Housing Support & Homelessness Grants

NOW OPEN: The application period for these funding opportunities under the Housing Access and Support Services program: Housing Access, Housing Focused System Supports, Street Outreach, Homelessness Prevention and Housing Focused Client Supports and the Daytime Drop-In Programs Funding Opportunity

The City of Toronto provides a range of grant funding opportunities for non-profit, community based and Indigenous organizations to provide a variety of housing supports and homelessness services to residents.

The City, guided through the HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan and the Homelessness Solutions Service Plan, continues to build and strengthen a responsive, housing-focused and people-centered homelessness service system, while shifting towards more sustainable, permanent, affordable housing solutions.

In support of the City’s commitment to truth and reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples, the City prioritizes applications by Indigenous-led organizations that serve Indigenous residents. Aligned with the City’s Action Plan to Confront Anti-Black Racism, the City also prioritizes applications by Black-led organizations that serve Black and racialized communities.

The Housing Access and Support Services program includes the five funding opportunities listed below. By clicking on the link to each funding opportunity page, you can learn more about who should apply, service delivery requirements, how to apply, information session dates, application deadlines and funding terms.

Service providers seeking funding from more than one funding opportunity will need to submit a separate application for each opportunity.

  1. Client Case Management – Street Outreach
    • Supporting people who are experiencing street homelessness to find, transition to and sustain housing
  2. Client Case Management – Homelessness Prevention
    • Eviction Prevention
      • Helping tenants who are at imminent risk of homelessness to sustain their tenancy
    • Shelter Diversion
      • Immediately re-housing people who are precariously housed, experiencing an emergency or pending discharge from a public institution
  3. Client Case Management – Housing Focused Client Supports
    • Follow-Up Support
      • Providing in-person case management supports to people exiting homelessness to help them work towards continued housing stability
    • Service-Specific Case Management Programs
      • Providing case management services that impact on housing stability by addressing a specific client need
      • Examples include personal support worker services, occupational therapy services, trusteeship services, harm reduction supports, support for collecting behaviours, etc.
  4. Client Case Management – Housing Access
    • Helping people find housing and connect to external services that support housing stabilization and sustainability
    • Connecting people to financial supports for renters
  5. Housing Focused System Supports
    • Sector Capacity Building and Coordination
      • Providing capacity building services to the housing and homelessness service sector as a whole
      • Examples include coordination, training, resource sharing and networking
    • Specific System-Wide Client Supports
      • Providing specialized supports to people as needs arise
      • These supports do not involve client case management
      • Examples include the provision of identification, interpretation services, harm reduction supports, furniture, extreme clean services, etc.

Daytime drop-in programs support individuals who are experiencing homelessness by providing an inclusive, safe and low-barrier space that supports social cohesion and provides nutritious meals and referrals to other community supports as needed. These programs are also an important link to help people find and sustain housing.

Eligible Applicants

Successful applicants operate a local, community-based space that provides daytime meals, social connection and programming for those who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness, as well as information or referrals to related programs for people with a wide variety of needs, including housing help.

Service Delivery Requirements

Daytime drop-in staff members must have:

  • extensive knowledge of and experience in providing low-barrier, harm reduction services to individuals experiencing homelessness, and
  • knowledge of and capacity to discuss specialized services available in the community

Daytime drop-in programs must:

  • provide non-judgemental, trauma-informed and anti-oppressive services rooted in harm reduction and Housing First approaches
  • engage with participants experiencing or at risk of homelessness
  • provide a safe, low-barrier indoor space
  • prepare and provide nutritious meals and snacks to participants
  • provide inclusive and interactive activities and events to promote social cohesion and togetherness
  • provide direct or indirect supports to help people find and sustain housing
  • make referrals to specialized services in the community as needed
  • participate in City committees and working groups, if or as required
  • compile, maintain, and provide records and activity data, as required
  • advance the City’s funding priorities, including:
    • strengthening our relationship with Indigenous communities and advancing reconciliation
    • focusing on equity
    • delivering high quality services
    • reducing chronic homelessness
    • developing integrated system responses
    • strengthening and modernizing the sector

More detailed requirements on this project model will be provided in the information session. Applicants are strongly encouraged to attend. These service requirements will form part of the funding agreement for successful applicants.

How to Apply

If you are interested in applying to the Daytime Drop-In Program funding opportunity, please submit an email request to HSS@toronto.ca to receive an application package.

Information Session and Key Dates

Application Helpdesk Sessions

Questions and Answers:

 Call for Application Q&A

Information Session

Application Period

  • Launch date: Tuesday, April 19, 2022
  • Deadline to submit: Monday, June 6, 2022 by 11:59 p.m. (EST)

Funding Term

  • October 1, 2022 to March 31, 2025

Thank you to all the organizations that submitted an application to the Toronto Tenant Support Program (TTSP). Your ongoing support and interest in the development of tenant support programs across the city is appreciated.

In total, the City received 15 applications covering all four (4) TTSP program categories. All applications were carefully evaluated by the City’s Shelter, Support and Housing Administration Division (SSHA) through a comprehensive review process. The following projects have been approved to deliver services to tenants under the TTSP, starting April 1, 2022:

TTSP Category Project Title Organization
Professional Legal Services Legal supports to preserve tenancies and affordable housing Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation (CERA)
Organizing and Capacity Building FMTA Outreach and Organizing Team Federation of Metro Tenants’ Associations (FMTA)
Information Services Tenant Info Hub Federation of Metro Tenants’ Associations (FMTA)
Holistic Information and Referral Strategy for Housing Support Centre for Immigrant and Community Services (CICS)
Research, Policy and Data Development Projects Preserving affordable rental housing in Toronto – a community based research platform Centre for Equality Rights in Accommodation (CERA)

All three (3) organizations above will be working in partnership to deliver services under the TTSP. Projects will be funded for a three-year term, beginning April 1, 2022 and ending March 31, 2025. The City expects to launch the next call for applications for TTSP projects in 2024, before the funding term ends.

If you are interested in learning more about the services that will be offered to tenants or if your organization would like to collaborate by initiating a formal or informal partnership, please contact the organizations above directly. Contact information for each organization can be found on the organization’s website.

Background Information

SSHA, in partnership with community partners, delivers housing and homelessness services and programs for Toronto residents as outlined in the HousingTO 2020-2030 Action Plan. The Toronto Tenant Support Program (TTSP), adopted by City Council on July 14, 2021, will support tenants in private market rental housing.

SSHA launched a Call for Applications on November 15, 2021 inviting non-profit organizations to submit an application to the following four (4) program categories under the Toronto Tenant Support Program:

1. Professional Legal Services

The objective of this funding category is to deliver professional legal services to support Toronto tenants in disputing eviction matters or other tenancy issues at the Landlord and Tenant Board (LTB), Local Planning Appeal Tribunal, Divisional Court or other administrative tribunal(s).

2. Organizing and Capacity Building

The objective of this funding category is to provide general outreach and organizing supports in each quadrant of the city to develop tenant associations and to work with established tenant associations to expand awareness on tenant rights and responsibilities.

3. Information Services

The objective of this funding category is to expand tenants’ knowledge and awareness of their rights and responsibilities through a variety of communication strategies and information services.

4. Research, Policy and Data Development Projects

The objective of this funding category is to conduct research, collect data and report to the City on topic areas impacting the preservation of affordable rental housing in Toronto.

Below is a list of additional funding opportunities at the City of Toronto: