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Definitions and Numbers
Homeless in Canada, the title of this page, refers in the first instance to those with "no home or permanent abode", but the underlying condition is better
expressed by the term "homelessness", encompassing a range of economic and social factors which have negative impact upon health and well-being. Such factors include poverty, lack of
affordable housing, lack of health care supports and social supports — all of which may be understood as problems of social inequality and social exclusion. The chronic nature of
these problems is perpetuated by ideological stances that are significantly different (sometimes even antipodal) at the community, provincial and national levels. While many communities across the country are working to develop and
maintain homelessness initiatives, for example, informed by multi-disciplinary research and delivered through service agencies closely attuned to local need, these initiatives are
difficult to sustain in the absence of provincial and national policies (social, economic, housing) which adequately address fundamental issues and provide consistent support over time.
Dealing with homelessness necessitates collective action, at all levels of government, and truly effective collective action demands a paradigmatic shift, a movement beyond
ideological fixations on "self-reliance". In terms of policy development, it requires an emphasis on equality and inclusivity in the social contract, in civil society, and in the community.
Homelessness is tied to various social ills, including substance abuse, domestic violence (including violence against elders, spouses, and children), shortages of affordable urban housing,
high unemployment rates including frictional and seasonal unemployment, racial discrimination and discrimination against the poor, and untreated or inadequately treated mental illness.
The causes of homelessness plainly give rise to special issues of social policy at the intersection of the fields of economics, medicine, urban planning, child and family protection, welfare reform,
and so on. The formulation of opinion on these issues demand insight into the specialized fields in which they emerge. More vexing is the reality that these issues often intersect in troublesome
ways to deny the neophyte a simple uncomplicated remedy.
In 2007, The UN Special Rapporteur on adequate housing urged the federal government to commit to funding programmes to realize a comprehensive national housing strategy and to co-ordinate
actions among the provinces and territories, to meet Canada’s housing rights obligations. In recent decades, Canadian policymakers have consistently failed to implement policies or allocate
adequate funding to meet this country’s housing rights commitments.
[H]omelessness involves many problems related to both federal and provincial jurisdictions, such as, policies related to mental illness, addictions,
welfare, minimum wage laws, landlord and tenant acts and child protection, which are provincial responsibilities, affected by federal transfer payments, and policies related to
aboriginal peoples, which is a federal responsibility. Policies in other areas related to social housing and seniors as examples, fall into both federal and provincial areas. The
question becomes one of the community’s ability to cope with the people who are homeless as a result of provincial and federal government policy in these areas, especially
when the “community” has limited powers of taxation and social policy formation.
Defining "Homelessness" in Canada
The way a problem is defined has important policy implications: not only can the definition influence the perceived extent of the problem, but it can also
circumscribe the possible solutions. No single definition of homelessness is "official" in Canada, and advocates, researchers, and policy makers have
interpreted the issue in a multitude of ways. 1
Most take into account two important facets of homelessness: the specific housing situation and the duration and/or frequency of homeless episodes. 2
Homelessness is a broad term that can encompass a range of housing conditions. These can be understood on a continuum of types of shelter: 3
- At one end, absolute homelessness is a narrow concept that includes only those living on the street or in emergency shelters.
- Hidden or concealed homelessness is in the middle of the continuum. These include people without a place of their own who live in a car, with family
or friends, or in a long-term institution.
- At the other end of the continuum, relative homelessness is a broad category that includes those who are housed but who reside in substandard
shelter and/or who may be at risk of losing their homes.
[...] In addition to addressing housing situations, definitions of homelessness often contain the element of time. The frequency and persistence of homeless episodes
can have important consequences for how the problem is understood and addressed. Broad categories include:
- chronic homelessness, long-term or repeated homelessness, often experienced by those with chronic illness or addiction problems;
- cyclical homelessness, resulting from a change of circumstance, for example having been released from an institution; and
- temporary homelessness, relatively short in duration, sometimes caused by natural disasters or a house fire.8
The various facets of homelessness inform a variety of definitions of the term. [...]
