Adsum Provides Input on First Provincial Housing Strategy

This story was originally published on the Adsum House website.

In November, the Department of Community Services announced the launch of public consultation in the development of the province's first plan to address the housing needs of Nova Scotians. In response to the invitation for input, Adsum for Women & Children has submitted the following document:

Who we are

Adsum for Women & Children is a community-based non-profit organization that has been active in Halifax since 1983. Adsum offers a continuum of services for youth, women and children who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. Through the provision of service and support, Adsum staff members witness humanity at its best and worst. In addition to housing insecurity, the women and families we support face a wide spectrum of social and personal challenges that may include poverty, mental and physical health issues, trauma, family and intimate partner violence, lack of education, single-parenthood and addictions. Many are managing multiple life stressors, all while dealing with systems that most of us would find challenging under the best of circumstances.

Our mission is “to advocate for women and children and meet the needs of our clients by promoting their personal growth through the provision of emergency and longer term housing, programs and resources in a client centered, non-judgmental way”. We believe in the dignity, worth and potential of every human being; the importance of hope, security, self-esteem, free choice and participation in the betterment of one’s life; and our responsibility to advocate and care for one another as members of the community. Adsum’s mission, therefore, is to help to improve life outcomes for individuals and families who are marginalized in our community and experience a diminished quality of life. In 1983, the emergency shelter known as Adsum House was opened to serve youth, women and children who are homeless. Four short years later, the Board of Directors took the visionary step of building supportive housing in Dartmouth where rent is geared to income. Recently we added onto that complex, with an additional eight units for single women. Years of experience working with marginalized women helped Adsum to identify the need for a second stage housing program. Adsum Centre opened in 2004 with the goal of empowering women to manage the underlying issues that contribute to their inability to maintain stable housing. It offers a tremendous opportunity to women to live and grow. Adsum’s fourth location, on Gottingen Street, is a newly-built apartment building that is home to women and families who require supportive housing that is also affordable.

Adsum therefore has significant experience in the provision of shelter and housing options. Upon reading the provincial “Housing Discussion Paper”, we identified issues of particular concern to women in creating affordable housing options for them in Nova Scotia.

What we see

We are all familiar with the long accepted definition, that housing is affordable when it costs no more than 30 % of gross monthly income. For those people who are without income, or who have limited or insecure income, cost is an immediate barrier. They can experience prolonged and/or repeated periods of unaffordability due to a structural gap between their household income and rent. In Nova Scotia, almost half of all renter households struggle with that gap. We know that women are disproportionally affected by inadequate and unaffordable housing, because women are poorer than men, are more often the primary caregivers to other family members, such as children and elderly parents.

This is what it looks like. In Halifax, a single mom with one child has an annual income of $14,851.00 including GST and benefits.1 An average one-bedroom apartment, in the spring of 20122 consumes 62 % of that family’s income. The single mom doesn’t rent the average apartment. Instead, she settles for something less satisfactory or entirely inadequate, possibly in a dangerous neighborhood where costs may be lower and access to services limited. She’s also likely to dip into her personal allowance and child tax credit to pay rent, leaving the family less able to cover the cost of food, transportation, child care, etc.

Low shelter allowances for people living on income assistance / disability force too many people into unsafe or inadequate housing, or absolute homelessness. We are often told that increasing shelter rates will only lead to increased rents in Halifax Regional Municipality and other parts of the province. That is a specious argument. Landlords are raising rents anyhow.

Adsum has the unusual perspective of being a landlord as well as an advocate and support. We know, first-hand, that rents of $300.00 and $535.00 / month are untenable to cover landlords’ costs of upkeep, maintenance etc., particularly after heating costs and utilities are deducted. It is virtually impossible to protect the housing stock we have without significant fundraising in the private sector and/or occasional loans from the Shelter Enhancement Program which must be applied for and are not a guarantee. Rent supplements, strategically placed, are one tool the province currently employs to provide higher rents to landlords. The supplements could be more strategically offered, to tenants of non-profit housing providers, who in turn would use the additional rents to protect their housing stock and covering constantly rising costs (heat, power, etc.).

