appropriate case planning supports. This information contributes to our By-Name List (or BNL). A BNL is a list of all individuals currently experiencing homelessness within our community.

Individuals are then prioritized on the BNL based on a variety of locally defined factors. Prioritization factors were determined through a series of jurisdictional scans, and further refined by agencies within the Brantford-Brant Homelessness System of Care.

These factors include length of time experiencing homelessness, sleeping location, presence of mental health / physical health / and substance use issues, age, Indigenous identity, DV/Human Trafficking/Abuse, families/households, and SPDAT assessment score.

These factors are reviewed on an annual basis to ensure relevance is maintained.

If a suitable housing opportunity is identified for an individual on the BNL, the individual is referred to the permanent housing option – if the individual approves the match.

After that, staff at the Housing Resource Centre continue to provide ongoing housing supports to help make a new housing situation a successful and permanent one.

The City of Brantford’s Housing and Homelessness department, in consultation with the Coordinated Access Advisory Committee (CAAC), aim to develop clear and consistent policies and protocols for the delivery of the Coordinated Access System for emergency shelters, affordable housing, and supportive housing.

Membership:

The committee is comprised of:

• City of Brantford
• Brantford Native Housing;
• Canadian Mental Health Association
• Grand River Community Health Centre;
• Kayorie Manor;
• Nova Vita;
• Grand River Estates Retirement Home;
• Rosewood House;
• Salvation Army Brantford Booth Centre;
• SOAR Community Services

If you are interested in obtaining more information regarding the committee, or are interested in participating, please contact housingstablity@brantford.ca.

The Reaching Home Community Advisory Board (CAB) is a body of community representatives established by the City of Brantford. CAB monitors the allocation of funding for homelessness-related initiatives, identifies service needs and gaps, raise social awareness regarding the causes of homelessness, and advocate for vulnerable members in our community. Learn more at the Reaching Home Community Advisory Board webpage.