Housing

United Way of Greater New Haven provides leadership on housing issues critical to our communities, with a particular focus on preventing and ending homelessness.  According to the Point In Time Count in 2011, there were 660 homeless people (including children) in New Haven living in emergency shelters and outside.  

 

Highlights of Our Work 

Ending Homelessness.

United Way supports the Greater New Haven Regional Alliance to End Homelessness, which aims to end homelessness, particularly among veterans and the chronically homeless.  The most recent data from the Point in Time Count documented 660 people homeless on a single night in January 2011, which includes people who were living in shelters or places not designed for human habitation.  Of that number, 430 were single adults, 75 were families, and 153 were children in those families. Since that last comprehensive count, the number of requests for services from family shelters has almost doubled.

The Alliance has embraced the federal goals of ending homelessness in the next five years for veterans and chronically homeless individuals, and end family homelessness in the next ten years.  Providers, advocates, homeless individuals and businesses in Greater New Haven take this charge seriously and are working on several fronts to implement a new comprehensive plan and collaborative approach to end the crisis of homelessness for residents of our community.

 

 

Emergency Housing.

As we work toward ending homelessness, United Way has partnered with the Jewish Federation of Greater New Haven to establish Neighbor-to-Neighbor (N2N) LifeLine to provide support for emergency housing services for residents of our region impacted by the economic downturn.  With the support of N2N LifeLine, over 3,500 people have received emergency shelter or housing services to prevent homelessness since 2009.  Learn more about N2N LifeLine.

United Way manages the federal Emergency Food and Shelter Program for New Haven County, making almost $3 million in emergency food and shelter investments possible in our community over the past five years.  Learn more here.

 

2011-2012 Results

  • 550 homeless people were diverted from homelessness and into stable housing. 

  • The entire population of homeless individuals in New Haven was surveyed to determine vulnerability and priority for housing.

  • A common intake process was implemented to help people access appropriate housing services quickly and avoid duplication and unnecessary wait periods.