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CITY OF VANCOUVER ADMINISTRATIVE REPORT |
Date: |
November 16, 2004 | |
Author: |
Michael Clague | |
Phone No.: |
665-3301 | |
RTS No.: |
4304 | |
CC File No.: |
4161 | |
Meeting Date: |
November 30, 2004 |
TO: |
Vancouver City Council |
FROM: |
Director, Carnegie Centre |
SUBJECT: |
Funding Renewal: Carnegie Outreach Program 2005 |
RECOMMENDATION
THAT Council approve a three year continuation of the Carnegie Outreach program (2005 - 2007) at its current budget of $300,000 with particular priority to expanded daytime hours to assist street people in connecting with services, and to support work attached to the Homelessness Action Plan and to the further development of low threshold training and employment opportunities through initiatives such as the Vancouver Agreement Employment Strategy.
GENERAL MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The General Manager of Community Services supports the recommendations in this report.
CITY MANAGER'S COMMENTS
The City Manager RECOMMENDS that the foregoing request for funding for Carnegie Outreach be referred to the 2005 budget review process, and that funding for the program continue until the outcome of the 2005 budget is decided.
COUNCIL POLICY
On December 4, 2003, Council approved in principle, and confirmed on March 11, 2004 funding for the Carnegie Outreach program for another year at a cost of $300,000.
SUMMARY
This report responds to Council's instructions to report back on the progress of the program and on the success in securing outside funds by July 2004, in order to allow Council the opportunity to extend the program or have it conclude in December 2004. Due to the number of parties involved and the complexities of funding sources and jurisdictions discussions have taken considerable time. To date no outside funding has been found to share the base budget cost, though, as in the past, the program is eligible for special projects funding on top of the base funding.
This report recommends continued funding for Carnegie Outreach from the City of Vancouver due to its being a singular and at this point in time necessary service in the Downtown Eastside. This program is well positioned to support at the ground level the policies for social and economic renewal in the community for marginalized people. In the coming year, Outreach's role is particularly germane to two important priorities identified by the City and the Vancouver Agreement; one is the City's Homelessness Action Plan; the other is low threshold training and employment. Both are within the mandate and experience of Outreach and the program's work can be re-organized to give more attention to them.
PURPOSE
The purpose of this report is to follow Council's instruction to report back on the prospects for securing other partners to contribute to the base budget of $300,000 for Carnegie Outreach.
BACKGROUND
The purpose of the Carnegie Outreach is to provide a measure of safety and assistance to at-risk street people, and to link them to the available health, shelter/housing, social, and educational/employment services as the first step in alternatives to their present life style.
Functions
Outreach functions include:
· First aid and triage
· Information and referral (food, shelter, health, employment)
· Accompaniment (to health care, accommodation)
· Disease prevention (needle exchange, crack pipe tips, condoms)
· Low threshold recreational, cultural, social programs
· Education (literacy) and life-skills activities
· Peer training and low threshold employment programs
· Monitoring and safety (eyes and ears on the street, keeping track of the health and whereabouts of street people, connecting people with friends and relatives)
· Relocation - helping people leave the street scene
· Data collection/information gathering about street trends
Utilization
Previous reports (November 21, 2003 and March 11, 2004) have provided extensive background information about Carnegie Outreach, including an evaluation carried out in 2003 that affirmed the value of the service. In September 2004 a third report spoke to the linkages between Carnegie Outreach and the Vancouver Agreement's Integrated Strategic Plan.
The following is a profile of the individuals who utilized the services noted above:
In September 2004, Outreach staff worked 40 shifts of 6 hours each on the street. They recorded 807 in-depth contacts, or about 20.2 per shift. Because of the nature of the work it is not always possible to record at the time or recall at the end of a shift all the contacts or the tasks performed:
· 35% of contacts are between 18 and 30 years of age and 52% are between 30 and 40 years
· 45% of contacts are female and 55% are male
· 90% of contacts call themselves residents of the DTES and 2% are from outside the area
· 13% of contacts are Asian, Black, or Middle Eastern, 43% are First Nations, and 45% are Caucasian.
· 17% of contacts are recorded as "new" and 62% of all contacts are known to staff by name.
· 25% of all contacts are initiated by Outreach staff and 71% of all contacts approach the team. Another 4% are connected to Outreach by an outside agency.
· 87% of the contacts involve the provision of direct services (needle exchange and the resulting discussion and referrals account for 29% of the services provided).
· 58% of recorded contacts involve non-addiction discussions related to the other functions of Outreach's mandate (see above).
The Outreach recreational/social/cultural activities are in addition to the 40 shifts of street work cited above. These activities are carried out in partnership with 9 other area agencies 4 days a week. These partnerships allow staff to facilitate a connection between street people with area services, as well as support the outreach contact in their relationship with the host agency.
DISCUSSION
Carnegie Outreach began as a pilot program in 1999. For the next two years its funding sources included the City, Health Canada, and National Crime Prevention. With the introduction of the DTES Health and Safety Initiative Outreach became the City's part of the package of harm reduction services being introduced by the Vancouver Agreement into the Downtown Eastside (along with the Health Contact Centre, the two community health centres, the Life Skills Centre and the Safe Injection Site). The City committed itself for funding for a two year period ending in 2003. When Outreach was funded for 2004, Council stipulated that other partners be found to share its base budget cost.