[...] Enumerating Homelessness in Canada
Despite the visibility of homelessness in Canada, there are no accurate national statistics on the size of the homeless population. 13 Canada's National Secretariat on Homelessness
has estimated that the problem affects approximately 150,000 people, 14 although other reports identify as many as 300,000 homeless in Canada. 15 The lack of reliable data
may limit the country's ability to address homelessness and has been a focus for international criticism. During a visit to Canada in October 2007, for example, the then-UN Special Rapporteur
on adequate housing, Miloon Kothari, reported that he "was disappointed that the Government could not provide reliable statistics on the number of homeless." 16 The UN Committee on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights has voiced similar concerns. 17 [...]
- The definitions of "homelessness" vary, with cited authors providing their own definitions. This publication makes no attempt to reach one definition of "homelessness," but rather highlights the variety of meanings of the term.
- Some authors have specified the problem as one of "houselessness." The use of this term avoids confusion over the affective connotations of the word "home." For example, see Sabine Springer, Homelessness: a proposal for a global definition and classification, Habitat International, Vol. 24, 2000, pp. 475–84.
- Marie-Chantal Girard, Determining the Extent of the Problem: The Value and Challenges of Enumeration, Canadian Review of Social Policy, Vol. 58, 2006, p. 104.
- Patricia Begin et al., Homelessness, PRB 99-1E, Parliamentary Information and Research Service, Library of Parliament, Ottawa, 8 January 1999, p. 8.
- Human Resources and Social Development Canada,
Understanding Homelessness,
14 August 2008.
- Sarah Pye, "The Homeless Individuals and Families Information System (HIFIS) Initiative:
Using Information and Communication Technologies to Build Knowledge and Understanding on Homelessness," PDF (73 kB, 6 pages), National Secretariat on Homelessness, Gatineau, Quebec, n.d.,
p. 1.
- Gordon Laird, Shelter – Homelessness in a Growth Economy: Canada's 21st Century Paradox
PDF (2.58 MB, 98 pages), Sheldon Chumir Foundation for Ethics in Leadership, Calgary, Alberta, 2007, p. 4.
- UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR),
Promotion and Protection of all Human Rights, Civil, Political, Economic, Social and Cultural Rights, Including the Right to Development: Preliminary Note
on the Mission to Canada, Report of the Special Rapporteur on adequate housing as a component of the right to an adequate standard of living, and on the right
to non-discrimination in this context, Miloon Kothari, A/HRC/7/16/Add.4, 28 February 2008, para. 8, available under
"Canada (October 2007): Preliminary note".
- UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights,
UN Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights: Concluding Observations, Canada,
E/C.12/CAN/CO/4; E/C.12/CAN/CO/5, 22 May 2006, para. 28.
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[...]
How many?
The latest federal estimate conservatively places the number of homeless individuals in Canada at about
150,000.1 Some non-governmental sources estimate Canada's true homeless population, not just those
living in emergency shelters, to be between 200,000 and 300,000.2
It is estimated that roughly 65,000 young people are homeless or living in homeless shelters throughout the country at some time during
the year.3 [...]
- "A Snapshot of Homelessness in Canada," National Homelessness Initiative, 2006 www.homelessness.gc.ca cited in
Gordon Laird, Shelter, Homelessness in a Growth Economy, Canada's 21st Century Paradox, A Report for the Sheldon
Chumir Foundation for Ethics in Leadership, 2007
- "Homelessness", The Globe and Mail, June 12, 2006; National Housing and Homeless Network in Laird, op.cit., page 4.
- CBC: The Fifth Estate – No Way Home – March 10, 2004
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The challenges of Homelessness
There are many causes of homelessness, including insufficient affordable housing and housing supply, low income, the gap between income and affordability, mental health and/or substance
abuse issues, family conflict, violence, job loss, breakdown, and inadequate discharge planning (ex-offenders, mentally ill persons, and persons leaving the care of the child welfare system).
An estimated 150,000 to 300,000 people are homeless in Canada, living in shelters or on the streets. On any given night, 40,000 people stay in homeless shelters. Single men are the largest
segment of homeless people in most Canadian cities, but homelessness is rising among both single women and lone-parent families headed by women. Families with children living in poverty, street
youth, Aboriginal persons, persons with mental illness, the working poor, and new immigrants are disproportionately reflected in the homeless population.
For more information about the Homelessness Partnering Strategy, to obtain a copy of a community plan, or to enquire about a Call for Proposal process in your own community, please contact the
Homelessness Partnering Strategy Representative in your region. |
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