Survivors like Laura get caught in the intersection between homelessness and domestic violence, a situation you see every day in your work as a victim advocate and service provider. You see survivors escape, only to end up on the street. Your job is to find solutions to address their complex needs. That’s where partnerships come into play. Victim service providers can collaborate across systems with affordable housing agencies, breaking down the silo effect. It begins when parties meet to discuss how they can work together. Frustration arises when one service provider is not aware of laws, rules and regulations that govern the others. Things like jargon and acronyms can lead to misunderstandings. In a partnership you can clear those up from the beginning. However, it will take time to yield benefits, so there’s not a moment to waste. This post previews information housing agencies and survivor services can use to build a framework. You can use tools like Casebook to record and evaluate the services that your clients need and obtain; automated workflows within your case management software can be helpful for this purpose. For a client like Laura, you would continue to document your interventions in her Casebook file. You can track other service delivery for their effectiveness, as well as your obligations as a partner to them. For instance, as you interact with housing providers you can document that they have, or have not, used the full range of housing protections included in the Violence Against Women Act (VAWA) and how you addressed them. A Casebook workflows with the law’s requirement will simplify the process for you. About the Money At the time of this writing the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) does not mandate that agencies it funds designate resources for survivors, but it does allow agencies the discretion to do so. A partnership is a great opportunity to advocate for such an earmark. If the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2021 House bill is passed in the Senate (without changes from the House bill) it will provide victim relocation vouchers for survivors who need to move to other housing or need help to maintain current housing on their own. Build the Partnerships First Effective partnership means all parties understand each other’s roles, organizations, and governing rules and regulations. Housing agencies provide affordable housing or rent assistance. Service providers are advocates and case managers for survivors. Private landlords may have tenants with federally funded rent subsidies. For example, if they accept Housing Choice Vouchers they must adhere to VAWA and may need a better understanding of how to do so. It’s normal for one agency’s service providers to think other agencies aren’t doing enough for the client. In reality, everyone is overwhelmed. Social service caseloads are daunting and resources for affordable housing are limited and complex. Clear communications between everyone can reduce common frustrations. Conflicts can arise when it seems that agencies’ goals contradict. Partnerships can focus on shared goals. I once created a matrix for performance metrics for my agency’s housing programs and our partner service agencies’ programs. It revealed substantial overlap; goals were written differently but often for the same desired outcome. That matrix resolved a lot of tension and restored trust. What Housing Providers Need to Know Federally funded housing agencies must follow VAWA. HUD provides them with guidance for this, including models for Emergency Transfer Plans and Safety Plans. Victims services advocates have a role to help housing providers understand survivor safety precautions. Your discussions can shore up any gaps in their knowledge. If a housing agency must warn or cite a tenant for lease violations they can educate tenants about their rights under VAWA. The Notice of Occupancy Rights for tenants explains the VAWA protections but housing agency staff should expect to talk about it in layman's terms as well. Remember, you are the expert on working with survivors. It is your job to intervene if a housing provider has a tenant experiencing any form of domestic violence. Make sure they know that you will respond as quickly as possible to their concerns. However, in the event the survivor will not accept your services housing agencies cannot refuse housing or terminate survivors’ occupancy.