• There are no shelters that have pet-friendly policies to provide safe arrangements for pets on-site (pets may be kept offsite with the Humane Society)

• No shelters have policies related to the safe storage of shopping carts and other large belongings

• At some shelters, missing curfew results in a one-day service restriction

• Service restriction policies are inconsistent across the system and are not commonly known

• Shelters that cannot serve someone attempt to refer to other emergency shelters and services but do not have policies in place to ensure that those individuals or families have access to shelter, housing and services elsewhere

• Although couples who can provide evidence of living together prior to their experience of homelessness are able to access shelter together (in motels), some couples report choosing to sleep rough because they are unable to shelter together

Insufficient training on, or communication of, policies can also present as a barrier to accessing shelter. For example, ID has sometimes presented a barrier to clients accessing shelter, although this is not the she lter’s policy.

The environment at the shelters, including interactions with other shelter clients, the built form and layout, and the approach of staff, can also present barriers to access. Some people choose to sleep rough rather than stay in shelter because they don’t feel safe, they are not comfortable sleeping in close quarters with many other people, they experience prejudice, bullying or are subject to predatory behaviours by other clients, or their possessions get stolen. As a result of the environment at the shelters, or their perceptions of the environment, a number of specific population groups face barriers to access:

• Many youth do not feel safe in the available shelter options

• Persons identifying as LGBTQ2S are at a higher risk of violence in the shelters, and transgender or non-binary individuals, in particular, do not feel safe and are often discriminated against by other shelter users. Trans men face increased rates of sexual assault. Individuals with non-binary gender identities are not well served by shelters with mandates of specific genders. Someone’s ID may not match how they identify or present. Same sex couples may face additional barriers in accessing shelters.

• Many Indigenous people don’t feel comfortable in the existing shelter options and see shelter as a last resort

• Couples need to prove they were a couple prior to becoming homeless in order to access shelter together.

• People with severe mental health issues, chronic health issues, and mobility issues are not well served by the current shelter system. Shelters are not resourced appropriately for these individuals.

• Safety, and use/sales of substances, are concerns for some families staying in motels