1. Continuum of care for the homeless
City of Spokane and Spokane County

2. What is a Continuum of care?
Regional planning body that coordinates housing and services funding for homeless families and individuals.
CoC submits a single application for McKinney-Vento Homeless Assistance Grants to streamline the funding application process and encourage coordination of housing and services
Encourages a more strategic approach to housing and services for those experiencing homelessness.
Four Parts of a
Continuum of Care
Outreach, intake and assessment in order to identify service and housing needs and provide a link to the appropriate level of both;
Emergency Shelter to provide an immediate and safe alternative to sleeping on the streets;
Transitional housing with supportive services to allow for the development of skills that will be needed once permanently housed; and
Permanent and permanent supportive housing to provide individuals and families with an affordable place to live with services if needed.

3. Spokane City / County Continuum of Care Governance Structure APRIL 2018
Continuum of Care Stakeholders
Continuum of Care Board
Primary Decision Making Body – See Membership Representation Chart
Coordination with Spokane County
Coordination with City of Spokane
Selects
Continuum of Care Committees
Collaborative Applicant/
Fiscal Agent (City of Spokane)
HMIS Lead (City of Spokane)
Executive
Membership Recruitment
Nominating Committee
HMIS and Evaluation
HMIS Coordination
Program Evaluation
Planning & Implementation
Coordinated Entry
10-Year Plan
HUD Application Coordination
Funding / RFP
Oversees Request for Proposals and Funding Awards
Staff Support
Issues RFP
Staff Support
Homeless Youth
Veterans
Chronic Homelessness Families
Chronically Homeless Individuals

4. Continuum of Care Board & Membership Structure
Board Representation
2 Representatives - Homeless or Formerly Homeless
3 Representatives - Homeless Services Providers
1 Representative - City of Spokane
1 Representative - Spokane County
1 Representative - City of Spokane Valley
1 Representative - Law & Justice
1 Representative - Behavioral Health & Chemical Dependency
1 Representative - Workforce Development
1 Representative - DSHS Children’s Administration
1 Representative - Public Housing Authority
1 Representative - Veteran’s Administration
1 Representative - Heath Care Provider or Hospital
1 Representative - Business Community
1 Representative - Schools
1 Representative - Chair of Homeless Coalition
1 Representative - Private Funder
2 Representative - At Large
21 Total Board Members
Open Membership
A Continuum of Care member is any individual or organization with an interest in understanding and addressing the issues related to homelessness and a desire to participate in some way in the coordinated plan to end homelessness.
Continuum of Care membership is open to individuals and organizations and shall be broadly based with representatives from nonprofit homeless providers, victim service providers, faith-based organizations, governments, businesses, advocates, public housing agencies, school districts, social service providers, mental health agencies, hospitals, universities, affordable housing developers, law enforcement, organizations that serve homeless and formerly homeless veterans, and homeless and formerly homeless persons.

5. Vision, mission and goals
To bring together resources and resourceful people who create a community where everyone has a safe, stable place to call home.
Mission
To prevent and end homelessness in our area by fostering shared responsibility among stakeholders and coordinating resources essential to the success of local plans to end homelessness.
Key Responsibilities
Lead, develop, follow and update a governance charter.
Establish performance targets and evaluate and act on outcomes.
Establish and oversee operations of a coordinated assessment system
Establish and consistently follow written standards for providing CoC assistance.
Designate and oversee operations of a Homeless management Information System and Collaborative Applicant
Develop a plan to prevent and reduce homelessness.

6. Goals of the Continuum of Care
Goal I: Construct and approve an integrated regional Plan to End Homelessness and coordinate with other regional plans related to homelessness issues. Goal II: Increase leadership, collaboration and civic engagement. Goal III: Increase access to stable and affordable housing. Goal IV: Support effective pathways toward self-sufficiency and reduced financial vulnerability. Goal V: Transform homeless services crisis response systems, including shelters, transitional housing, and other forms of temporary housing, leading to improved health and safety. Goal VI: Advance health and housing stability efforts. Goal VII: Annual review the Plan to End Homelessness, goals and objectives and make revisions as necessary to stay abreast of dynamic conditions.

7. Goals for Today
Listening to front-line providers and stakeholders serving those experiencing homelessness
Learning from your experiences about how we can help and what tools you need.
Identifying a few specific steps we can take in the next year.