National Housing Strategy – A Step in the Right Direction
On National Housing Day, November 22, the Government of Canada released details of the first ever National Housing Strategy, which includes more than $40 billion in investment over the next 10 years. This Strategy represents a huge step forward in addressing Canada’s housing crisis. It will have a strong impact in Edmonton, and in communities across the country.
Canadians have been calling for new national investment for years. In fact, current levels of homelessness and poverty in Canada are directly related to the limited involvement of previous federal governments in affordable housing since the 1990s. As leaders of the work to end homelessness in Edmonton, we at Homeward Trust see the tremendous potential that comes with all orders of government leaning into the issue.
The cornerstone of the National Housing Strategy is the idea that we as Canadians have a right to housing. This commitment is vital, and will be formalized in legislation. The Right to Housing is not some idealistic notion about everyone owning their dream home; what we’re talking about is acknowledging that without suitable housing, there’s no way for Canadians to be safe, to be healthy, and to participate as active members of our communities. Research and evidence overwhelmingly confirm the benefits of housing for individuals, for family well-being, for our service systems, and for strong, diverse communities. Housing is the foundation of what we can accomplish together as Canadians, as Edmontonians, and no one should be left out. The work to end homelessness in our city has for years been grounded in this shared conviction that everyone deserves a home.
Edmonton’s Mayor, City Council, and local leaders have spoken with one voice on the dire need for new housing units. The City’s Affordable Housing Strategy calls for social, affordable, and supportive housing units to be created in all neighbourhoods. Edmonton’s Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness calls for more than 900 new units of Permanent Supportive Housing for those who are most vulnerable. Affordable housing is also a key plank of our city’s strategy to end poverty within a generation. The measures within the National Housing Strategy will make more units available and accessible, increasing the diversity and stability of our neighbourhoods.
The National Housing Strategy also creates the Canada Housing Benefit, which is an important tool to help break the cycle of poverty and homelessness. About 20,000 households in Edmonton are currently at risk of homelessness, spending more than half of their income on housing. Last year, around 1% of Edmontonians experienced a period homelessness, with affordability being by far the biggest challenge. Among those needing longer-term support, around 300 new applications for social housing are made each month, far more than the spaces that are available. Affordable rental units are essential not only to help individuals get out of homelessness, but also to prevent people from losing their housing to begin with.
In addition, the Government of Canada is working with governments and leadership representing Indigenous peoples in order to address urgent housing needs on and off reserve. This work is of great interest in Edmonton, where almost half (48%) of those experiencing homelessness identify as Indigenous, compared with only 6% of the total population.
Further developments are forthcoming; for instance, we are looking forward to the renewal of federal homelessness programming to be announced in the coming year. This commitment will be essential to achieving the ambitious goal of the NHS to cut chronic homelessness in half. We know that there is still more to do and more to learn as the National Housing Strategy unfolds, but it sets us on a promising path forward as a community and as a country.
Cultural support and reconciliation are pillars of our work. Some of our recent experiences have included facilitating pipe ceremonies and smudges for Housing Support partner landlords and their buildings, which received a very positive response. Eight buildings have begun participating in this cleansing process so far.
Ken Armstrong, Homeward Trust’s Oskapewis/Indigenous Cultural & Educational Helper, facilitated the ceremony with an elder after receiving a request from a tenant and coordinating with the building’s landlord. “It’s not one and done,” mentions Ken. “Following the request, we talk with the landlord about the requested ceremony, its purpose, and the importance of protocol. Each time you do it, the heaviness of the building gets lighter. So, it’s a good first step to open that door.”
Kyle Soroka, property manager at Canora Place, shared how the first ceremony benefited residents and himself. “I thought it would be a good opportunity for the Indigenous people in the building to do something that’s important for them. I didn’t really know too much about it (ceremony), and it was a good opportunity for me to learn, too.” Kyle also shared that bringing this ceremony to Canora Place has brought him and some of his tenants closer together.
“It’s a huge reconciliation piece with the landlords for us to come together and provide this for our community members,” adds Ken. “Most landlords are not Indigenous, and they serve a large Indigenous population. They want us to provide that cultural piece, not only for the health of the building but for their tenants, too.”
If you are an interested landlord, please reach out to your contact at Homeward Trust.
After engaging thousands of Edmontonians, people with lived experience, and key stakeholders, Homeward Trust and the City of Edmonton have released A Place to Call Home – Edmonton’s Updated Plan to Prevent and End Homelessness.
The updated plan sets priorities to 2026. It is founded on three key goals: eliminating chronic and episodic homelessness by 2022; preventing future homelessness; and developing an integrated systems response to homelessness. Each key goal has its own associated targets and strategies.
