Community Initiatives (CI) has completed a review of drop-in centres in Toronto. The Review’s goals were to determine how Drop-in Programs help to fulfil Toronto City Council’s goal of ending homelessness and to support the drop-in sector.
Consultation was a prominent feature of the drop-in review, partly because the published evidence about drop-in services and supports was limited. Six sector wide consultations were held. People who come to drop-in centres, drop in front line staff, managers, executive directors and funders also contributed to the Review through interviews, focus groups, and surveys.
The Review found that drop-in centres make a unique contribution to the homelessness service sector. They provide services and supports that help people who are homeless to find housing. Drop-in centres also assist people who are precariously housed to maintain and improve their housing situation.
The Review findings form the basis of the City’s policy direction for supporting drop-in centres. A safe and welcoming space is fundamental to the provision of drop-in services and support. The City aims to strengthen that foundation through funding and programming.
The funding is targeted to address challenges drop-in centres face in providing and maintaining a safe and welcoming space. On an ongoing basis, with City funding, four drop-in centres have increased their staffing levels and nine drop-in centres are providing 4,800 more hours of service (mainly on weekends and statutory holidays). Funding to improve access to training for front line staff and volunteers, and to provide nutritious food is provided on a one time basis.
The two programming initiatives, service standards and service co-ordination, aim to strengthen a sector where there is a high degree of diversity and autonomy. The programming changes will be a joint project of the City and the Drop-in sector. The first step is to recruit an Implementation Group to guide these initiatives. Please see the Implementation Group Terms of Reference.
