6. Entering Data: Prior Living Situation

Prior Living Situation

Purpose

The purpose of the Prior Living Situation is to identify the type of living situation and length of that situation just prior to the project start for all adults and heads of households. This data element is to be used with other information to identify whether a client appears to meet the criteria for chronic homelessness at various points of enrollment. IE: at project entry, at a point during a project enrollment, or at any point over the course of a specified reporting period. 

Definition

Prior Living Situation is defined by where the client stayed just prior to the project entry and if it is possible to return to that place even for a short time.  If they are unable to return, and have no other temporary or permanent residence identified, they are considered to be experiencing homelessness. 

Responses for Prior Living Situation

From the Entry Assessment, click on the words "Prior Living Situation" and a definition for the question is provided.

Responses to this element are separated into three categories:

Homeless Situations:  Place not meant for habitation.  These include but are not limited to, places where people might sleep such as abandoned buildings, doorways of businesses, parks, and in vehicles. Emergency Shelter, including hotel/motel, paid with an Emergency Shelter voucher through an agency or church.  An RHY-funded Host Home Shelter for Runaway Homeless Youth. Safe Haven is a type of emergency shelter.    If Homeless Situation is chosen, additional questions will appear and all need a response. 

Institutional Situations:  Someone coming from an institutional situation would have to have been in the facility less than 90 days and been homeless prior to going into the institution to be considered experiencing homelessness upon discharge or leaving the institution. It is very important to ask additional questions when a client reports having been in an institution to determine if they qualify for emergency shelter. This includes hospitals, treatment facilities and jail.

Temporary and Permanent Housing Situations:  The situations in this group include living in residential projects or halfway houses that do not require homeless status at entry. Also included are staying or living with friends and family on a temporary or permanent basis. Anyone reporting to be living in one of these situations is not considered to be experiencing homelessness. 

Length of Stay in Previous Place

This refers to the response to the previous question. Indicate how long they have not had a residence to stay in. This question needs a response no matter what category was chosen for Prior Living Situation. 

Approximate date homelessness started 

This refers to the date the current episode of homelessness started.  Select the timeframe that best fits what the client reports.                                                                                                      Date Collection Tip:  if the client is unable to give a specific date this episode started, narrow it to the month and the year.  For this response, if a client is homeless one day out of a month, you count the whole month as being homeless.  The day of the month, while needing to enter a day in the date field, is not as important as the month and the year.  Any day of the month will meet the requirement. 

Regardless of where they stayed last night - The number of times the client has been on the streets, in ES, or SH in the past three years including today

This references the number of times the client has moved from housing to homelessness. Be sure to count this current episode of homelessness in the total times they have moved from housing to homelessness.  Select the number that best represents the response the client gives.                                                                                                                                                 Data Collection Tip: to help the client remember the number of homeless episodes in the past three years, referencing holidays and focusing on one year at a time can sometimes help. Example: It is now September and we are close to Labor Day.  Can you identify how many times you were in housing, then homeless and if back in housing since last September?  Now the year before that?  And then the year before that?      

Total number of months homeless on the street, in ES or SH in the past three years     

Based on the number of episodes the client reported in the previous question, of times they experienced homelessness - how many months do all the episodes add up to.  Select the number that best represents the response the client gives.