FamilyAid entrusted to expand major partnerships
Photo by CBS Boston.
FamilyAid’s proven success housing more than 1,700 children and parents during the pandemic has led to an expansion of emergency shelter and housing prevention programs with our leading partners, Boston Public Schools and Boston Children’s Hospital. Expansion of the two programs will allow more families to receive case management and housing services, ultimately supporting hundreds of children and parents throughout the school year.
Since March 2020, we have housed more than 400 families through our Boston Public Schools partnership. Teachers and school staff identified children who needed services and referred their parent or caregiver to FamilyAid, allowing families living in doubled up, crowded conditions to receive housing vouchers for a move to apartments of their own. Due to the success of the program, FamilyAid will coordinate housing placement and support services for an additional 1,100 BPS children and parents during the 2021 school year.
Support services make housing a success for families. Once we secure housing, we provide financial assistance for rental costs and utility arrears; employment services for parents; food access; and social, emotional, and development referrals based on our assessment of children’s needs.
FamilyAid’s partnership with local hospitals is also expanding. Our Boston Children’s Hospital partnership program is largely centered on supporting families connected to the hospitals in two ways. Prevention services for unstably housed families will be expanded, allowing more families falling into homelessness to seek the support they need to remain stably housed, and a new program will directly support families seeking shelter in emergency rooms. Families seeking shelter will be welcomed into our crisis shelter, while those facing eviction will be supported by a FamilyAid housing team.
“Our staff and partnership expansion are reflections of the growing needs of Boston families. We are honored and grateful to be entrusted by both Boston Public Schools and Boston Children’s Hospital to help address this need. These partnerships are essential to successfully housing many more families and changing the trajectory of their future,” says Annie Marcklinger Gordon, Chief Operating Officer at FamilyAid.
The expansion represents a $2.1-million expansion of a public and private partnership that brings together city, state, and federal agencies, and long-time FamilyAid funders Gerstner Philanthropies and Day 1 Families Fund.
FamilyAid’s mission of ending child and parent homelessness cannot be achieved alone. Our partnerships are essential to our work to provide families with adequate support to find safe and stable housing. We are grateful for this support and all that it means for the children and families in our care.
