**GOVERNMENT OF CANADA NEWS RELEASE**

Every Canadian deserves a safe and affordable place to call home. The COVID-19 pandemic in Canada is having real, tangible public health and safety impacts on all Canadians. It is necessary to ensure that the homeless-serving sector has all the tools and interventions they need to prepare, prevent and manage this disease.

Today, the Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister for Families, Children and Social Development, announced that the Government of Canada designated Cochrane District (Timmins) as one of the six new communities selected to receive funding of $287,420 in 2020-21 and $456,585 per year until 2023-2024 to prevent and reduce homelessness under the Designated Communities stream of Reaching Home: Canada’s Homelessness Strategy.

 

Reaching Home provides long-term stable funding to communities that face challenges with homelessness. Funding is provided to a single body, known as a Community Entity (e.g. a municipality or established non-profit organization), that distributes funding to support local priorities identified in the community’s homelessness plan.

 

In Spring 2019, the Department launched a two-step application process to identify new Designated Communities. To select new communities, the Department considered their demonstrated need for homelessness funding as well as their capacity to effectively manage federal investments and improve their local chronic homelessness by 50% by fiscal year 2027-2028.

“Local communities play a big role in helping Canadians experiencing homelessness. We are proud to include Cochrane District (Timmins) as a Designated community under Reaching Home so that they can better serve vulnerable groups, while we work together to reduce chronic homelessness in Canada.”
– The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Families, Children and Social Development

 

 Quick Facts

  • The six communities selected for the expansion of the Designated Communities stream are: Abbotsford, BC; Cochrane District (Timmins), ON; Lambton County, ON; Cowichan Valley, BC; Chilliwack, BC, and Kenora, ON.
  • The expansion of the Designated Communities stream by six communities will provide approximately $1.9 million in 2020–21, and approximately $3 million in each fiscal year from 2021-22 to 2023-2024.
  • Reaching Home is a community-based program aimed at supporting local efforts to prevent and reduce homelessness. It is part of the National Housing Strategy and contributes to its goal of reducing chronic homelessness by 50% by 2027-28.
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