Homeless Outreach Program

How We Can Help

Engage with unsheltered individuals dealing with homelessness and provide support services to help stabilize lives.

Connect with individuals with no income, including making and going with individuals to appointments to seek income.

Assist individuals to locate a rental unit, apply to social housing, and set up new home with furniture.

Provide follow-up support that ensures individuals have effectively transitioned to housing and are receiving appropriate health and social service programs and services.

Provide support services to improve skills, personal health and hygiene, household management, financial management, crisis intervention and problem solving and provide follow-up related to these areas.

Liaise with and refer to community agencies, groups, organizations and businesses

Services Available

OUTREACH SERVICES
To individuals presenting complex needs who are dealing with homelessness or are at risk of being homeless

REFERRALS
To community services, such as affordable market housing, food programs, medical, income services, and temporary shelter

PRACTICAL ASSISTANCE
To those seeking long term housing and to those needing support services to ensure long-term success living in the community

ADVOCACY
For those unable to find or use
the help they require

LIFE SKILLS COACHING
To improve daily living effectiveness

Progressive Housing is Going Mobile!

Our new mobile unit brings supplies and services to those dealing with homelessness around Burnaby. Equipped with wireless for on-the-spot housing searches, the van is operated by two outreach workers and offers support and health services to many who would otherwise not reach us. Our Goal is to maintain a confidential, low barrier, multi-faceted program that assists anyone in need of help

We're on the road 4 days per week and serve 4 locations in Burnaby,

You will find us at:
Our Outreach Resource Center
Southside Community Church
7135 Walker Ave, Burnaby
Every Thursday 9 - noon

For more locations, see our resources page.
You can contact us at: 604.525.1488 or 1.877.522.9669 from payphone

Providing non-judgmental, safe, free and confidential outreach services to any person in Burnaby who presents a need for assistance within the staff's scope of work.All work done by Outreach Workers is based on the tenets of psychosocial rehabilitation, recovery, and wellness.

Homeless People may experience a number of threats to a happy and healthy life:

Poor nutrition
Sleep deprivation
Constant threat of harm
Drug or alcohol addictions
Untreated mental illness
Poor hygiene
Loss of family/friends/work/relationship/house
Social stigma – current political views, prejudice & basic lack of understanding

Since opening in November 2006, our outreach workers have:

served over 2300 meals (an average of 50-60 people per week)
made over 2000 contacts with people either dealing with or at risk of homelessness
assisted 125 people in obtaining housing supports, with 10 people permanently placed with BC Housing

Why are People Homeless?

Outreach workers estimate that 250-300 people in Burnaby are dealing with the issue of homelessness right now.

They each have their own story. But every story has the same elements: addiction, mental illness, not enough income, or inability to get low-cost housing, Without housing, their hopes of stabilizing and improving the quality of their lives is low.

Welfare payments and other government income assistance do help, but the maximum housing allowance available to a single person on welfare is $375 per month.

Average rent for a one bedroom apartment in the Greater Vancouver is just over $800 per month - about half of what a person working 40 hours a week at $10/hr earns before any taxes or deductions.

Affordable housing should cost no more than 30% of pre-tax income. The homeless issue affects everyone. Studies have shown that it is more costly to ignore the problem than to do something about it.

At Progressive Housing, we are making a difference. By supplying outreach services, referrals, practical assistance, advocacy, and life skills coaching, we are improving lives one life at a time.

Why not join us?
Become a member or community partner as we work together to end homelessness.

Contact us to find out how to partner with us
604-522-9669 604-522-9669