Greater Victoria continues to face the challenge of homelessness. In 2007, the Homeless Needs Survey found 1242 people were homeless or at risk for homelessness. When it was formed in 2008, the Greater Victoria Coalition to End Homelessness estimated that approximately 1500 citizens were homeless, or at risk of homelessness, in the Capital Region.

The Greater Victoria 2010 Report on Housing and Supports examines factors such as income, housing affordability and availability, shelter stays and support services, and monitors the changes in these factors and their potential effect.

The report’s data and conclusions will enable the Coalition and its partners – governments, service providers, funders, police, hospitals and businesses – to make decisions resulting in an effective course of action to reduce, and ultimately end, homelessness in Greater Victoria.

This report also informs the public on the status of housing and supports. It is intended as a catalyst to mobilize the community to support initiatives that provide a better quality of life for our citizens in crisis.

The data in this report is drawn from a proposed University of Victoria Master’s Degree thesis, entitled “A Homelessness Report Card for Victoria, British Columbia: Establishing the Process and

Baseline Measures to Enable Annual Homelessness Reporting”, by Tyrone Austen. The full report is available upon request.