The National Strategy on Homelessness Prevention was a two-year project (1999-2001) which galvanized the efforts of professional associations, decision-makers and front-line practitioners in changing and enhancing homelessness prevention practices within the sectors which almost always figure into a person's route to homelessness.

The resulting best practices database, case studies, cyber-library, and reports and downloadable resource materials capture and share the results of this work.

About the National Strategy
The Project:

Brought together 100 individuals in cities across Canada who shared their own experience with being homeless, and their ideas of what might have prevented it.

Researched the paths to homelessness, the key intervention points along the way, and how programs, practices and policies can be changed to help in reducing and preventing homelessness in our communities.

Worked with the input of dozens of frontline practitioners, decision-makers and a broad range of community stakeholders in the housing, child welfare, employment, legal/criminal justice, financial, education and health sectors. These are the seven sectors which almost always figure in a person's route to homelessness - and therefore the sectors where new programs and interventions will have the greatest chance of making a difference in the lives of people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

Was supported by an advisory group of organizations and professional associations that deal with homelessness.

The principal funders of this project were the Ontario Trillium Foundation and Human Resources Development Canada.

Project Advisors: National Working Group

Derek Ballantyne, chair of the National Working Group, President of the Board of Raising the Roof, and Chief Executive Officer of the Toronto Housing Company

Joan Bercovitch, Director of Government Affairs, Canadian Bar Association

John Burrett, Senior Policy Analyst, Federation of Canadian Municipalities

Joanne Calkins, Representative of Canadian Association for Community Living

Janet Davies, Visiting Policy Advisor, Canadian Nurses' Association

Peter Dudding, Executive Director, Child Welfare League of Canada

Roxanne Felice, Executive Director of Project SHARE in Niagara, Ontario and representative of the Canadian Association of Food Banks

Matt Geigen-Miller, Director of Youth and Network Development, National Youth in Care Network

Marc Gryba, Senior Policy Analyst, National Association of Friendship Centres

Fred Hayes, Community Banker with PEACH (Promoting Economic Action and Community Health), Jane-Finch, Toronto

Beverley Lane, Primary Specialist Teacher and Representative of Canadian Teachers' Federation

Joanne Linzey, Chief Executive Officer, Metro United Way (Halifax)

Mary MacDougall, Executive Director of Catholic Family Services of Vancouver, representative of Family Services Canada

Eugenia Repetur Moreno, Executive Director, Canadian Association of Social Workers Sister Margaret Myatt, General Superior, Sisters of St. Joseph's, Toronto, Ed Pennington, General Director, Canadian Mental Health Association

Dr. Liz Roberts, Senior Program Officer, National Programs, Canadian Public Health Association

Superintendent Lynda Smith, Ottawa-Carleton Regional Police Service

Nancy Worsfold, Executive Director, Ottawa-Carleton Immigrant Services Organization, and member of the Canadian Council for Refugees

Photo credits: Raising the Roof, Stuart Mair.