Homeless Count Tables - City of Prince George

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Prince George Homeless Count Report 2010 challenging in smaller communities. Challenges such as these can cause a delay in the planning process which, in turn, can result in a ‘rush’ to finalize and complete the Count within the set time frame. It is important to stress that the time set for the count is crucial in a northern community. While CPAH committee members first considered a fall count, the committee is busy with Homelessness Action Week during that time. Winter was also considered; however, many agencies report that a significant number of homeless individuals ‘couch surf’ or return to their home communities over the winter months due to the cold. In the end, CPAH decided it would be most sensible for comparative purposes to conduct the second homeless count during the same month as the 2008 Count. In addition, the month of May is a time that ensures the count includes individuals who are still using available shelter and have not yet moved on to other communities, as is common during the summer months. Prince George is the central service centre for the entire northern region and a significant number of the city’s homeless population does not necessarily call this community home, but rather come to the city in order to access services not available in their home communities. Consequently, CPAH does not have the luxury of delaying the Count should the need arise; rather, it places additional pressure on the group to ensure that the Count takes place on time. In the case of the 2010 Count, this meant that additional ‘on the spot’ ethics training had to occur with last-minute volunteers, some volunteers completed several geographical areas, and additional CPAH members were called upon at the last minute to participate in the count. While a successful count was conducted, these are areas of concern that CPAH will continue to work on in future counts to ensure that every count can result in consistent and comparative activities and data. 2.3 Volunteer Recruitment and Coordination Volunteers were recruited from various agencies and community organizations in Prince George during the months of March through May 2010. Over 50 volunteers participated in the 24 hour homeless count. In order to train the homeless count volunteers, CPAH hosted a volunteer information session that provided all volunteers with an information package about the purpose and logistics of the Homeless Count. This two-hour volunteer information and training session was held at the Fire Pit in Prince George, May 6 th 2010. All volunteers were provided with a detailed street count information sheet, including respectful communication practices and information about rescue packs for distribution to people being approached to complete a survey. A second information and training session was held at the AWAC Activity Centre on May 16 th , 2010 (AWAC is an Association Advocating for Women and Children in Prince George). Prior to the start of the Count, volunteers were divided into groups of street counters and agency counters and several volunteers were tasked with the delivery and organization of supplies throughout the community. At the conclusion of the count, volunteers were asked to complete a volunteer information form to gather feedback about their participation and experiences during the count, as well as for record keeping purposes. 12
Prince George Homeless Count Report 2010 Common challenges that the volunteers reported were related to the restricted timeframe of the Homeless Count. Increasing the time allocated to the Count or increasing the days spent conducting the count were some of the suggestions that volunteers offered. 2.4 Count and Survey Scope The 2010 Homeless Count data collection was conducted for a 24 hour period from 6:00 pm on May 16 to 6:00 pm on May 17, 2010. The count was conducted through agencies that homeless individuals might access for shelter or food, as well as on the street and in other select areas. There were 12 agencies that formally participated by taking surveys and utilizing trained staff or volunteers. In a few instances, ‘street’ counters accessed an agency to conduct surveys. For a list of all the agencies, please see Table 1. The outdoor portion of the count was conducted throughout the downtown streets, portions of the Prince George Gateway, Fort George Park, Connaught Hill Park, Freeman Park, Cottonwood Island Park, First Avenue, and some areas west of the Bypass near the Salvation Army, First Avenue and Tabor Blvd. 2.5 Data Collection and Analysis Surveys were made available at participating shelters, service agencies and community centres that homeless individuals access throughout Prince George. For a period early in the morning (beginning at 4:30 am), surveyors were on the streets of downtown and several other areas where homeless people who are either unable to, or choose not to, access Prince George’s shelters, sleep outdoors. A total of 361 surveys were collected and used for analysis. Once collected, the questionnaires were numbered and all data entered into an Excel spread sheet. Closed-ended responses were coded into responses suitable for statistical analysis and analyzed using SPSS version 18.0 3 . The open-ended data was exported into an Excel database for qualitative thematic analysis. To ensure anonymity of all respondents, any identifying information was removed from the data set. 2.6 Organization of this Report This report is organized into four main sections. Section 1 provides an introduction to and some background information about the Prince George Homeless Count as well as the purpose and the objectives of the Count. Section 2 provides detailed information on the methodology applied, the timing and organization of the count as well as the data analysis process. Section 3 of the report provides the 3 SPSS Inc., 2009. 13
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Figure 6 Aboriginal Status Figure 7
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Figure 10 Reported Health Condition
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Prince George Homeless Count Report
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Homeless Count Tables - City of Prince George

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