Reaching Home

The Reaching Home program distributes funding through several streams, each with its own requirements. Additional Reaching Home funding was provided in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

COVID-19 Emergency Funding: Non-recurring funding divided into Indigenous and Designated streams meant to provide additional support to the homeless-serving sector.

Annual Allocations: Recurring funding provided annually for a number of years. These funds can be used to provide multi-year support to a particular service or pay for one-off project expenses. Funds are divided into Indigenous and Designated streams.

Indigenous Stream: Funds organizations that meet the unique needs of First Nations, Inuit and Métis people who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness. Intended for Indigenous organizations in urban centres.

Designated Stream: Provides long-term, stable funding to organizations addressing homelessness in the Designated Community.

Cowichan Green Community Foundation (CGC) – Food for Youth First

• Supporting vulnerable Cowichan youth who are street-entrenched, at risk of homeless, and/or precariously housed.
• CGC, the Cowichan Health Network, Island Health, the Cowichan Community Action Team, and other organizations have been working on the “First for Youth” Initiative to increase housing, food, and supports for vulnerable youth since 2022.
• This service will provide a connection to the recently announced youth housing initiative in the Cowichan area.

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Cowichan Housing Association

• The Housing Loss Prevention Program consists of a range of support services for people in the Cowichan Region who are at risk of becoming unhoused.
• The team works with individuals to connect them to supports and  builds relationships with landlords and property management companies to prevent disputes from ending in evictions.

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Cowichan Lake Community Services (CLCSS) – Homelessness Prevention & Support Program

• This project is aimed at supporting vulnerable community members who are experiencing homelessness and/or who are at imminent risk of becoming homeless and includes a Community Navigator position, who works directly with clients and helps them meet their basic needs.
• Resource packages will provide information to the outreach workers who deliver the youth meals.
• Youth will also gain access to workshops and programming to learn new skills at our 2 teaching farms, retails store, food recovery program, cob oven and commercial kitchen.

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Cowichan Tribes Ts’ewulhtun Health Centre – Tl’l’to’mukw’ mustimuhw (Each Person is Important)

• The “Each person is important (Tl’i’ to’ mukw’ mustimuhw)” project will address the intersection of homelessness and substance misuse by bridging the gaps in care and ensuring that we are both meeting people where they are at in meeting basic needs for survival, harm reduction, cultural connections and access to medical and outreach care, as well as raising people up with hope and dignity on their healing path.
• For some, that means empowerment to give back to community through peers work, for others it means attending addictions services.
• This service is an innovative response to the gap between treatment, hospital stays or other leaves from the community and being housed. Without this service many people would end their treatment stay and could become homeless.

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Cowichan Valley Basket Society – A Place to Be

• A Place to Be provides a safe haven for people experiencing homelessness, with access to essential services, including restrooms, a phone, clothing, WIFI, a hot lunch, and food hampers.
• Guests can also connect with other services. Additionally, it offers a secure space for individuals to meet and socialize with others.

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Cowichan Women’s Health Society – Nuts’a’wuqu Lelum Coordinated Access

• A successful regional Coordinated Access System will enable our community to:
• Organize and deliver a range of services to address homelessness in a coordinated manner;
• Support implementation, maintenance, and improvement in the use of HIFIS.
• Support data governance and data management efforts to improve data quality to meet and maintain federal CA and Outcomes-Based Approach requirements.
• This service is being designed in collaboration with diverse partners and includes First Nations and Indigenous led groups.

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Ladysmith Resources Centre Association – Housing Support Services Program

• Supporting community members in Ladysmith in core housing need by building capacity and providing support for individuals and families to secure and sustain healthy and appropriate housing.
• Case Management services and providing a stable address to receive important government correspondence.
• Other supports available to families and individuals include access to clothing, bedding, laundry services and shower services. In emergencies we can provide shelters through our 24/7 Shelter. The LRCA will continue to work with CHA to engage other organizations and service agencies in the Ladysmith area.

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Malahat Nation – Malahat Nation Housing Supports

• Supporting stable and safe access to housing for the members of Malahat Nation both on and off reserve.
• Supporting building capacity and cultivating cultural practices and sensitivities in the implementation and delivery of Malahat housing services and programs/ support waitlists/Housing set ups.

Cowichan Women Against Violence – Cedar Branches and Homelessness Prevention Program

• CWAV Society’s Homelessness Prevention Program, supported by the Indigenous Women’s Council, is committed to providing culturally safe, trauma-informed services to women, women-identifying individuals, and their families at risk of housing loss.
• The program is designed to prevent homelessness by offering financial assistance, referrals, and supportive services tailored to Indigenous and non-Indigenous clients in the Cowichan Valley, including those living on reserve.

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Cowichan Tribes Ts’ewulhtun Health Centre – Tl’l’to’mukw’ mustimuhw (Each Person is Important)

• The “Each person is important (Tl’i’ to’ mukw’ mustimuhw)” project will address the intersection of homelessness and substance misuse by bridging the gaps in care and ensuring that we are both meeting people where they are at in meeting basic needs for survival, harm reduction, cultural connections and access to medical and outreach care, as well as raising people up with hope and dignity on their healing path. For some, that means empowerment to give back to community through peers work, for others it means attending addictions.

