Research Matters Blog

Canadian Observatory on Homelessness/Homeless Hub: York University
February 12, 2016
Tags: shelters
Categories: Ask the Hub

 This question came from Jo A. via our latest website survey: “I would like more information on out of the cold sheltering. How many are there, how are they funded, and how long do they stay open for? What gaps do they fill in the shelter system? Why do they exist? Why do some choose this type of sheltering instead of regular hostel settings?”

Out of the Cold (OOTC) shelters exist in many different forms throughout Canada, but are typically only available throughout the coldest months of the winter. They are funded either through municipal program funding, donations, or a combination. OOTC shelters, especially when backed by non-profit or faith-based organizations, are often volunteer run and operate with minimal resources.  

The aim of OOTC shelters is to provide shelter for people experiencing homelessness who cannot stay elsewhere either because they can’t or would rather not. The reasons why someone wouldn’t want to be housed (either independently or in shelters) are varied and complicated, but might include:

  • They have difficulty with shelters that may have availability due to restrictions, overcrowding, the staff, other people there, etc.
  • They have had a bad experience in the housing or shelter
  • They don’t want to abandon pets or property not allowed into the housing or shelter
  • They are not welcome in the housing or shelter (for example, people who use drugs are not always welcome in certain shelters unless they can prove sobriety and/or abstinence)

The shelter system, especially in large urban areas, is notoriously over-capacity and getting a bed can be a challenge. The referral process is often complicated, relying on people to either return in a few hours or find a phone to be contacted – which isn’t always possible. Other times, people get referred to other shelters that are far away or sites of previous bad experiences. These issues can be worse in the harsh weather of winter, when those people who might normally stay elsewhere are forced to look for shelter beds and result in a drastic increase of an already-constant demand.

OOTC shelters are a crucial service in providing additional warmth and shelter space during cold months; and are especially helpful for vulnerable people who are very marginalized, have a long history of living in poverty and/or in homelessness, and who have mental health or substance use issues.

Blanket on a benchOOTC shelters and the existing systems

While many gains have been seen this year in the shelter system (such as the opening of Toronto’s first LGBTQ shelter, Sprott House), other areas have not seen the same growth. Scarborough, just outside of Toronto, lost its only youth shelter in October, and many OOTC programs have been reduced. One Halifax shelter cut its number of beds almost in half and switched to a referral-based system in December, while Toronto City Council has not included any funding for OOTC programs in early discussions of the new city budget. This has prompted a petition to city council, as well the planning of a march on City Hall by the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty.

Toronto is a good city to explore OOTC shelters because rates of homelessness are high and the city boosted municipal funding for them after three people experiencing homelessness died last January in extreme cold. As a result, there are three 24-hour drop-in centres open between January 1 and February 29th. The importance of having two of these sites opened is huge, highlighted by Joe Cressy in his NOW article: “With an average of 290 individuals using both sites each night in the first seven days of January, a relatively mild winter, we can see that the program is needed.”

There are also other programs, like University Settlement, that operate on a reduced schedule (such as Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights). According to the city’s 2014 Cold Weather Plan, there are 16 sites throughout the city that normally operate one night per week between November and April. The effectiveness of such an approach varies: some people find navigating different sites and hours very confusing, and others say that being open one night a week simply isn't enough. In either scenario, these centres provide essential warmth, food and socialization for people who may not otherwise seek such services.

While it’s great that these centres are available, what happens when OOTC programs end? Women seeking shelter have two 24-hour drop-ins operate that operate year-round (Fred Victor and Sistering), but everyone else has to look to the already overburdened other shelters once winter is over. This can especially be a problem in rural and northern communities, where shelters are few or non-existent and may be a lack of connected, funded community resources. In the words of someone I met doing street outreach last week: “What do we do after February 29th?”

People need more long-term support

Shelters are an emergency service, offering beds when people really need them, but they are expensive to operate, unstable, and do not alleviate the structural issues that help cause homelessness in the first place. These become particularly evident as OOTC programs come to a close. Another reader, Linda Z. touched on this issue when she asked us: “Why is money being spent on so-called "temporary shelters" as opposed to something more stable and long term? Most of these "winter or weather" shelters will be closed come springtime, what happens then?”

