The U.S. Interagency Council on Homelessness is in the process of updating the Federal Strategic Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness and is requesting input from people who are part of the response to homelessness, people who have a vested interest in ending homelessness, and people with lived experience. To prepare a comprehensive response, the Council on Criminal Justice and Behavioral Health (CCJBH) is hosting a listening session to gather input from a broad range of perspectives regarding barriers and best practices to combat homelessness for the behavioral health and justice involved populations.
The virtual listening session will take place on Wednesday, November 3, 2021, from 11:00 AM – 12:00 PM. The registration link can be found HERE. During this time, CCJBH will share preliminary ideas gathered through staff research and invite participants to share their opinion on the following questions:
- What should the federal government’s top priorities be as they relate to preventing and ending homelessness?
- What are the biggest barriers to ending homelessness in the communities your agency/organization serves?
- How can the federal government more effectively center racial equity in its prevention of or response to homelessness, and how can it best support equitable distribution of/access to resources and equitable outcomes at the local level?
- What lessons have you learned during the COVID-19 pandemic about how the housing, health, and supportive services systems can best respond to people experiencing homelessness?
- Both Opening Doors and Home, Together included a goal to end homelessness for all Americans, as well as goals to end homelessness among specific subpopulations. For the next plan:
- Would it be helpful to set similar goals?
- If so, should there be subpopulation-specific goals or just one goal to end all homelessness?
- Should the goals include target dates?
For additional reference, USICH’s has two previous strategic plans, Opening Doors and Home, Together. USICH is placing an emphasis on:
- Sustaining or building on what’s working and leading to positive outcomes;
- Reflecting on what we’re learning from evolving practices;
- Addressing areas in need of greater attention, including racial disparities in the risk for and experience of homelessness; and
- Identifying opportunities to align strategies with federal, state, and local priorities.
If you would like to make comments directly to USICH, visit their website.
We look forward to your participation!