
Our Permanent Supportive Housing (PSH) caters to singles and families transitioning from homeless. These homes range from shared single room occupancy living to single family homes. We operate more than 100 residences in New Bedford, Fall River, and Taunton/Attleboro. There are strict guidelines to enter these programs, and they are all agency referral based, and not self referral, please see our qualification page for guidelines.
THE APPLICATION PROCESS
All households interested in Permanent Supportive Housing must complete an application for the centralized waitlist. This application should be completed by an outside caseworker but if none are available can be completed by the Basic Needs department of Catholic Charities. Once received and reviewed, if the household qualifies for services they will be placed on the centralized waitlist according to need. The family or individual may be called to enter a program through Catholic Charities or another agency in the area if they obtain an opening.
THE REFERRAL PROCESS
Qualifying And Guidelines
Our Permanent Residential Programs have housing for both Singles, and Families. They each have slightly different qualification standards as listed below:
Singles
A single person must be chronically homeless (by the Federal Government Definition) and must have a disabling Condition.
The federal Government’s definition of a chronically homeless person;
- An unaccompanied homeless individual with a disabling condition who has been continuously homeless for one year or more OR
- An unaccompanied individual with a disabling condition who has had at least four episodes of homelessness in the past three years. The homeless person must meet only one or the other of the time frame criteria that make up the definition.
An individual does not meet the chronically homeless criteria if they are applying to enter from any kind of institution including a medical institution nor can they be in housing at the time they enter. If an institution such as a medical institution can provide documentation that a motel or emergency shelter was being used for this person then they may be eligible.
What is meant by homeless is a person sleeping in a place not meant for human habitation (such as the streets) or an emergency shelter.
What is meant by disabling condition in the chronically homeless definition;
A disabling condition is defined as “A diagnosable substance abuse disorder, a serious mental illness, developmental disability, or a chronic physical illness or disability, including a co-occurrence of two or more of these conditions, in addition, a “disabling condition that limits an individual’s ability to work or perform one or more activities of daily living.”
Agency or worker making a referral must provide the following;
- Intake packet and VI-SPDAT click here
Families
For homeless families, they must meet the federal guideline for a homeless family and the head of household must have a disabling condition.
The definition for a homeless person;
- Living on the (a place not meant for human habitation such as cars, parks, sidewalks and abandoned buildings)
- An emergency shelter
- Persons fleeing Domestic Violence
What is meant by disabling condition?
- Is expected to be of long-continued or indefinite duration
- Substantially impedes an individual’s ability to live independently
- Of nature that could be improved by more suitable housing conditions (substance abuse disorder, if the person’s impairment could be improved by more suitable housing conditions)
Who can document a medical impairment?
Medical Professionals – licensed physicians, licensed certified psychologists, AS LONG AS THE IMPAIRMENT ADDRESSED IS WITH IN HIS/ HER LICENSED SCOPE.
The Referral Process:
Agency or worker making a referral must provide the following;
- Intake packet and VI-SPDAT click here
Client Advisory Board
CCFR has an advisory board for it residential programs made up of current and former clients. They meet once per quarter to brainstorm program improvements, issues, and policies. The provide a clients viewpoint, and no professional staff participate in these board meetings. Some of the issues that have been discussed by our Advisory Board include:
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Increased guidance from case workers to achieve program goals
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Assistance in helping client envision what their future can be (mentoring from other clients).
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Adjust home visits based upon a clients need, and not to a set schedule.
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Giving clear indicators of what is expected of a client and what a clients responsibilities are when they first enter our residential programs.
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Given clear indication of what the particular rules of a program are, going over them with a client as opposed to just giving them to the client on a list to read.
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Issues with clients should be discussed in private and not in earshot of other clients.
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The need for better protocol when there is conflict between staff and clients, with the ability to have a neutral party mediate and the ability to appeal mediation.
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More sensitivity to the struggle women, especially mothers, deal with when becoming homeless.
Using these points, give CCFR and insight into our clients, and changes we might want to make to better improve our programs.
For general questions or information about all our Residential Programs, please contact: