Surrey Homelessness and housing task force April 2012 to January 2013 Coordinator Progress Report

Task Force Purpose and Goals The Surrey Homelessness and Housing Task Force unites the community to reduce and prevent homelessness in Surrey. We bring together a broad range of community and government organizations, that provide services to people who are homeless, or at-risk of becoming homeless. Task Force members meet monthly to share information, knowledge, concerns and solutions. The Task Force works to unite the local community in order to reduce and prevent homelessness. Increased coordination and collaboration among service agencies. Increased public awareness of the causes of, and solutions for, homelessness in Surrey. Enhanced engagement of the business community in strategies addressing homelessness. New programs and/or services involving partnerships among task force members. New sources of revenue for ongoing coordination of the task force

Changing Our logo and our web presence surreyhomelessnesstaskforce.org 

Progress THREE YEAR STRATEGIC PLAN: Identify gaps in services that reduce or prevent homelessness and promote solutions to gaps identified. ( update gaps and needs report) Promote and enable coordination of services for people who are homeless in Surrey. Raise public awareness of causes, issues and solutions related to homelessness in Surrey. Engage the business community in collaborative solutions to homelessness. Increase the capacity of the task force and its members to address homelessness in Surrey. RESEARCH REPORT : SHHTF collaboration with: Vibrant Surrey, The City of Surrey, Fraser Health Authority, The Social Planning and Research Council of BC

HOMELESSNESS ACTION WEEK: Connect Day : The Surrey Urban Mission in Whalley was humming on Wednesday October 10th 2012 as over 300 people partook in a variety of services donated by more than 45 service organizations 60 volunteers from local Surrey high schools and community members who have personally experienced Homelessness. . Held in conjunction with Provincial Homelessness Action Week, the sixth annual "Connect Day" was one of several events put on collaboratively by the Surrey Homelessness and Housing Task Force members. Jonquil Hallgate, executive director of the Surrey Urban Mission, and member of the task force said in the local media that most of the people who came to these events when they started were middle-aged homeless white men wrestling with various addictions, but homelessness and poverty has since embraced a wider demographic."There is a lot of moms and children, lots of working families," she noted. "Lots of seniors and people living with disabilities. People from the aboriginal community, youth." During Wednesday's event, which began with a pancake breakfast, dozens of volunteers - churchgoers, students and businesspeople among them - provided a cornucopia of free services such as flu shots, eye exams, haircuts, pedicures and manicures, bike and wheelchair repair, counselling, veterinarian care and animal grooming, and also handed out clothing, shoes, condoms, diapers, toiletries, dog food and cat food and other stuff.

HOMELESSNESS AWARENES Local events On Tuesday, Servants Anonymous Society and the Realistic Success Recovery Society handed out sandwiches and personal care items to homeless and impoverished people out of the Easy Does It Club in Newton. On Thursday Options held a community outreach barbecue at Hawthorne Square in Cloverdale, and on Friday the Sources Newton Resource Centre will stage a march and provide lunch for the needy at 88th Avenue and King George Boulevard. On Friday it started off with a Breakfast held by the Surrey Board of Trade in which Alice Sundberg presented information on homelessness and poverty in Surrey. Then SOURCES Newton Resource Centre - formally the Newton Advocacy Group Society held their annual Homeless Awareness March at 10:am along King George BLVRD with a community lunch served right after.

GAPS AND NEEDS Gender specific emergency shelter and/or safe house for 20+ youth Emergency shelter for aboriginal people, operated by aboriginal-run organization Emergency shelter beds for seniors Additional emergency shelter for families with children/youth Additional Transitional housing for: Aboriginal families Youth, gender-specific, for both males and females Women fleeing violence (including culturally sensitive for South Asian women) Young women leaving the sex trade Supportive housing for new immigrants, in particular South Asian women leaving transitional housing Affordable rental housing for low income families and singles: approximately 5,500 units needed, based on 10% population growth since 2006 Partnerships between employers and support services Social enterprise to employ marginalized or disadvantaged persons Better coordination of resources and services through collaboration among agencies and major centres. Additional Outreach workers and programming for at-risk and substance users, specifically in the sex trade, and gambling addicts More gender specific youth-oriented alcohol and drug treatment programs

BARRIERS ACCESS TO FUNDING CAPACITY OF ORGANIZATIONS TO SUCCESSFULLY APPLY FOR FUNDING COMPETITION FOR SHRINKING DOLLARS HOMELESS POPULATION ARE FACING INCREASED NEED FOR SUPPORT SERVICES TO GET HOUSING AND KEEP HOUSING

SHHTF Member organizations BC Housing Elizabeth Fry Society First United Church South Surrey- White Rock Fraser Health Authority Greater Vancouver Regional Steering Committee on Homelessness Kla How Eya Aboriginal Services Ministry of Social Development New Hope Community Service Nightshift Ministries Options and Hyland House Pacific Community Resources Society Phoenix Centre Progressive Inter-cultural Services YWCA Realistic Success Recovery Society and Trilogy houses Salvation Army Senior Support Services Society Servants Anonymous Society of Surrey SOURCES Surrey Food Bank Surrey Homelessness and Housing Fund Surrey Substance use services – Fraser Health Surrey Urban Mission