Building An Effective Coordinated Entry System The pursuing housing success conference Thursday, February 7, 2019 Three CoCs will be sharing their coordinated entry systems to provide a showcase of how coordinated entry has been implemented across Virginia. This session will focus on the development of the core components (access, assessment, prioritization, and referral) of an effective coordinated entry system and how PATH and PSH programs can be integrated into the system to ensure programs are targeting the most vulnerable.

Session Presenters Maddi Zagraff - The Planning Council overseeing Greater Virginia Peninsula Homeless Consortium (GVPHC) and Southeastern Virginia Homelessness Coalition Mary Frances Kenion - Arlington, VA overseeing Arlington County Continuum of Care Sam Shoukas – George Washington Regional Continuum of Care overseeing Fredericksburg Regional Continuum of Care (FRCoC)

CONTINUUM OF CARE (COC) A federally mandated network of organizations working together to prevent and end homelessness in a given region through a strategic planning process. The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act was signed into law in 1987 and was the first federal legislative response to homelessness. Originally, the act created federal programs targeting basic needs such as shelter, housing, and education for individuals and families. The act has been amended many times over the years to expand and clarify programing. In 2009, the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act passed, amending and reauthorizing the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act with substantial changes. There are currently 16 Continua of Care in the state of Virginia.

CONTINUUM OF CARE (COC) The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act was signed into law in 1987 and was the first federal legislative response to homelessness. Originally, the act created federal programs targeting basic needs such as shelter, housing, and education for individuals and families. The act has been amended many times over the years to expand and clarify programing. In 2009, the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act passed, amending and reauthorizing the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act with substantial changes. There are currently 16 Continua of Care in the state of Virginia.

COORDINATED ENTRY An approach to coordination and management of a crisis response system’s resources that allow users to make consistent decisions from available information to efficiently and effectively connect people to interventions that will rapidly end their homelessness. The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act was signed into law in 1987 and was the first federal legislative response to homelessness. Originally, the act created federal programs targeting basic needs such as shelter, housing, and education for individuals and families. The act has been amended many times over the years to expand and clarify programing. In 2009, the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act passed, amending and reauthorizing the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act with substantial changes. There are currently 16 Continua of Care in the state of Virginia.

PLANNING 1 Manage unrealistic expectations – Coordinated Entry will not increase housing, services or resources, nor will it reduces the challenges of serving households with multiple barriers to obtaining or maintaining housing. 2 Include a diverse group of stakeholders in the planning process – think beyond your core service providers and partners. 3 Be flexible and responsive to new information about more effective approaches to Coordinated Entry – it is an ever evolving practice. The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act was signed into law in 1987 and was the first federal legislative response to homelessness. Originally, the act created federal programs targeting basic needs such as shelter, housing, and education for individuals and families. The act has been amended many times over the years to expand and clarify programing. In 2009, the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act passed, amending and reauthorizing the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act with substantial changes. There are currently 16 Continua of Care in the state of Virginia.

Guiding principles A Coordinated Entry System: Allows anyone in need of assistance to know where to go to access services, be assessed in standard/consistent way and connect with the housing/services that best meets their needs; Ensures clarity, transparency, consistency, and accountability for clients, referral sources and providers throughout the assessment and referral process; Establishes standard, consistent eligibility criteria and prioritization standards; Facilitates exits from homelessness to stable housing in the most rapid manner possible given available resources; Promotes collaboration, communication, and sharing of knowledge regarding resources among providers; Limits data collection to that which is relevant to the process.

CORE ELEMENTS OF COORDINATED ENTRY Access Assessment Prioritization Referral The McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act was signed into law in 1987 and was the first federal legislative response to homelessness. Originally, the act created federal programs targeting basic needs such as shelter, housing, and education for individuals and families. The act has been amended many times over the years to expand and clarify programing. In 2009, the Homeless Emergency Assistance and Rapid Transition to Housing (HEARTH) Act passed, amending and reauthorizing the McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Act with substantial changes. There are currently 16 Continua of Care in the state of Virginia.

Access The engagement point for persons experiencing a housing crisis can look and function differently depending on the specific community to include one or more of the following: Crisis hotline Access point facility (hospital, drop-in center, partner organizations, etc.) Foster care system School system Justice system Faith-based organizations PATH/Outreach Access refers to how people experiencing a housing crisis access the homeless response services. We have developed community access points which provide access to our entire region. These access points are the first step for all persons seeking assistance to request services.

assessment A standardized process to assess housing needs, preferences and vulnerability that can include: Diversion Assessment Tool Homelessness Asset and Risk Screening Tool Housing Barrier Assessment Service Prioritization Assistance Tool (SPDAT) Shelter and Diversion Screening Form Vulnerability Assessment Tool For more information on various screening tools, check out this resource: https://homelesshub.ca/sites/default/files/ScreeningforHF-Table-Nov17.pdf Assessment refers to the process by which providers use standardized forms with all persons seeking assistance. This occurs in a staged approach, only asking for the needed information needed to get the person to the next step or to refer to needed services.   Coordinated assessment- Completed with all persons at initial contact prior to entering any other projects. The overall goal of coordinated assessment is to: Divert whenever possible: Work with households in crisis to think through possible housing options that could stop them from coming into the homeless system altogether. Triage for immediate need: Quickly assess the immediate needs of the household and make a decision about what the most appropriate service would be for them. Collect needed information to get to next step. We want to be sure that we are able to collect needed information that will allow the household to get to the services that they need without having to retell their story or answer the same questions 50 times, delaying their progress. Later on, other assessments (i.e. VI-SPADAT or Housing Barrier assessment) are completed in order to prioritize or refer to housing services.

Prioritization During assessment, a household’s needs and level of vulnerability are documented to help the CoC target its inventory of community housing resources and services, ensuring that those with the greatest need and vulnerability receive the supports they need to resolve their housing crisis. Prioritization factors can include: Where someone stayed the night before assessment Vulnerability Special subpopulations (Chronic homelessness, Veterans, Youth, Families, etc.) Length of time homeless Housing barriers High-cost service users Many communities use a By-Name List as a real-time tool of people experiencing homelessness as a critical component of Coordinated Entry to facilitate better coordination and target resources.  Prioritization is the step by which people who have been assessed are ranked based on vulnerability and are prioritized for who will be provided the community’s limited housing resources, with the most vulnerable receiving assistance first. Information is collected on households that are currently enrolled in programs and have a completed VI-SPADAT are included on the list and ranked for prioritization.

referral Households are referred to an appropriate intervention available through CoC resources and services in accordance with the CoC’s documented prioritization. Referrals can include: Diversion Prevention Emergency Shelter Transitional Housing Rapid Re-housing Permanent Supportive Housing

PATH AND COORDINATED ENTRY Access Point By-name List Meetings Referral Source Link To Treatment, Resources And Housing Bridge To Housing

EFFECTIVE COORDINATED ENTRY: IMPACT Without Coordinated Entry With Coordinated Entry But why do we it? Our community participates in coordinated entry because HUD requires it, but also because we want to be sure that: Everyone is assessed in a standard and consistent way; Everyone is matched with the housing/services that best meet their needs; and We are able to assist more people by diverting whenever possible and only providing the minimum amount of services that are needed to stabilize the household (progressive engagement).

THANK you Maddi Zingraff mzingraff@theplanningcouncil.org Mary Frances Kenion mkenion@arlingtonva.us Sam Shoukas shoukas@gwregion.org