Plan

STEP 1: PLAN

Your community has a set of strategies focused on ending homelessness. A wide range of players has made funding and implementation commitments to these strategies.
A New Vision: What is in Community Plans to End Homelessness?
Community Plans to End Homelessness

Your community has a set of strategies focused on ending homelessness. A wide range of players (government programs, elected officials, homeless providers, etc.) has made funding and implementation commitments to these strategies.  


As Interagency Council on Homelessness Director Philip Mangano said in his address to the U.S. Conference of Mayors in January 2003, "When we recognize a problem in our cities, we make a plan to address it." This is what cities like Indianapolis, Chicago and New York have done, and many more are presently doing, in regard to the problem of homelessness. These cities have taken a serious look at the homeless assistance system as well as broader public systems and are moving beyond efforts to manage this costly problem toward strategies that will prevent and end it. Such strategies address:
  • Prevention of homelessness 
  • Re-housing options that improve cost efficiency and ensure long-term stability
  • Improving the availability of affordable housing, livable incomes, and necessary support services for people at the lowest end of the economic spectrum
  • Collection of accurate data in order to improve system-wide effectiveness in preventing and ending homelessness.

Strategies with the most momentum are those built with support and input from a broad range of partners―public, private, and nonprofit. They are based on independent research and effective practices both within and beyond their jurisdictions. They have the endorsement of top city officials and include the commitments of all relevant resources and partners. Through such coordination and planning, cities are changing homelessness from being a permanent fixture embedded in the current economic and social climate to a finite and solvable problem that can be ended in ten years.

Spotlight

Report | August 11, 2006
An essay by Nan Roman published in Housing Facts & Findings, Fannie Mae
Conference Presentation | August 10, 2002
Presented by Tom Albanese of the Community Shelter Board in Columbus, Ohio as part of the workshop, "Building Effective Plans to End Family Homelessness," held on Thursday, October 14, 2004.

Library Resources

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Fact Sheets | January 14, 2010
This resource explains what a Continuum of Care is, as well as details the necessary parts of a Continuum of Care (CoC) and how to plan a CoC. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development began to require communities to submit a single application for McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants in 1995. In 2009, there were 461 CoCs.
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Audio | October 24, 2007
This audio conference focused on critical barriers and innovative solutions to the unique nature and conditions of selected rural communities.
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Conference Presentation | July 10, 2007
As communities are implementing their plans to end homelessness, one of the biggest lessons they are learning is that oversight of plan implementation is critical. Who should be in charge of making sure that strategies are implemented, funding is secured, and outcomes are measured? How many staff does it take? What qualifications should they hold? What authority should they have? Workshop speakers will address these questions and more.
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Conference Presentation | July 9, 2007
This workshop covered the development of a plan to end homelessness from start to finish presented by communities that have done it. Planning steps include enlisting the right stakeholders, developing a work plan and structuring committees, researching needs and best practices, refining strategies, and maintaining momentum. Workshop speakers also discussed how to ensure that the plan moves from paper to action and how the process itself changed their community.
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Conference Presentation | July 9, 2007
This half-day institute offered an inside look at how to create a rural plan, strategies that work in rural areas, and how to cultivate partnerships in rural areas. The workshop highlighted the achievements in the first year of the National Alliance to End Homelessness’ Rural Homeless Initiative of Southeast and Central Ohio (RHISCO). This innovative venture brought together 17 rural and Appalachian counties of Ohio to collaborate on regional strategies and develop Ten Year Plans to End Homelessness. With a focus on rural themes and regional cooperation, institute speakers highlighted lessons learned during 2006 and provide insight into promoting and improving...
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Report | August 11, 2006
An essay by Nan Roman published in Housing Facts & Findings, Fannie Mae
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Conference Presentation | August 10, 2002
Presented by Tom Albanese of the Community Shelter Board in Columbus, Ohio as part of the workshop, "Building Effective Plans to End Family Homelessness," held on Thursday, October 14, 2004.