Square One Community, Inc. has released a 95-page report on the results of Moose Jaw's first-ever Point-In-Time (PIT) count, which saw 55 volunteers spend approximately four hours surveying every willing individual they saw on Aug. 26, 2023.
The survey took months of research and preparation by co-ordinator Desiree Lalonde, who then spent months analyzing the results and writing the report nearly single-handed. Lalonde, a registered social worker, had to navigate complex data requirements to ensure the survey and its results were in line with national standards.
Survey volunteers spoke to everyone they could on Aug. 26, including soliciting input from community members unaffected by housing issues, as well as keeping a tally of people who weren't willing to talk but appeared to be experiencing some form of homelessness.
Lalonde detailed two major caveats to the report. Firstly, a PIT count can only provide a limited snapshot of a particular day — it should not be viewed as comprehensive. Secondly, a PIT count focuses on those experiencing 'absolute' homelessness — it cannot measure the 'hidden homeless', people whose living situations and access to shelter are unreliable, dangerous, and/or unpredictable.
Square One continues to work toward the opening of a warming/cooling shelter, and a dedicated women's emergency overnight shelter. The organization hopes the PIT count data will help it to secure sustainable funding for those goals.
PIT Count result highlights
Surveyors spoke to 26 individuals who both self-identified as experiencing homelessness and agree to participate — 9 females, 1 unknown, 16 males.
Surveyors tallied 32 instances of 'observed homelessness' — this data is for informational purposes only, as observations are unconfirmed.
The summary below is for the 26 confirmed respondents (where the numbers do not add up, responses were unclear or not given):
- 23 desire permanent housing, while 1 said they did not want housing
- Participants were aged from 17 to 61
- 13 said they sometimes had a place to sleep, but did not have access to permanent, reliable shelter
- 6 said they had other family members with them, including 5 children and 2 adult partners
- First experiences of homelessness varied between infancy (including one respondent who said they were born to a homeless parent) and 57
- 8 individuals first experienced homelessness before 18; 6 individuals first experienced homelessness between 20 and 28; 6 were between 31 and 38; 2 were between 45 and 46, and 1 was 57
- 23 respondents said they experienced homelessness intermittently over the past year; 11 said they were homeless for the entire past year; 6 said they were homeless for at least half of the past year
- 14 had stayed in a shelter within the past year
- Reasons for not staying in a shelter included overcrowding, safety concerns, lack of transportation, disallowed drug use, and not liking the rules
- 21 identified as Canadian citizens; 1 was a permanent resident; 2 were international students; 2 did not respond to the citizenship question
- 4 were from Moose Jaw; 3 have been here at least 2 years; 9 have been here over 3.5 years; 7 had been in the city less than 47 days; 7 did not respond
- 14 did not identify as First Nations; 6 identified as First Nations/Indigenous ancestry; 3 identified as Métis
- 8 had experience with foster care; 16 had no experience with foster care
- 11 identified as having an illness or medical condition; 9 identified as having a physical limitation; 11 identified as having a learning or cognitive limitation; 18 identified as having a mental health issue, diagnosed or not; 15 identified as having a substance use issue; 6 identified as having an acquired brain injury; 6 identified as having a health challenge from residential school/intergenerational trauma
- 16 had visited an emergency room in the last 12 months; 9 had been hospitalized in the last 12 months
- 19 had interacted with police within the last 12 months, including tickets, arrests, and searches
- 6 said they had lost their housing due to low income; 6 said they lost their housing because of substance use; 4 because of mental health challenges; 4 because of conflict with a spouse or partner; 3 had lost housing due to consequences of divorce; 3 said it was because of abuse
The full survey report is available at www.squareonehousingmoosejaw.com/community-initatives/2023pitcountreport, and includes further information such as barriers to housing, education levels, sources of income, and whether or not homeless individuals were caring for pets.
General public perceptions
Many community members were not affected by homelessness, but agreed to answer questions about their perceptions of the issues:
- 47 per cent regarded the issue of homelessness as 'very serious'; 34 per cent regarded it as 'quite serious'
- 60 per cent regarded addiction as a cause of homelessness; 29 per cent said a lack of affordable housing was the main cause; other reasons included social and family issues, income, inadequate government support, personal choices, and more
Co-operating agency statistics
Lalonde notes in the report that "Despite multiple attempts, I was unsuccessful in obtaining statistics from our local Moose Jaw Housing Authority and Moose Jaw Non-profit Housing Corporation.
"The only available information indicates that they manage 966 units, with 483 allocated for seniors, 411 for families, 11 for group homes, four as rent supplement units, and 28 designated as affordable housing. An additional 41 units under the Moose Jaw Non-Profit Housing Corporation are explicitly designated for the Saskatchewan Health Authority (SHA) and are rented out on a referral basis. Currently, they are at maximum capacity, with no evictions in the past year.
"There is no waitlist for these units, and none are currently undergoing construction or repairs."
Lalonde notes that Chad Topp, the Executive Director of Thunder Creek Rehabilitation Association, has confirmed that, at this time, there are no plans for expansion of available units.
Jenn Angus, executive director of the Moose Jaw Transition House, shared information from her agency. It is important to note that Moose Jaw has no dedicated women's shelter — the mandate of the Transition House is to provide shelter to women and children experiencing Intimate Partner Violence (IPV).
For the Transition House:
- April 2023 – There were six turned away, not IPV-related
- May 2023 – There were four turned away, not IPV-related
- June 2023 – There were twelve turned away, not IPV-related
- July 2023 – There were ten turned away (5 not IPV related, two due to drug use, three due to capacity)
- August 2023 – There were twenty-two turned away (9 not IPV related, 13 due to capacity)
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