A new toolkit provides best practices for victim service providers, housing developers, and property managers involved in building and operating permanent supportive housing for domestic violence survivors.
The Creating Permanent Supportive Housing to Meet the Needs of Survivors of Domestic Violence toolkit offers guidance for effectively meeting the permanent housing needs of victims beyond the shelter, transitional housing, and rapid re-housing models.
Permanent Supportive Housing is a long-term, service-rich housing model for supporting individuals with complex needs, including victims of domestic violence. It focuses on four key principles:
- Affordability: Residents pay no more than 30 percent of their income toward rent. Rental subsidy programs are often used to finance programs.
- Safety and Comfort: Residents are ensured safety and comfort through quality building maintenance and enhanced security, with residents’ input informing program priorities and fostering community.
- Flexible and Accessible Support Services: Residents are provided with services on a voluntary basis, usually onsite, which are tailored to an individual’s needs, with a priority on the skills needed to maintain housing stability such as financial management and job training.
- Empowerment and Independence: Residents are supported in making their own choices, engaging in services on their own terms, and achieving full independence if possible.
The toolkit incorporates unique perspectives from architects, service providers, survivors, housing developers, and other key stakeholders and provides—
- guidance on designing and implementing a program,
- recommendations for obtaining funding,
- a focus on the importance of involving survivors in the development of trauma-informed services,
- and more.
This toolkit was created by the Downtown Women’s Center and National Alliance for Safe Housing. The National Alliance for Safe Housing is a training and technical assistance provider for the Domestic Violence and Housing Technical Assistance Consortium. Funded in part by OVC, the Consortium provides training, technical assistance, and resource development at the critical intersection of domestic and sexual violence, homelessness, and housing.