Core Strategies
No Easy Remedy
Homelessness is a complex issue. At the end of the day, there isn’t any simple solution to reducing the impacts of homeless in our community. Together, we’re working every day to beat homelessness and build a future where every person in Kern County has a permanent place to call home.
At Bakersfield Kern Regional Homeless Collaborative (BKRHC), we think of our work as part of four core strategies:
Housing
“People experience homelessness when they don’t have a permanent place to call home.”
People experience homelessness when they don’t have a permanent place to call home.
BKRHC members work to provide housing as quickly as possible for individuals and families experiencing homelessness, with the goal of helping them find permanent affordable housing.
Housing provides a foundation for stability, and stability is key to improving the effectiveness of other supportive services.
We earn the trust of people experiencing homelessness so we can serve them best.
People experiencing homelessness are individuals in charge of making their own decisions.
BKRHC members conduct significant outreach and engagement to build trust and foster long-term relationships with people experiencing homelessness, so they are ready and willing to accept help when it is offered.
Outreach & Engagement
“We earn the trust of people experiencing homelessness so we can serve them best.”
Supportive Services
“Supportive services help people develop long-term stability.”
Supportive services help people develop long-term stability.
Homeless case management helps ensure people have access to and follow-up with services like healthcare, mental health services, substance abuse treatment, income, education and childcare. These supportive services are critical to helping people experiencing homelessness maintain stability in their lives and achieve their full potential.
The best way to end homelessness is to prevent it from happening in the first place.
BKRHC members work with individuals and families at-risk of being homeless to prevent evictions and loss of housing through rental arrears and offering short-term rental assistance and utility assistance. BKRHC also works with hospitals, jails, schools and the foster system to identify people who are at-risk of becoming homeless when they leave these institutions and provide them with support to avoid becoming homeless.
You can learn more about our strategies and plans by reviewing our 10-Year Plan.
Prevention
“The best way to end homelessness is to prevent it from happening in the first place.”