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| © 2006 Alliance to End Homelessness in Suburban Cook County. All rights reserved. |
updated april 11, 2006
What We Do
| What is a Continuum of Care? The Continuum of Care (CoC) is a community plan to organize and deliver housing and services to meet the specific needs of people who are homeless as they move to stable housing and maximum self-sufficiency. It includes action steps to end homelessness and prevent a return to homelessness. The US Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) initiated the Continuum of Care process in 1994 to encourage a coordinated, strategic approach to planning for programs that assist homeless individuals and families. The CoC approach fundamentally reorganized the mechanism by which McKinney-Vento homeless assistance funds were awarded, consolidating Shelter Plus Care, Supportive Housing Program, and Section 8 Moderate Rehabilitation for SRO into a single competitive grant process. This change encouraged communities to develop comprehensive systems to address the range of needs of different homeless populations. To apply for these funds, jurisdictions must submit a Continuum of Care Plan that demonstrates broad participation of community stakeholders and that identifies the resources and gaps in the community’s approach to providing the range of homeless services. These services include: homelessness prevention; outreach; emergency, transitional, and permanent housing; and related services for people who are homeless. Community stakeholders determine local priorities for funding. Fundamental components of a Continuum of Care system HUD identified the fundamental components of a comprehensive Continuum of Care system to be:
In addition, a Continuum of Care system should include a focus on homelessness prevention strategies and services. Why is a Continuum of Care plan important? A comprehensive Continuum of Care plan considers the needs of all people who are homeless. This means that in most communities there are different components of the Continuum of Care in operation that respond to the particular housing and service needs of different subpopulations of homeless people. Assess capacity and identify gaps: Continuum of Care planning provides communities with an opportunity to step back, critically assess capacity, and develop solutions to move homeless people toward permanent housing and self- sufficiency. Proactive rather than reactive: Continuum of Care planning helps communities look comprehensively at needs and to anticipate policy or demographic changes and develop the capacity to respond to these changes. Common goals for which to advocate: Continuum of Care planning helps communities develop a common vision and set common goals. Coordination and linkages: Continuum of Care planning helps providers identify ways of coordinating and linking resources to avoid duplication and facilitate movement toward permanent housing and self-sufficiency. Community “buy-in” and access to mainstream resources: Continuum of Care planning ideally involves stakeholders outside of the traditional homeless system with the goal of educating these stakeholders and getting them to become part of the solution. Competitiveness for McKinney Homeless Assistance Funding: Comprehensive and inclusive Continuum of Care planning makes communities highly competitive for receipt of McKinney Homeless Assistance funding through the Homeless SuperNOFA process. The plan will also be useful in leveraging other, non-McKinney resources needed to build a comprehensive system to address homelessness. About Our Continuum of Care The Alliance to End Homelessness in Suburban Cook County is a non-profit organization responsible for planning and coordination of homeless services and housing options for all of Cook County outside of Chicago and Evanston. Cook County is an urban county that includes 956 square miles of the upper northeastern section of State of Illinois. With a population of approximately 5.4 million people, it is the second most populous county in the nation. The County contains 138 municipalities within its boundaries. The cities of Chicago and Evanston each have their own Continuum of Care. The Alliance service area includes the other 136 municipalities, which cover 573 square miles within 30 Suburban Townships of Cook County. The Alliance organizes its work at the local grassroots level into three Community Based Service Areas (CBSAs) for Homeless Assistance. These CBSAs—serving the north, west, and south areas of suburban Cook County—form a collaborative homeless assistance information, referral, shelter, and service delivery system within their local communities. Monthly meetings of the CBSA groups provide a forum to network, plan, and share information about each agency’s services. The CBSAs have been instrumental in the overall development and implementation of the Continuum of Care strategy for the Alliance. The Alliance holds monthly meetings of the full Board of Directors. Committee meetings are conducted as needed to accomplish tasks and goals of the Strategic Plan. The key to the success of the Continuum of Care process is the inclusion of all community members. Membership of the Alliance to End Homelessness in Suburban Cook County includes the following groups:
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Service Area
Click here to a map
of Cook County
Click here to a map
of Cook County
| 1107 S. Mannheim Road Suite 304 Westchester, IL 60154 Voice 708.345.4035 Fax 708.345.7855 |
