Street Outreach Program connects unsheltered residents with critical supports

Whitby, Ontario – As homelessness continues to rise across Canada, including within Durham Region, the Region of Durham’s Street Outreach Program is supporting unsheltered residents on their path to securing permanent housing.

According to data from the Region’s By-Name List, 604 individuals are experiencing homelessness as of April 2024. To help reduce this number, the Region of Durham’s Street Outreach Program is meeting directly with unsheltered residents to connect them with supports and services that lead to housing.

The Street Outreach Program assists with service navigation, identification, harm reduction supports, housing readiness, financial literacy and securing a source of income.

The Street Outreach Program is dedicated to community wellness, including clean-up of street hazards, and building strong relationships with businesses, residents and human service providers.

The Street Outreach Program is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to problem solve, mitigate issues, and respond to service needs and gaps.

Since the program launched in January 2024, the team met with clients across Durham Region more than 3,000 times. Interactions include wellness checks; providing water and food; referrals to shelters; transportation; encampment relocation supports; harm reduction services; housing plan supports (if not working with an agency); and more.

For help accessing homelessness supports, email HomelessHelp@durham.ca; or call 905-668-4113 (toll-free at 1-800-372-1102) extension 5510, or 311 extension 5510.

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“The Region of Durham’s Street Outreach Program meets people where they are at, working to build trust and helping to connect them with vital supports and services. Team members not only connect people with the services they need, but they also offer personal support during challenging times; they’ll stay during an Emergency Room visit to clarify processes and they’ll be there for a diagnosis, so the individual doesn’t go through it alone. The Region strives to ensure that no one gets left behind or falls through the cracks, and the Street Outreach Program is one of many ways the Region is working to help all residents lead healthy and safe lives.”

-  Stella Danos-Papaconstantinou, Commissioner of Social Services, Region of Durham.

Quick facts:

• The Region of Durham is responsible for the planning and co-ordination of the Homelessness Support System across local municipalities.
• The Region of Durham takes a housing-first approach, which means all supports, services and strategies lead to housing to help people end their homelessness while meeting their basic needs.
• Individuals experiencing homelessness are added to a By-Name List when they provide consent to receiving supports. The By-Name List is a list of people experiencing homelessness, who provide consent to receiving supports.

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For media inquiries, please contact Corporate Communications.