EXERCISE 1: SYSTEM VISIONING
TOPIC AREA
GROUP SENTENCE(S)
HOW WILL WE KNOW…
HEARTH Act/Federal
Efforts
We will identify gaps in resources in order to
intervene with those at-risk of homelessness and
remove barriers for people experiencing
homelessness to entering permanent housing
within 30 days and sustaining housing.
 Agencies communicate about length
of stay
 Agencies are able to track
movement between agencies
 Average length of stay is 30 days
Community
Challenges
We will have a systematic infrastructure to drive
change to have sufficient permanent supportive
housing to meet the need in the community by
increasing funding and being strategic with current
resources.
 No waiting list for permanent
supportive housing
 Decrease in length of stay in
homelessness
Community
Partnerships
Our vision is to establish a network of community
partners working together to identify and
coordinate resources that address all of the issues
related to homelessness. We would like clarity on
what each partner does and what services they
provide.
 Have a centralized process? for
accessing resources for people to be
linked up with network of
community partners
 Database of community resources
 Specific identification of community
partners (related to the database)
 Increased relationship with
workforce development
Provider
Collaboration
We want to establish open systemic
communication among homeless service providers
and other stakeholders in a regular forum aimed at
solution-oriented discussion around challenging
cases and gaps in services so as to promote true
provider collaboration.
Governance
Governance is a system and a process to ensure
joint vision of the community success (this is not a
“big brother” approach). Governance is increasing
community resources available to achieve agreedupon community goals through defined standards,
clear roles and responsibilities, and monitoring
performance.
 We recognize homelessness as a
community problem and truly
support one other
 Less homeless recidivism, including
among the toughest to serve (exiting
permanent supportive housing,
police-assisted)
 Fewer crowds at drop-in centers
 Fewer shelter entries
 Shorter shelter stays
 Less burden on police/jails/hospitals
Continually having progress toward:
 The HEARTH outcomes
 Integrity in standardization in
community data
 Increased provider participation in
data collection
 Clear measurements and
accountability of service providers
 Having an inclusive governance
group and process
 Measure continuous improvement
Front End Resources
Our vision is to create a well-known,
comprehensive, shared portal that matches people
instantaneously with appropriate agencies through
a single intake process that responds to inquiries
wherever the connection occurs and meets those
needs.
 Identifying gaps in capacity
 Sufficient supply will be quantified
and created for all types of
homelessness needs
 Funding and programming can then
be flexible to meet changing needs
Interim Housing
Resources
The system would meet the needs of all citizens in
a manner that is well-coordinated, personcentered, and resource-driven and would connect
people to appropriate resources that would target
their specific needs.
 Adequate space and people moving
through systems efficiently
 Improvements in average length of
stay (reductions)
Permanent Housing
We envision a community that provides ample
permanent housing solutions, including permanent
supportive housing and rapid re-housing options
that meet all levels of need for all people
experiencing homelessness. We envision a system
that is readily accessible and provides appropriate
supports to ensure high-level housing retention.
 Reduction in length of homelessness
 Reduction in number experiencing
homelessness
 Increase in housing retention
Data
The ideal data system would provide actionable
information that’s available, shared, and trusted by
the community. We want available resources to
match the need/reactionary to a planned-out
system.
A system that:
 Matches needs to resources across
multiple populations
 Identifies gaps and informs advocacy
 Measures effectiveness and
outcomes
 Enables collaboration across
continuum of services
 Is secure and real-time
 Incorporates existing data sets
 Enforces standards and definitions
Additional Content Added by the Group:
Data: Need a data system that provides information on community need and can help the community set
priorities/create prioritizations standards.
Permanent Housing: We need a favorable housing policy from the City, which we may be able to get by
educating officials. We need to make homelessness and housing a priority for elected officials. How can do we
this? Through increased advocacy, sharing community/provider successes, and provider collaboration.
Front End Resources: We should account for the need to occasionally re-assess people; assessment is a
process.
Governance: Governance has a role to play in helping to get favorable housing policies out of the city. They
also have a role in helping to increase community awareness. They should lead some conversations around how
safety, privacy, confidentiality, and informed consent should all be handled within the context of the system.
Governance should also be ensuring that the system is implementing best practices and help tackle the issue of
community/resource allocation based on the need for different interventions.
Additional Questions to Answer:
How long are we willing to let someone wait for services/stay on a wait list without being served?
What is the role of transitional housing in our system?
EXERCISE 2: Coordinated Assessment Outcomes
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Decreased amount of time/people on wait list
Decreased days between referral and receipt of services
Increase in client satisfaction
Clear number and defined population
Decreasing percentage of inappropriate referrals (referrals should also be based on level of need)
Increased awareness of coordinated assessment as measured by UNC Charlotte survey*
Decreased amount of time spent by program staff on referrals and intake
Decreased amount of time between first contact and assessment
Decreased amount of time between assessment and placement/services
Decreased amount of time between referral and integrated services
Decreased redundancy in paperwork
Reduced amount of time between acceptance into permanent housing and receipt of permanent
housing
Decreased street count/camp count
Increase number of providers sharing data
Increase number of providers in coordinated assessment
Decrease in number of people with no referral made
Additional Outcomes to be Considered
 Reduced number of hospital days?
 Reduced number of jail days?
 Reduced crime?
 Increase in affordable housing units?