Even employed families have to choose between basic necessities like heat, food and rent. A woman working full time, earning minimum wage, would have to spend 44 % of her gross salary on the average one-bedroom apartment mentioned above, while a client support officer working full time at Adsum would set aside 26 % of her gross salary for that same apartment. An everyday life event such as illness, bereavement, or the need to stay at home to care for a sick child would affect gross salary and thereby the affordability of housing.
Women and families who come to Adsum tell us they are negatively impacted in their search for safe housing by many other factors that include:

-Mental and physical health
-Discrimination, particularly when landlords know they are clients of Income Assistance and/or young, single mothers
-Sexual identity
-Age
-Newcomer status
-Race
-Addictions
-Violence
-Conflict with the law
-Displacement from rural parts of the province and/or reserves to access services in HRM

Other barriers include poor credit history, outstanding debt, and negative experiences with previous landlords. Housing that combines supports needed to help individuals address and overcome underlying issues of trauma, mental & physical health, addictions and life skills management is the answer, if they are to be provided with a reasonable opportunity to depart from the patterns that results in homelessness. Supportive housing that is affordable also costs less to society than institutional options such as prisons and hospitals.

What we expect to see

People in poverty, particularly women in poverty, rarely have much say over where they must live. We expect that their specific needs will be taken into account when developing a housing strategy for Nova Scotia. How best do you learn what they need? By listening to their voices.
We shared the housing strategy discussion paper with a group of women residing at Adsum Centre. When asked to describe their ideal living space in the community, after moving on from the supportive housing with Adsum, despite the diversity of their backgrounds and housing needs, they identified similar themes:

Safety: having a choice of neighbourhoods, a secure building with a buzzer system or security guard, not having to live on the bottom floor, and living in small buildings
Privacy, space and dignity: size of the apartment, no one being able to intrude (like having to live in “dry” buildings or having personal activities monitored or judged)
Centrality: access to transportation, supports, programs and services
Choice: not having to live in dingy places, having light and being able to have pets
Specialized housing: for single parents where child care and programs would be available
Convenience: having utilities included and laundry on site in order to support the management of one’s budget and transportation

It has been 25 years since Adsum built and opened supportive housing in Dartmouth. Another building was put up on Gottingen 18 months ago. The services and supports that we provide to tenants depend, in part, on the complex challenges they are living with. Usually, it’s a combination of very low income together with persistent mental illness, alcoholism, substance abuse, HIV/AIDS and other serious challenges. Safe affordable housing coupled with supports on site is a pragmatic solution.
Adsum staff help tenants make and keep appointments including court appearances; connect tenants with other community organizations and services; introduce tenants to activities and opportunities for training and employment; develop life management skills; and engage in their local community to promote growth, confidence and self-worth. Staff provide a listening ear and a safe place to vent about challenges in daily living. Overall, women in supportive housing are leading better lives. They can enjoy lengthy periods of stable housing. Tenancy at Adsum currently ranges from a few months to as long as 18 years!

This model of housing also prevents new episodes of homelessness. We see women go to hospital, to jail, and to repeated stays at detox, and come back to the safety and security of home. They don’t lose housing every time there is a crisis.

Some of the people who require supportive housing are in transition, eventually moving from unaffordable, unsafe situations to homes in the wider community. Others are never going to make that transition; they will always require support to live with dignity in the community. Housing is a part of the solution to their challenges but certainly not the only one. It is important to see housing interventions for these people as part of a poverty reduction strategy.

The barriers to women’s access to safe and affordable housing in Nova Scotia are systemic and interconnected. Poverty is the most significant barrier. Stage of life, geographic location, ability, health and being a member of a visible or sexual minority contribute to women’s poverty, and subsequently their risk for housing insecurity and homelessness. Any housing strategy must be closely linked to a poverty reduction strategy, and one that includes a gender-based analysis. Women have different housing needs than men, particularly in the supports that they identify as crucial.

We at Adsum believe the housing strategy put forth neglects the role that government needs to play, and relies too heavily on the private sector. Government must ensure that existing social housing programs, including second-stage housing and supportive housing programs are provided with continued and sufficient government support, and such programs must be available in all areas of the province.

We see the private sector having a role in community building and in the provision of affordable housing. However, the private sector cannot profit from supportive housing options or rents generated by the current inadequate shelter allowance, so relying on the private sector would severely limit the options available to the most marginalized of women. Government needs to address our housing crisis from a community development approach within the non-profit sector. Those of us working in non-profit and living at the margins area already experienced at recognizing the diverse needs of those most deeply affected by our housing crisis, and are already familiar with applying integrated approaches and analyses that consider their particular needs.

Organizations such as Adsum do not have the ear of government in the way that medium and large independent property owners do. Yet Adsum (and others) have developed sustainable, affordable housing options for people for 30 years. A re-investment in organizations like ours, to support capacity building, is a sure-fire way to ensure that community is built with a continuum of housing options for those who need and want them.

