Reaching Home Program

The Reaching Home Program: Canada's Homelessness Strategy is a community-based program aimed at reducing and preventing homelessness. Officially launched April 1, 2019, the Government of Canada's Homelessness Strategy supports the most vulnerable people in the capital region by improving access to safe, stable and affordable housing.

Infrastructure Canada has awarded Designated Communities funding to the CRD as the community entity to administer in the Victoria Census Metropolitan Area.

Funding is being allocated to initiatives that address outcomes identified in the 2024-26 Community Plan (PDF), along with Reaching Home Program requirements outlined in the Reaching Home Directives related to Coordinated Access and Homeless Information Management Systems.

The Alignment Project

The CRD is working with BC Housing, the BC Ministry of Housing, Housing, Infrastructure and Communities Canada and other provincial CEs on an aligned partnership for a more integrated response to homelessness at the local level.  Over the last year, our federal and provincial partners have developed shared vision and goals to work with community partners toward a homelessness response in BC that is coordinated, data driven and aligned for greater impact for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness in the province. They have developed shared goals for integrated local governance, a coordinated access process that prevents and reduces homelessness, and data driven approaches to support informed decisions at all levels.  

Currently we’re exploring how we can align Reaching Home program requirements with BC Housing’s Coordinated Access and Assessment program at the community level. The goal is to create a clear, transparent provincial approach that is aligned with federal Reaching Home and provincial Belonging in BC goals, supported by HIFIS (Homeless Individuals and Families Information System). Updates will be added as we move forward with this project.