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Hiiye’yu Lelum House of Friendship – Homelessness Breakfast Program

• Provides client support services addressing basic needs: breakfast, lunch, access to shower and laundry facility, clothing depot, personal care items, cultural supports, referrals for counselling, health care, shelter, outreach, extreme weather extend hours (heat, cold). To provide support services that meet basic essential needs and are a cultural connection that build a sense of belonging.
• Outreach helps builds connection to community and support services aid the client in working toward social integration. The Program Elder shares traditional knowledge/teachings and the other. Elder is able to provide cultural healing ceremony. Our Addictions Counsellor also attends the breakfast program regularly to build relationships and if the Homelessness staff make a referral for Addictions counseling, it is an easier process if the client knows the counsellor.

7-10 Club – Double Bagging It

• Provision of food, the equivalent of 2 meals/person, through distribution to Nanaimo and Area Resource Services for Families (NARSF) for delivery to various locations through outreach. A total of 120-150 2 meal bags are delivered. Surplus food pickups are distributed to other meal programs and some supportive housing.

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AVI – Harm Reduction/Food/Basic Needs

• Our Indigenous led Outreach team strives to supply our current and future clients with the basic necessities they require to maintain stability on the path to less precarious housing. We supply support around groceries, food cards, immediate consumables.

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Island Crisis Care Society (ICCS) – Connections4Hope

• Connections4Hope aims to deliver essential life skills, employment skills training, and work placement opportunities to people who have experienced homelessness but are now ready to re-integrate more fully into independence and community life.

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Island Crisis Care Society (ICCS) in collaboration with Nanaimo Family Life Association (NFLA) and the City of Nanaimo – Nanaimo Drop In Hub

• Collaborative initiative between ICCS & NFLA to create a community-based day-time drop-in hub providing basic services, resources, and overnight shelter beds (NFLA). Partner agencies provide comprehensive supports including culturally appropriate supports & connections to community for indigenous people.
• The City of Nanaimo and United Way BC are working with other partners including BC Housing, Island Health, and MSDPR to provide a support safety net for people who in a vulnerable situation and risk increased marginalization without access to these supports.

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Nanaimo Family Life Association (NFLA) – Shine Program (Seniors) and Showers & Navigation

• The SHINE program will provide one-to-one assistance to eligible people aged 55 and older who are actively unhoused or at high risk of losing their current housing. The program will help participants to apply for subsidized housing, assist them in residential tenancy disputes to prevent homelessness and help the tenants search thoroughly for a home and consider all available housing options.
• The shower program operates five days a week, 260 days a year and serves the unhoused population in Nanaimo. The service also collaborates with other partners to ensure there is connection to other services that people may need.

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Nanaimo Brain Injury Society (NBIS) – Peer Support Program

• NBIS offers peer support to brain injury survivors and families at Nanaimo Hospital. Peer volunteers visit patients & families 3 days/week on the rehab units providing connection and care, while reducing the negative impacts of life after brain injury.

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Nanaimo Systems Planning Organization (SPO – Coordination of Resources and Data Collection

• The NSPO is the identified coordinating organization of coordinated access and data-driven service delivery (e.g., supporting Coordinated Access, the Outcomes-Based Approach and use of HIFIS or existing, equivalent Homeless Management Information System). The Designated Community, Community Capacity and Innovation (CCI) funding will be used to support this work in the following areas:
  • Governance Mapping and Local Leadership Structure
  • Coordinated Access
  • CA Policies and Procedures
  • Systems Mapping
  • HIFIS (including Outcomes Based Approach)
  • Community Working Groups (Indigenous/Lived and Living Experience/Coordinated Access/Other))

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Pacifica Housing Advisory Association – Community Connections

• The Community Connections Program (CCP) is a client-centred homeless prevention program designed to meet the needs of vulnerable, marginalized residents of PHAA’s portfolio of 167 subsidized and affordable permanent independent living housing units in Nanaimo.
• The program connects with individuals at risk of becoming homeless and works with them, their landlord or other parties to maintain housing and create a healthy living environment.

Snuneymuxw First Nation – Wrapping Blankets

• ‘qiw’ cawutul Syacys  – ‘qiw’ means wrap around something; Cawutul means helping each other; Sya:ys ~ means work/services to community/people (wrapping around each other and community)
• From a harm-reduction, trauma-informed framework, we endeavor to provide the indigenous population with low barrier access to a Social Worker, Peer support, and cultural supports. These supports will enhance our capabilities to advocate and connect indigenous people to the appropriate resources. Further, we will be able to provide harm reduction supplies and education delivered by peers and properly trained professionals. We will also be able to create stronger working relationships while collaborating with other organizations.

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Tillicum Lelum – Young Mom’s House & Housing Navigator

• Staff will provide individualized support helping Indigenous young mom clients and develop a plan to address barriers in maintaining and sustaining permanent housing.
• Facilitated delivery of culturally competent homelessness programming, in keeping with the Indigenous homelessness definition document.
• A significant pillar in keeping Indigenous families together, reconnecting with their culture and supports and being able to identify a future path for themselves.