We appreciate the opportunity to express our views on the “Housing Discussion Paper”. We urge the Government to work with community partners like Adsum to improve housing affordability and housing options for all Nova Scotians.

1 Antigonish Women’s Resource Centre Fact Sheet, 2010
2 $769.00/month in CMHC Housing Market Outlook Spring 2012

We include, in Appendix I, a very personal and detailed account of one woman’s experience. She makes a powerful case for the provision of supportive housing.

Appendix I

A personal experience with supportive housing

My name is Sienna*. I have lived in Nova Scotia for around 2 and a half years. I moved here with someone I had met back home in Ontario. I loved him so much, but I couldn’t recognize that what he was doing to me was abuse. I had always thought of abuse as black eyes, and broken arms. I didn’t realize that words, threats and actions could also be forms of abuse. I lived with this feeling of hopelessness for around a year and a half. My situation was unbelievable, but I had nowhere to go, no one to talk to. After an attempt at suicide, at which I had succeeded, but was brought back; which I am so grateful for now. An aborted pregnancy at 15 weeks by what I felt was an incompetent doctor that resulted in having to have a D&C a month later, and STILL going back to him. Until one day at work (we both worked together) he came in the office, grabbed my purse and tore through it until he found my keys which he took and left on his bike. I called 811 in tears and asked them what I should do. They referred me to Bryony House, where I went directly after work. I lived there for 6 weeks. They sat me down one day and talked to me about a place called Adsum Centre.

I had heard of Adsum House, but never Adsum Centre. They explained to me what this Centre offered, which was independent living, with mandatory programs to attend mostly during the day, and other programs offered in the evening. You lived there rent-free, and you had your own bedroom in a shared apartment with 3 other bedrooms. It was a 2-step interview process, and I was very interested, so I called and spoke to Elizabeth, who met me that Friday where she basically went over the policies and procedures of the house. She gave me the Communal Living handbook, asked me to read it over the weekend and to call her on Monday and tell her if I was interested in having a second interview. I most definitely was. I had my interview that Thursday, and was informed that evening if I wanted to, they had a spot available for me and I could move in on the weekend. I absolutely did. I was scared to death mind you, but isn’t anything new kind of scary at first?

I have since lived here for a year. When I first got here, I was scared and confused. I had issues with boundaries. I suffered a lot from anxiety, and was terrified to do anything alone. Through Kellie’s Therapeutic Change group that happens every Monday, Wednesday and Friday, I have learned so much about myself. My anger styles, learning about what a healthy relationship really is, learning how to be assertive, how it can be fun to do things alone, personal boundaries, I learned how to befriend others without compromising myself, which is something I’ve struggled with my whole life! I’d always felt that the way to make friends was to gossip, to make alliances, so people would like me and not “her”. I learned that what I had been living with that past 3 years actually was abuse, and that I am a good person, a smart person, a strong, beautiful woman who deserves only good things in life.

I also recently started College. I am studying the Veterinary Assistant course at Eastern College and am loving it. I am holding a 94% average, which is just blowing my mind (my family in Ontario too!). This, from the girl who barely got through high school 15 years ago. There is no chance that I would be doing this right now if it hadn’t have been for Adsum Centre, and the wonderful, supportive, helpful staff that work here. They were able to provide me with resources of people to contact to talk about how to get into post-secondary school. I ended up working with a lovely lady named Joanne at MetroWorks, and she was able to help me through the steps that I had to take to apply to ENS for my education. Mind you, this was not an overnight thing, I had to work for many months, and do lots of paperwork for these guys, but in the end it was worth it. I am fully funded and am attending college and doing well!

What I am trying to say here, is that the scared little girl that came here one year ago, is standing strong on her own two feet because of her hard work. But, I couldn’t have done it without the support of Adsum Centre, and everything they stand for and everything they do. I don’t know where I would be without all of the amazing supportive programming, and it’s staffed 24/7 so if you need to talk to someone, you can, at any time of the day.

There are not enough places like this here, or anywhere in Canada. As far as I know, this is the only place that offers supportive housing like this, and that is so saddening. There are so many women out there that need somewhere like this. Somewhere a woman can go, to pick up the pieces of a shattered life, someone like myself. Adsum Centre changed my life, they saved my life, and I will be forever grateful.

*name has been changed to protect confidentiality