The Homeless Vulnerability Index: A Collaborative Community Project to End Homelessness
May 11th, 2010
In partnership with Journey Home, the non-profit corporation guiding the capital region's Ten Year Plan to End Homeless, Hands on Hartford is helping to conduct the Homeless Vulnerability Index (HVI). The HVI survey is a method designed to determine who is at immediate risk of major health problems and even death should they remain in a state of homelessness. The focus is on getting the most vulnerable directly into housing.
The HVI has already been used throughout the country to great success. In New York's Times Square, the Street to Home partnership of Common Ground Community and the Times Square Alliance reduced homelessness in a 20-block area by 87% over two years. In Brooklyn and Queens, over 300 individuals sleeping on the streets have been surveyed. The City of New York has adopted Street to Home as the citywide strategy to reduce street homelessness. Los Angeles County, Santa Monica, and New Orleans have all used a version of the survey to promote rapid response and housing results. Los Angeles County has placed 27 of the 50 most vulnerable persons on Skid Row directly into housing, with an average time from initial contact to housing placement of less than 14 days. Santa Monica has moved 10 of the 110 most vulnerable persons into housing, and the City Council has pledged support for all 110. UNITY of Greater New Orleans used the survey results to secure emergency housing funds initially for the 41 people identified as most at risk, and subsequently for a total of more than 50 of 150 individuals surveyed.
Volunteer support is greatly needed to make this event a success. Volunteers will be helping the guests in Hartford area homeless shelters fill out the HVI surveys and entering the data so it can be calculated. Please see attached flyer for information and the Project Calendar for volunteer time slots. Volunteers are urgently needed to help with surveys on Tuesday May 11 and Wednesday May 12.
Downloads
HVI Flyer
PDF Document, 26 kB