Since June a series of meetings and conversations have been held with Vancouver Agreement partners to discuss the relationship of Carnegie Outreach to their mandates and to the Integrated Strategic Plan of the Vancouver Agreement: Vancouver Coastal Health Authority (VCHA), Human Resources Development Canada, Ministry of Human Resources, Health Canada, and City personnel. The mandate and record of Outreach were reviewed. An up-dated report on all known outreach services in the Downtown Eastside was prepared.
This review noted that by far the largest contract funder of outreach in the area is the VCHA. However, VCHA-funded work is health-focussed and is limited in hours of operation. It also confirmed that Carnegie Outreach is the sole generalist outreach service operating seven days a week during the afternoon and evening hours whose mandate is not attached to a specific service nor limited to a particular clientele. It also is distinct for conducting low key social, recreational programs on the streets and in the agencies of the DTES, and for pioneering work in low-threshold training and employment.
This review was not successful in finding other partners to share the core Outreach budget. There is the possibility of obtaining funds for special training and employment projects as was done in the past, but these are made possible when there is a base "platform budget" that carries the on-going program and can absorb the supervision and administration attached to projects.
Therefore this report continues to recommend the continuation of the Carnegie Outreach project as a singular service in the Downtown Eastside. It is the City's on-the-ground connection with street people and with the new policies and plans regarding homelessness and employment.
Help for the Homeless
Carnegie Outreach currently works closely with the City's Tenant Assistance Program (TAP) Coordinator and is called on for special assistance when there are major relocation challenges, as occurred with the tent cities last year. The Coordinator reports that Outreach is a critical component to the effectiveness of the Tenant Assistance Program based on Outreach's knowledge of street people, the staff's ability to build trust, to help calm situations, ensure safety, and assist with referrals. The TAP Coordinator regards it as a very effective tool in the urban core of the city.
The City's Homelessness Action Plan speaks to the importance of outreach as part of homelessness strategy and recommends:
The Provincial Government and other levels of government as appropriate to provide funding for more street outreach services that are available 24/7 and to improve coordination among outreach programs and linkages to others services.
The City's current financial support of Carnegie Outreach along with the Tenant Assistance Program can be considered as the City's contribution toward the goal of a 24/7 service. In its reconfigured budget for 2005 Outreach intends to increase its hours of daytime coverage within its current $300,000 funding in order to help clients get to services that are only open during the day (see Options below).
With respect to coordination, Carnegie Outreach currently participates in planning and information meetings with other agencies in the DTES around specific issues such as needle exchange, crack-cocaine, and after-hours toilets. As well Outreach, with six years of experience on the streets, is a resource for training and workshops on harm reduction and in the development of peer training and low threshold employment projects.
A Basis for Low Threshold Training and Renewal
With the Footprints Community Art Project (mosaic historic markers) Outreach pioneered a community arts approach to low threshold training and employment. With $400,000 in funding from Western Diversification approximately 200 street people participated in a peer-based program involving life skills training, health, and nutrition, and constructing 31 mosaic historic tile markers in the sidewalks and parks of the DTES. This project has now evolved into an independent workers' coop business - Community Employment Training Through the Arts (CETA).
Currently Outreach is piloting a peer mentoring program in outreach work itself. Street people with an interest and readiness to change their life style enter into a 10 week work experience program alongside regular Outreach staff.
Carnegie is working with the Vancouver Agreement's Employment Coordinator and with Fast Track to Employment to further develop an effective system linking the street with agency resources through contact, referral, assessment and training and employment. Discussions are being held with HRDC for expanding Outreach's own peer work experience programs. Outreach will be working with the CETA (Community Employment Through the Arts) workers' cooperative in applying to the Vancouver Agreement Economic Revitalization Task Team for funds to expand social enterprise opportunities for street people.
The City's Carnegie Outreach program provides the basis for other agencies to add program dollars for this work. Through its own low threshold training programs and coordination with agencies like Fast Track to Employment Outreach is a key player in training and employment activities and referral in the Downtown Eastside - reaching the people that need to be reached in forms that are relevant and accessible.
The goal is to create in the Downtown Eastside a seamless series of opportunities for local residents - particularly the street involved - to move into volunteer, training, and work opportunities commensurate with their readiness and abilities. One of the most important things a person wants to be able to say is "I have a job" and/or "I am volunteering for my community." Low threshold training means that a person can say they have a job even if the job is just six hours a week.
CONTINUATION OF THE CARNEGIE OUTREACH PROGRAM
This report recommends continuation of the Carnegie Outreach program at its current funding level of $300,000 but with a re-organization of priorities to reflect the discussion above:
· To increase the hours of day-time coverage in order to better assist clients on the streets, to connect with agencies that are only open during regular business hours, including those with training and employment services
· To finance this increase in hours within the existing budget by the internal reallocation of funds by merging social/recreational programs with the peer-based low-threshold training and employment activities.
FINANCIAL IMPLICATIONS
Carnegie Outreach received $300,000 in City funding for this year (2004). Initial budget targets for Community Services (CSG) for 2005 include an allocation of $300,000 for continuing this program.
PERSONNEL IMPLICATIONS
Timely funding to assure the continuation of this program will reduce uncertainty to the staff involved, increasing the probability that the team that has evolved will remain intact. This team is a valuable resource in dealing with street issues in the DTES, and team members require a unique combination of knowledge, ability, compassion, and street skills that cannot be easily replaced.
CONCLUSION
This report outlines priorities for the continuation of Carnegie Outreach as an integral contribution of the City to the implementation of City and Vancouver Agreement policies regarding social and economic renewal in the Downtown Eastside.
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