The CoC Youth Committee is committed to ending youth homelessness. By identifying youth that experience homelessness, service providers can ensure that our Coordinated Entry is in place for quick linkage to services. Youth that are experiencing homelessness or insecure housing need low barrier emergency response resources to meet their housing needs. The goal of the Youth Committee is to increase data around youth homelessness, reduce barriers, improve diversion efforts, and get youth into stable housing.
One step to reducing youth homelessness is seeing what youth homelessness looks like in Kent County. Therefore, in the fall of 2018 the CoC facilitated a Voices of Youth Count (VOYC). Like the Point in Time Count (PIT) that takes place in January, the VOYC seeks to accurately identify the number of youth ages 10-25 who are experiencing youth homelessness at any given time. A cornerstone of this count is to ensure youth voices are being heard. The Youth Action Board, made up of formerly homeless youth, was a key participant for providing insight to how the count will be conducted.
YHDP CCP
Over the past 6 months, the Youth Action Board and Youth Committee developed a Coordinated Community Plan which outlines to strategies and objectives that will be leveraged to make youth homelessness rare, brief, and one-time in Kent County.