Documenting Durham’s homeless on a larger scale
Volunteers recently took to the streets of Durham to try and get a better handle on the amount of citizens facing homelessness.
By Dave Flaherty/The Oshawa Express
Durham Region and its partners are ramping up efforts to document and assist the region’s homeless population.
The second-annual Point-In-Time (PiT) count took place on April 16.
It is a collaborative effort between the region, Durham United Way, Durham Mental Health Services and Community Development Council Durham.
Volunteers ventured out into communities to speak with residents who are experiencing homelessness.
Surveys are conducted to measure factors such as gender, age, race, and family status.
The count also serves as a way to gauge the level of homelessness residents are facing and possible reasons for their situation.
The first PiT count took place in February 2017.
Two-hundred-seventy one unique individuals and 34 families representing 98 unique individuals were identified as experiencing sheltered or unsheltered homelessness.
Those considered as unsheltered individuals generally live in public or private spaces without contract or consent, or locations not suitable for permanent human habitation, while sheltered individuals reside in emergency homeless shelters or women’s shelters.
Of the 271 individuals, 214 identified as non-dependents such as singles, partners, family heads or other adults, while 57 were dependents or children.
The average age of these children was 7.8 years, with 60 per cent being between the age of infant to eight years old.
According to the 2017 count, about 74 per cent of Durham’s unsheltered homeless are located in Oshawa.
The partnering groups also hosted a Registry Week to expand on the PiT count. Events were hosted across the region, welcoming those who’d like to share their stories.
Diana Chappell, program leader for housing and homelessness initiatives for the region, wants to capture the ‘episodically homeless’ demographic better.
Unfortunately, she believes this population is largely unaccounted for in the PiT count.
This is because they are usually ‘couch surfing’ or have other temporary housing.
Local service agencies estimate this group accounts for the majority of Durham’s homeless population.
The Registry Week events allowed the region and its collaborators to capture more detailed information.
Using the collected data, the region will create a detailed registry of Durham’s homeless population, which specifically identifies the individuals needs of those within the list.
Chappell says this will be crucial to developing future programs.
The list will be maintained and updated on a regular basis, and used by both Durham Region and a number of local agencies.