Homeless Counts are conducted throughout the United States on a yearly or bi-annually basis. These Counts are required of each Continuum of Care by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Counts can help to do all of the following: establish a baseline for tracking progress in the human service field, increase public awareness of homelessness in communities, plan for and implement effective services, and preserve federal funding for homeless services.
The Count is conducted in two parts: 1) The Sheltered Count & 2) The Unsheltered Count. Each is described below:
The Sheltered Count is conducted by all emergency shelters, transitional housing units and permanent housing units on the same night as the Unsheltered Count. Data for the Sheltered Count is determined by the number of persons that each emergency/transitional/permanent unit is housing on that given night. This part of the Count utilizes one coordinator and requires the cooperation of all housing units in the Continuum of Care's service areas. Each emergency/transitional/permanent housing unit completes a survey with the required data and then returns the survey to the Count coordinator for the data to be compiled and analyzed.
The Unsheltered Count, also known as the "Street Count", is conducted in all non-shelter areas throughout the Continuum of Care's service areas on the same night. Data for the Unsheltered Count is determined by the number of people found in "unsheltered" areas. According to HUD, "unsheltered" areas are those defined as "not suited for human habitation." This can include vehicles. underpasses, tents, abandoned buildings, parks, or sidewalks. This part of the Count utilizes one coordinator, the CoCD committee, regional CBSA's (community-based service areas), myriad agencies, and dozens of volunteers (See "Our Count Team" for specifics). Count Teams are deployed to "Hot Spots" in the communities to find, count and, if possible, interview the unsheltered homeless persons. These tally sheets and surveys are then returned to the Count coordinator for the data to be compiled and analyzed.
Data from both the Sheltered & Unsheltered Counts are combined, analyzed, and then reported to HUD. (To see the data charts from the 2005 & 2007 Homeless Counts in suburban Cook County, go to the "News & Resources" section and download the pdf files.) The data can then be used by all Continuum of Care service area agencies, committees, community groups and for-profit partners to help determine the next steps necessary to end homelessness in their communities.
For more information, refer to the "Description" & "Frequently Asked Questions" pdf's which can also be found on the "News & Resources" section.