10 Years to End Homelessness

Published October 03, 2008 @ 07:37PM PT

(From www.monarchhousing.org)

In 2000, the National Alliance to End Homelessness issued a report telling the nation to put its collective foot down; homelessness is an unacceptable problem, the report said, and research proves it is an issue that can be solved. Eight years since the release of A Plan Not a Dream, over 300 communities across the country have implemented Ten Year Plans to End Homelessness locally.

The NAEH’s recommendations for Ten Year Plans to End Homelessness are based on research and best practices from around the country. The idea is to end homelessness rather than continue managing it through shelters and other ad hoc approaches.

Sound ambitious? Perhaps. But keep in mind that widespread urban homelessness is a relatively new phenomenon. Prior to the 1980s, there weren’t nearly as many homeless people in America as there are today. And now, despite an infrastructure (upwards of two billion dollars) designed to deal with the problem, homelessness persists.

“When we recognize a problem in our cities, we make a plan to address it,” said Philip Mangano, the Director of the U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness. This is exactly what hundreds of communities across the nation are doing. Social service providers, the faith community, government officials, and private sector representatives are coming together to take a hard look at how they might end homelessness for good in their communities.

Since plans are created at the grassroots level, they vary greatly in scope and definition. Most, however, contain the same basic components:

Collection of research and data to improve system-wide effectiveness;
Homelessness prevention initiatives – such as hospital, mental institution, and prison discharge planning protocols to prevent homelessness;
Rapid re-housing and Housing First to improve cost efficiency and ensure long-term stability;
Improvement of infrastructure and measures to close the widening socioeconomic gap – such as creation of affordable housing, livable incomes, and providing services for those at the lowest end of the economic spectrum. (Source: NAEH & ICH)

The National Alliance to End Homelessness also lays out a comprehensive, in-depth guide to creating an effective Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness. In short, here’s how they define the most effective plans:

Strategies with the most momentum are those built with support and input from a broad range of partners― public, private, and nonprofit. They are based on independent research and effective practices both within and beyond their jurisdictions. They have the endorsement of top city officials and include the commitments of all relevant resources and partners. Through such coordination and planning, cities are changing homelessness from being a permanent fixture embedded in the current economic and social climate to a finite and solvable problem that can be ended in ten years. Click here to read more…

Cities implementing Ten Year Plans to End Homelessness are seeing positive results. King County, Washington, for example, successfully moved 2,500 formerly chronically homeless individuals off the streets and out of shelter and into permanent, supported housing.

Find out if your community has a Ten Year Plan to End Homelessness. If there is a plan, get involved. Make sure the most important elements are being implemented. If your community does not have a Ten Year Plan, find out why. Contact your local elected representatives and service providers. Ask questions. Read up on the best way to go about creating a Ten Year Plan. Learn from other communities.

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Comments (7)

every state in this country closed the (mental hospitals)and let the socially handicapped persons loose on the public, rope them back in to a structured setting and that will take care of 90 % of the homeless. also anyone who is on ssi and taking social drugs as in the bi-polar or rittalin types and do not take them on their own as prescribed.too many of these people end up in trouble with the laws of society because they don't take their drugs regularly and aren't capable to on their own.

Posted by michael talbot on 11/06/2008 @ 09:32PM PT
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Far from the watchful eye of compassionate people, the 10-year-plans HUD sold to communities across the land, contained the definition of homelessness that ignores countless homeless families and teens who have lost housing due to hardship. Often their communities lack shelter options. So if they're not sheltered HUD doesn't count them.

And now they are urging communities to "recalibrate" their plans. Next they'll toss in a smoke grenade and scoot out the door.

The floodgate overflows. Children and teens, with and without parents, lack a secure place to live. And HUD has managed to not even begin to count them. Uh oh...

Posted by Diane Nilan on 12/01/2008 @ 01:23PM PT
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It is huge shame of our country. I heard on the radio descussion if homless children should go in separate schools or they should stude together with other children. IT SHOULD BE NO HOMLESS CHILDREN WHAT SO EVER!!!

Posted by Anna Julnes on 01/09/2009 @ 11:18PM PT
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This world is a very sorry place to live now and getting worse. Cause there are peoples that went to the service and they are living out in the street like animals. they go ask for help and they just tell them to go some place else

Posted by Guadalupe Arguelles on 01/23/2009 @ 09:25AM PT
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The homeless industry spends billions and billions on homeless people going through substance abuse nonsense & mental group therapy insanity, and when the homeless are through their programs.....STILL HOMELESS and no chance of getting any housing!

Posted by August Jones on 02/14/2009 @ 07:00AM PT
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A nation's true greatness is measured by how well it takes care of its people, not by how much money and opinion ratings it's leaders can garner from some statistic that was made up to make them feel good about themselves.

Posted by Erik Nash on 04/04/2009 @ 09:54AM PT
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The Section 8 Housing Voucher Program is the answer, it works. It is already set up. It just needs funding. As it stands now it takes years to get into Section 8 Housing and most communities have no more money and can't even open a waiting list but this is the answer. It's already set up. It's based on income. It just needs to be funded. Work to open Section 8 Housing again. Rosalyn

Posted by Rosalyn Goseer on 09/18/2009 @ 09:24PM PT
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Author

Shannon has worked in homeless shelters and service organizations in San Francisco, the Triangle region of North Carolina, and currently in the greater Boston area. She is a graduate student studying housing and urban policy at Tufts University.