Shelter programs actively collaborate with other homeless services providers and community resources to facilitate access to the continuum of community services.

Research Note: Research suggests that “Housing First,” and other low demand housing models where use of services are not required, are effective at achieving positive housing outcomes for the chronically homeless.

Research Note: An evaluation of 25 HUD-funded community Continuums of Care (CoC) for homeless people showed that more homeless people used more programs and services as a result of using the CoC approach than had done so prior to implementing the CoC approach. Homeless continuums of care include prevention, outreach, assessment, shelter, transitional housing, permanent supportive housing, and supportive services at all levels.

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	PURPOSE: Shelter services meet the basic needs of individuals and families who are homeless or in transition, set them on the path toward stable family or independent living, and provide a point-of-entry to the continuum of community care.

RELATED FILES

NA Request.doc
SH Reference List.pdf
SH Private Template.doc


	SERVICE One or more organization-operated programs or activities that have a common general objective and deploy the organization's material and human resources in a planned and systematic manner. An organization that publicly promotes or identifies itself in writing as offering a service, is licensed to deliver a service, assigns personnel and/or space to a service, or allocates financial resources to a service is considered to offer that service.


	FAMILY Two or more people who consider themselves family and who assume obligations, functions, and responsibilities generally essential to healthy family life. Child care and child socialization, income support, long-term care, and other caregiving are among the functions of family life. The definition of "family" will rest with an individual's indication of who plays a family member role, including current or former foster family, adoptive family, extended family members, fictive kin, or significant others. Organizations that believe family is the central constellation in a child's life, and that family attachments are of primary importance for human development, will strive to work with professional staff to develop a common understanding of "family."


	COMMUNITY A specific group of people living in the same locality and who may share a common culture, values, and norms. Communities can also be defined by race, religion, ethnicity, age, occupation, political status, tribal affiliation, interest in particular problems or outcomes, or other common bonds. The term "community" encompasses worksites, schools, tribes, residential neighborhoods, business districts, recreational areas, and health and human service sites.


	PROGRAM A system of services offered by an organization. For example, an organization providing a mental health service may offer several mental health programs to different populations, e.g., a mental health program for adolescent teens. The word "program" can be used interchangeably with the word "service" or to describe specific programs.


	RESEARCH For purposes of COA accreditation, all forms of internal or external research involving persons served except internal program evaluation and outcomes research, or educational projects performed by students and interns that are part of their professional training.


	EVALUATION The review and assessment of organizational operations, programs and services.


	PREVENTION Actions taken to minimize and/or eliminate social, psychological, or other conditions. Prevention can occur at the individual, group, community, and societal levels and enhances opportunities to achieve positive fulfillment.


	OUTREACH Contact initiated by a provider to identify persons in need of services, to provide information to them about services and benefits, and to encourage the use of appropriate services.


	ASSESSMENT An evaluation, which utilizes professional expertise and skills in the collection and analysis of data to understand and describe the nature of service needs of an individual, family, or group. Assessment, as in needs assessment, is also used to determine priorities of program planning and service development for the organization as a whole. See also DIAGNOSIS.