For last year’s Point-in-Time homelessness count, only the second ever conducted in the Moose Jaw area, Square One Community partnered with Métis Nation-Saskatchewan (MN-S) — the official federal Reaching Home entity for the province’s rural and remote areas.
A PiT Count is done using strict statistical standards and data, verified by the Canadian government through community-based Reaching Home organizations. By using verified data, an accurate snapshot of Moose Jaw’s situation can be used for official purposes.
Square One Community is a non-profit born and raised in Moose Jaw and currently running a Supportive Housing Program with 11 participants at William Milne Place on Fairford. Without PiT Count numbers, they wouldn’t have been able to secure the federal funding to start that program.
“Square One conducted an independent PiT Count using similar protocols in 2021,” explained Max Eckstein, Square One general manager. “This is the first Moose Jaw PiT Count that Square One and its partners collaborated with Metis Nation to conduct.
"There are some really interesting details in here, that are very revealing and useful to guide us in our services we provide to the community.”
By forming partnerships, as with MN-S, Point-in-Time data also adds to the overall provincial and national conversations on the issue.
“I am very hopeful that with all of the hard work we are all putting in to change this trajectory, we will see a downward trend in future years,” Eckstein added.
“Thank you to everyone who participated to make this data possible — we appreciate you, and your community appreciates you.”
The data was analyzed by Northern Research Group.
Results
The official number is 76 people surveyed and confirmed as experiencing homelessness. That means volunteers spoke with these individuals, asked them questions, and verified that they had no safe, permanent shelter.
About 25 per cent said they could find space to sleep at a shelter; 41 per cent said they didn’t know where they would sleep that night; and 20 per cent said they were staying with someone they knew.
In the examples of people staying with someone they know, it’s important to note that those places do not count as ‘safe, permanent shelter’: They are often transactional in nature, either through money, drugs, or sexual favours. They can also simply be unsafe, with frequent interpersonal conflicts, violence, or unpredictable visitors coming and going at all hours.
The number of 76 also does not take into account those individuals observed as likely being homeless, but who for whatever reason were unable to confirm their status to volunteers.
In 2024, there were an additional 44 individuals who either refused to be surveyed, were incapacitated and unable to answer survey questions, or who were sleeping.
Volunteers noted that these 44 people showed all the hallmarks of experiencing homelessness — they were simply unable to confirm to the standard demanded by a statistically valid survey method.
By asking surveyed individuals about their own observations, correlating with police and EMS, and double-checking with other agencies such as John Howard Society and Zion United Church, Square One tries to get an estimate of how many people might have been ‘invisible’. That means they were out of town, in a hard-to-reach location, or they just weren’t seen within the time allotted.
“As a rule of thumb,” Eckstein explained, “we like to estimate the actual findings could be approximately 25% higher for those we couldn’t reach or who were invisible to us on survey day.”
Results of PiT Counts to date:
- 2023: 26 (Surveyed) + 32 (Observed) + 15 (Invisible) = 26-58-73
- 2024: 76 (Surveyed) + 44 (Observed) + 30 (Invisible) = 76-120-150
Eckstein noted the significant increase in those surveyed from 2023 to 2024, including a doubling of the total when observed and invisible individuals are accounted for. Other details he highlighted include how early in life many people were experiencing homelessness for the first time, the number of people who are homeless and still caring for dependents, and the 26 per cent who said their situation is related to abuse or conflict at home.
“Clearly, homelessness in Moose Jaw is disproportionately affecting our youth, and in many cases family units as a whole,” Eckstein added.
Read the full report on Square One’s website at www.squareonehousingmoosejaw.com/pit-count-2024.