Statistics Update

I have come across a number of new statistics on homelessness in Canada that may be of interest.

There are over 19,000 shelter beds in Canada (Library of Parliament), which means my estimate of 30-50,000 persons is probably pretty close.

Homeless women in Canada aged 18-44 are 10x more likely to die than women of the general population (Cheung & Hwang, 2004), and only have a 60% chance of living to age 75 (Hwang, et al., 2009).

Somewhere in the range of 10% of people experiencing homelessness in Canada are older adults (aged 50, 55, or 65+ depending on the study; McDonald, Dergal, & Cleghorn, 2007).

Over 70% of homeless youth in Toronto have experienced some form of abuse in the home (Youth Without Shelter).

One study found that 1 in every 5 incarcerated people in Toronto were homeless prior to being jailed (John Howard Society).

In London, Ontario, $9.2M is allocated annually to addressing homelessness in our city (London Community Plan on Homelessness).

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