Homeless Assistance Library

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Welcome to the Homeless Assistance Library! We have collected information to assist you in creating and administering any number of Homeless Assistance programs.

Defining Chronic Homelessness: A Technical Guide for HUD Programs
This technical guide is intended for non-profit local housing and service providers as well as local government agencies that are under contract with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) to provide housing and related support services to the target population of chronically homeless persons.
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The Homeless in America: A Profile Based on the First Annual Homeless Assessment Report (AHAR)
This report is a national report to Congress on the extent and nature of homelessness in America.
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Report to Congress: HUD's Strategy for Homeless Data Collection, Reporting and Analysis
This report focuses on concerns about data quality and usage issues. They are important because as communities generate more valid data, they will be able to facilitate analysis of housing and service patterns used to evaluate program effectiveness, improve systems of care, better target limited resources, and advocate for increased private investment.
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Q & A for the 2007 Housing Inventory Chart
This Questions and Answer (Q&A) document is designed to help Continuums of Care (CoCs) complete the sections of their Chart I — Housing Inventory Chart (HIC).
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Report to Congress: Measuring "Need" for HUD's McKinney-Vento Homeless Competitive Grants
This report reviews how HUD administratively implements the statutorily based need selection criteria for competitively rating projects seeking McKinney-Vento funding. It contrasts how using alternative existing formulas affects the scoring of project need.
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HUDVet Veteran Resource Center Brochure
This brochure covers the HUD programs that are available to veterans and their families. It also includes important contact information about other HUDVet Federal Contacts.
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Guidance on the Continuum of Care and Education Rights Coordination
This letter to Continuums of Care and national list of State Education Agencies is provided to help CoCs ensure the protection of the education rights to homeless children and their families.
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A Place at the Table: Homeless Veterans and the Local Homeless Assistance Planning Networks
This guidebook is designed to help organizations serving homeless veterans to participate in homeless assistance program planning networks in their communities and access the resources that are available through these networks.

Prisoner Reentry Initiative (PRI)
The FY 2006 Budget combined the resources of faith-based and community organizations and federal assistance to reduce the costs of reincarceration. The PRI is designed to strengthen urban communities through an employment-centered program that incorporates short-term housing, mentoring, job training, and other transitional services. The Solicitation for Grant Applications (SGA) was a collaborative effort among the Departments of Labor, Justice, and HUD.
Summary | SGA | Federal Register Announcement | PRI Conference

A Guide to Counting Unsheltered Homeless People
This guide describes several methods for identifying, counting, and learning about homeless people who are unlikely to be found in shelters or in other residential programs within a local homeless assistance network.
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Report: Strategies for Reducing Chronic Street Homelessness
This project’s aim was to identify successful community-wide approaches to reducing homelessness and achieving stable housing for the difficult-to-serve people who routinely live on the streets. It was also to document these successful approaches in a way that will help other communities trying to address this problem.
more... | Press Release | Focus Message

Placemakers: A Guide to Developing Housing for Homeless People
In assembling this book, we selected presentations, stories and tools specific to the development aspect of housing for homeless people. The materials were selected to give an overview of the critical steps in homeless housing development and to provide tools, methods and inspiration.
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SNAPshots
Vol. 1 Number 1 | Vol.1 Number 2

Homelessness: Programs and the People They Serve
Findings of the National Survey of Homeless Assistance Providers and Clients
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2007 NOFA Chart V Worksheet
This worksheet will help you complete Exhibit 1, Part IV, Chart V - CoC Chronic Homeless (CH) Progress Chart question 3 on the development and operation costs of new permanent supportive housing (PSH) beds for chronically homeless (CH) individuals.
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Discharge Planning From Publicly Funded Institutions
This bibliography represents a selection of the literature on discharge planning from the systems that people who experience chronic homelessness are most often in contact with.
Customized Bibliography

FirstStep
FirstStep is a tool developed for case managers and outreach workers to help assist their clients who are homeless access Federal benefit programs.
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In from the Cold: Safe Havens for Homeless People
This Tool Kit has been developed to guide communities and project sponsors to create effective Safe Havens. It is written by people who have developed and/or operated Safe Havens and mental health consumers have critiqued their ideas. The Kit in-cludes eight chapters covering the key issues surrounding the creation of Safe Havens.
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What Works
HUD developed Job Strategies for Homeless People, a video training package for job development. The kit provides communities with a tool to enhance their Continuum of Care systems.
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The Continuum of Care Forum
The Continuum of Care Forum was held in Denver, Colorado, September 19-20, providing a unique opportunity for organizations that are leading Continuums of Care (CoCs) to consider critical planning, policy and performance issues. Sponsored by HUD, the Forum included presentations on CoC planning and management, as well as other challenges and opportunities related to the important work of CoCs in their communities.
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