A good and healthy home, with proper supports, is better than a bed in a homeless shelter. That’s the main observation in the City of Toronto’s Core Service Review of homeless and support services by KPMG consultants. The Wellesley Institute fully supports a measured process that allows people to move from homelessness to home, and we recognize that Toronto’s Shelter, Support and Housing Administration has an important role in managing the process and also delivering key services and supports.
But the key message in our submission to the City of Toronto’s Community Development and Recreation Committee is that a “housing-first” approach to ending homelessness has to be combined with a commitment to ensure that there is adequate housing in place first.