City of Grande Prairie Administration presented a Homelessness Strategy for Grande Prairie 2021-2023 funded in part by the provincial and federal governments at the Protective and Social Services Committee on June 22, 2021 providing an innovative, action-oriented, and forward-thinking approach to addressing homelessness in the community.
The strategy offers a set of core beliefs, focus areas and measurements for Grande Prairie based on lessons learned over the past decade, feedback from the community and forecasting for the future. It further builds on the community’s proven ability to adapt and coordinate for the benefit of all residents.
Key to the strategy is its focus on community partnerships to build and foster relationships across a variety of areas in an effort to maximize the impact of services and increase system efficiencies for agencies, clients and funders. To achieve this, the plan was developed in collaboration with a cross-sectoral leadership group and organizational contributors from health care, social services, emergency services and more.
With the enhanced community capacity developed through this partnership-based community focus, the strategy is able to allow for a full-spectrum provision of services, thus addressing the root causes of homelessness through personalized prevention and intervention. It empowers Grande Prairie’s homeless-serving sector to provide care options that meet people where they are at, move people out of homelessness quickly, and into housing with appropriate supports based on their own unique circumstances.
To achieve this, the strategy is actioning and leveraging a variety of appropriate housing options (affordable, supportive and transitional housing), responsive health and justice services, better connected service systems, and prevention options to successfully match people what they need when they are at risk of homelessness, experiencing homelessness or leaving homelessness.
The goals and measurements listed in the strategy are largely based on the Government of Canada’s Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy’s core outcomes for Canadian communities, with some specific to Grande Prairie. Measurement will be accomplished through government, community and academic partnerships.
The City of Grande Prairie recognizes the evolving nature of homelessness in the community, and is committed to this path forward with a transformative approach to meeting our local needs with specific, data-driven and person-centered actions as outlined in the Homelessness Strategy for Grande Prairie 2021-2023 to make our community one all can call home.
View the full strategy online at cityofgp.com/HomelessnessStrategy.