Outreach
The information and resources here are intended to support your efforts to implement effective housing-focused street outreach services in your community.
Housing-Focused Street Outreach Resources
Below you will find information and tools from a number of sources. Remember, you can also always search on the Homeless Hub and the Homelessness Learning Hub for further street outreach related information.
Keep checking back here as we will be regularly updating materials and adding further resources.
Role of Outreach and Other Outreach Information
- Housing Focused Outreach Overview (Feb 2023, HUD Exchange) – a four page overview with extensive list of links to additional documents
- Core Elements of Effective Street Outreach to People Experiencing Homelessness – A Checklist (USICH, 2019)
- Role of Outreach in a Housing First Program – one-page diagram
- NAEH Homeless Street Outreach Video Series (2023)- See also NAEH Center for Learning – Street Outreach Training
- The Challenge of Outreach (2 min)
- First Contact and Establishing Trust (3 min)
- Safety for the Street Outreach Team (3 min)
- What Peers Bring to the Work (3 min)
- Involving People with Lived Experience (14 min)
- Webinars and Podcasts:
- Promoting Safety in Street Outreach (National Healthcare for Homelessness Council, 2022) – Recording and Presentation (PDF)
- Coordinating Outreach and Using Technology (CAEH Webinar, 2021) – Recording and Presentation (PDF) – Niagara Region and Kelowna share their efforts to coordinate and map outreach with the aid of locally developed apps.
- Lessons Learned from Outreach Workers (HUD webinar, 2021) – Recording and Transcript
- Outreach and Identification Podcast (USICH, 2019)
OrgCode Resources
- What Makes Good Street Outreach in the Era of Coordinated Entry (blog, May 2021)
- Impactful Outreach (blog, February, 2021)
- Impactful Outreach Presentation (NAEH Conference, 2020)
- 5 Thoughts on Street Outreach to Housing (blog, April 2017)
NAEH Unsheltered Blog Series
Frameworks, Guidelines, Policies, Procedures & Tools
- Coordinate Outreach Coverage – Key Considerations, Tips & Resources (Built for Zero Canada, 2019)
- Outreach Coverage and Coordination Tool (CAEH) – a Google Form you can copy and use to identify unsheltered homelessness coverage and coordination in your community.
- Northern Michigan Street Outreach Manual (2023) – 22 page guide to effective housing-focused street outreach.
- San Diego Street Outreach Standards (2021) – see also Training Requirements and Street Outreach Engagement Presentation.
- Kikinanaw ôma: Strategy to Support Unsheltered Winnipeggers (2020 and 2021) – includes strategy and one year implementation follow-up
- Sample Outreach Policies from US BFZ-C Communities: Central Virginia, Rockford (IL), Tucson (AZ)
- Unsheltered Homeless Outreach and Engagement Toolkit (Corporation for Supportive Housing, 2018) – includes information on roles of outreach worker and supervisors, many sample policies and data collection forms (download in Word and adapt as needed)
- Assertive Outreach Good Practices Guidelines and Resources (Homelessness New South Wales, Australia, 2021) – includes a guidelines document, manual, and webinars
- Assertive Outreach Resource (Council of Homelessness Persons, Australia, 2019) – 10 page document explaining what is assertive outreach, why it is needed, 6 key elements, and concerns and practice tips
- Street Outreach Program Standard Operating Procedures (Roanoke, Virginia, 2016)
- Homeless Outreach Program Framework (BC Housing, 2018)
Program Areas
Emergency Shelter | Diversion | Outreach | Housing Help and Landlords | Housing with Support | Prevention | Partnering with Other Systems | Peers and Lived Experience | Indigenous Resources