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Area of Impact

Homelessness

Indicator

Homelessness – Temporary Relief

Integrated Policy & Action Areas

C3.1

Community Safety & Security

C3.2

Affordable Housing

Reporting Period Data

Period Score
2018 25%
2020 53%
2023 44%

Sustainability End Goal

The ultimate goal is that the City can measurably solve homelessness. This means that homelessness is rare and brief; the number of people experiencing homelessness does not exceed the number of shelter beds; and there are temporary and permanent supportive housing units available on a monthly basis. Due to data limitation, we are monitoring if there are enough shelter beds and temporary supportive housing units for those in need every one to two years.

Metric

Number of year-round shelter beds and temporary supportive housing units
Number of year round shelter beds and temporary supportive housing units needed (= the number of people in need of temporary shelters)

How The Score Is Calculated

If the total number of year-round shelter beds and temporary supportive housing units is 200 and the number of people in need of temporary shelters is estimated to be 500 (which means there need to be 500 shelter beds and housing units to meet the demand), the score is 200/500 = 40%.

Indicator Data

Rationale and Analysis

Why We Measure This

The homelessness situation in Nanaimo has reached crisis levels. It is estimated that 6,000 people living in Nanaimo are at risk of homelessness. Addressing this crisis is a priority for our community. The City is working with partners and government agencies to ensure that every homeless person living in Nanaimo is able to access shelter beds and temporary supportive housing units.

How We Measure It

Ideally, there is a coordinated, timely data collection system. This would track the number of people experiencing homelessness. It would also show the types and number of shelter beds and supportive housing units on a monthly basis. Today, the City uses Point-in-Time (PiT) Count data to estimate the number of people in need of temporary shelters. Local organizations collect PiT data. Organizations use a standard method set by the Federal Government through the Reaching Home PiT Guidelines. This occurs approximately every two years. The PiT counts allow for a baseline of data that provides reliable and valid comparisons and analysis. They provide a snapshot of people experiencing homelessness in a 24-hour period. They do not capture all individuals coming in and out of homelessness throughout the year. The City will continue to review and assess other sources of data as they become available. With the help from shelter and service providers, the City keeps track of the number of year round shelter beds (i.e., the number of permanent year-round shelters for people experiencing homelessness without specific criteria to access) and temporary supportive housing units (i.e., housing units that only exist for a period of time and provide support for people to transition to more permanent housing).
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