Last year, United Way convened a group of local leaders, many of whom are from the business sector, to drive forward the Plan to End Homelessness in Saskatoon. The momentum has continued ever since.

Funds have been raised, conversations with both municipal and provincial governments have occurred, and now Saskatoon’s first-ever Housing First Program has been launched and the first individuals are being placed into homes.

Housing First, one piece of the Plan to End Homelessness, puts the priority on a rapid and direct move from homelessness to housing, instead of requiring people to graduate through a series of steps before getting into permanent housing. In a Housing First based community plan, the delivery of high quality housing support-services tailored to the needs and wishes of clients is a critical success factor. United Way has contracted Saskatoon Crisis Intervention Centre to deliver Saskatoon’s Housing First program, including these wrap-around supports.

The Housing First program aims to curb homelessness in Saskatoon.

In a recent study by the Mental Health Commission of Canada in five major cities, Housing First programs demonstrated excellent success rates and cost savings. In the last six months of the study 62% of Housing First participants were housed all of the time, compared to 31% who received treatment as usual. The study also revealed that every $10 invested in Housing First services resulted in average savings of $21.72.

To date, United Way has committed to making an investment of over $900,000 to the Plan to End Homelessness. This includes a grant from the City of Saskatoon and donations to United Way that are specifically invested into the Plan to End Homelessness. This investment will continue the Housing First program, and move forward other recommendations that came out of the 2013 Community Charrette. Mobilization teams are coming together to develop strategies in the areas of system transformation, homelessness prevention, enhancing housing and support programming, increasing housing options, and data collection.

The program can work for many different people, but the program is currently focused on the most marginalized in our community – those who have struggled with chronic homelessness for many years. The range in experienced homelessness with the initial participants is between 17 years and two years, with an average of approximately 6 years, with intermittent housing failures.