POLICY PROJECT: DESIGNING SOLUTIONS FOR HOMELESSNESS IN AUCKLAND Debbie Edwards Senior Policy Manager – Affordable Housing Policy Community and Social Policy Department 21 February 2018

Auckland Council’s position and role Position: Homelessness should be rare, brief and non-recurring. Role: Strengthen levers to improve, end and prevent homelessness with a focus on: Leading and coordinating the development of a regional, cross- sectoral homelessness plan Working with local & central government, NGOs and the private sector Integrating homelessness into relevant policies and regulation Development of a sustainable funding base Monitoring and evaluation    

What does this mean? Unpacking the decision… 1. Broad definition - all forms of homelessness: without shelter (e.g. sleeping rough or in vehicles) in temporary accommodation (e.g. emergency housing) in shared accommodation temporarily (e.g. “couch surfing”) or in uninhabitable housing (e.g. garages). Implications: Focus on the continuum – not just rough sleepers Focus on the housing continuum → Housing supply and demand factors, and problem limitation

What does this mean? Unpacking the decision…

What does this mean? Unpacking the decision… 2. Rare, brief and non-recurring Rare… } Incidence is low, i.e. few new experiences, and Brief… } when it does occur, its for a very short time and Non-recurring… } doesn’t occur again for that individual 3. Improve, end and prevent Improve… } Reducing the negative impacts End… } Enabling return to stable, healthy housing Prevent… } Taking steps so that it doesn’t happen in the first place

What does this mean? Unpacking the decision… Implications → Prevention Understand the supply and demand determinants Reduce the risk factors and strengthen the protective factors Understand the priority populations/communities Where are the greatest needs? What changes would make the biggest possible difference? How do we reduce inequalities? → Early intervention Recognise individual/whanau warning signs, respond quickly, appropriately, and effectively → Interventions for people experiencing homelessness Limit the problems and the impact Provide ongoing support and build resilience Place those with lived experience front and centre

What does this mean? Unpacking the decision… 4. Regional, cross- sectoral homelessness plan Regional… All of Auckland Cross-sectoral … Organisations who can contribute to the outcomes Local/central government, NGOs, Mäori/iwi/mana whenua, academics/ researchers, philanthropics , private sector Implications → Process, outputs and outcomes with shared ownership → No real precedent, so need to create one → Build on what is already there → Emphasis on collaboration

Models/frameworks we are drawing on: → Viable system model – mapping and analysis Purpose and guidance Coordination and collaboration Control structures and processes Interventions/services Scanning and planning → Collective impact → Co-design    → Theory of change/intervention logic

Approach… Engagement Cross-sectoral Leadership Group System mapping with key stakeholders using VSM Journey/pathway mapping with people at risk or with lived experience of homelessness and frontline service providers Implementation → prototyping

Approach… Engagement Co-design solutions with wider group of stakeholders incl. local boards Shared understanding of the problem - determinants, risk/protective factors, priority populations, system issues Homelessness Plan: Vision, objectives, principles, priorities Action Plan: Short-medium term collaborative actions, costed Monitoring and Evaluation Framework

Questions for discussion Designing Solutions From your experience, what are the main determinants or drivers of homelessness? What are the things we should focus on to really turn this around? We need to work together at scale to address this… what will it take? What do we need to do to make this work? If you’d like to be involved, please leave your name, role, organisation and contact details.