It is possible that many people will return to having nowhere to stay. Others may get connected to housing and other support services during their stay at an OOTC shelter. It is important to recognize that people need more than temporary shelter to leave a state of homelessness. The writers of Hearing the Voices: Learnings from Kitchener-Waterloo Out of the Cold point out that: “Finding and maintaining housing stability is about more than finding and maintaining housing, it requires a combination of adequate housing, income, and support. From this study, people experiencing homelessness are struggling with each of these areas of housing stability.” Many participants they spoke to had not found housing that was good quality, within their price range, and/or had access to supports they need to stay housed. Emergency shelters, especially OOTC ones, are usually accessed as a last but necessary resort; and people may return to the same circumstances.

The unfortunate reality is that in tight housing markets where little is affordable, and as income gaps continue to widen, we are still in desperate need of emergency shelters. While it is crucial to develop more preventative approaches, we also need to improve the shelter systems to more effectively help people right now – a precarious balance in a time of reduced funding at almost every level. As argued in the 2014 State of the Homelessness in Canada report, this will require a massive financial and political commitment from all levels of government.


Photo credit: Daniel Lobo via Flickr

York University; Canadian Observatory on Homelessness/Homeless Hub
February 10, 2016

This week’s infographic, produced by the Jim Casey Youth Opportunity Initiative, looks at what happens when youth age out of foster care at 18 and find themselves without proper supports. The organization’s mission is to “ensure that young people make successful transitions from foster care to adulthood”. The infographic comes from their Success Beyond 18 Campaign, which aims to spread awareness about the need to provide youth living in foster care with increased opportunities to succeed.

The infographic states that after youth living in foster care turn 18, in many US states they “age out” and are no longer part of the foster care system. Many of these youth find themselves in a precarious living situation, in the absence of supports, resources and guidance. Each of the aforementioned factors can play a critical role in ensuring youth a pathway to becoming a successful adult. Being cut off from their support network heightens the risk of experiencing loneliness, engaging in criminal activities and even experiencing homelessness.

For every young person who ages out of care in the United States, failure to bridge gaps in the social safety net results in high long-term costs for these youth and their communities. These social costs amount to $300,000 per youth who ages out of care. A closer look at the research methodology employed by the Jim Casey Youth Opportunity Initiative in reaching this figure reveals that the real cost per youth is likely significantly higher. At every point in the estimate where a choice had to be made between different cost figures, researchers “chose the lesser cost option, the bottom of the range, the conservative assumption and the simplest way to calculate.” Evidently, there are significant cost-savings to implementing changes to existing supports that can help these youth make a successful transition into adulthood.

Aging out of Care and Homelessness: The Canadian Context

While this infographic focuses on the youth aging out of care in the United States, Canada’s child protection system is also in need of reform. Although child protection, legislation and programming varies by province in Canada a lot of the times youth “age out” before they are ready for a complete transition to adult life.

Research demonstrates a significant relationship between adult homelessness and a history of living in foster care. A Raising the Roof study with street-involved youth found that 43% of survey respondents had also been in foster care. Recently, researchers at Simon Fraser University conducted a study using data from the At Home/Chez Soi project in Vancouver, British Columbia involving homeless adults with mental illness. Analysis of this data revealed that foster care placement was an independent predictor of failing to obtain a high school diploma, discontinuous work history and daily drug use.

Looking at a cost-benefit analysis by the Provincial Advocate for Children and Youth, research finds that effective reforms, which include extending support to the age of 25, would cost $26 million but save over $132 million on welfare and jail costs over 40 years.

When we consider the difficulties that youth aging out of foster care face, the need for continued support becomes all too clear. Failing to make the necessary supports and services accessible for these youth results in avoidable expenses for their communities and more importantly, demonstrates a lack of commitment on Canada’s part to their health and well-being.  

Aging out of foster care in America infographic

McGill University
February 09, 2016






Canadian Observatory on Homelessness/Homeless Hub: York University
February 05, 2016
Tags: seniors
Categories: Ask the Hub




Older adults, poverty and homelessness






Preferred housing for seniors and older adults





Seniors accommodation type in BC





  • Age-segregated programming and housing







York University; Canadian Observatory on Homelessness/Homeless Hub
February 03, 2016










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