Area of Expertise: Services Planning and Operations

Individual Placement and Support (IPS) is an evidence-based model of supported employment that helps people with mental health conditions and other behavioral health needs find and sustain competitive jobs that align with their goals and interests.

To expand access to meaningful employment opportunities for supportive housing tenants, CSH launched the IPS Leadership Cohort, bringing together supportive housing providers, IPS providers, behavioral health partners, and other key stakeholders. Through stronger partnerships and coordinated strategies, the initiative helps connect tenants to employment opportunities that support recovery, economic mobility, and long-term well-being.

This brief explores the eight core principles that make IPS a proven and effective employment model and highlights why access to competitive employment is increasingly important for supportive housing tenants and the communities that support them.

This policy brief outlines a Supportive Services Transformation Fund (SSTF), a state financing strategy designed to expand supportive housing services for people with disabilities, complex health needs, and individuals experiencing or at risk of homelessness. The brief explains how SSTFs can fill gaps in Medicaid funding by supporting non-reimbursable services, provider capacity building, and program evaluation. It highlights successful implementations in Michigan and Nevada, demonstrating how targeted investments can improve housing stability, increase economic outcomes, reduce reliance on crisis systems, and create pathways to sustainable Medicaid financing.

This framework helps hiring managers, job seekers, organization leaders, and new program planners understand the different roles in supportive housing. It highlights core skills that supportive housing staff need to be successful housing and services providers. This resource is designed to help with onboarding/mentoring staff, designing roles and programs, and identifying organization-wide training needs.

The Supportive Housing Coalition of Pennsylvania is proposing an investment that will expand access to housing, spur local economic and community development, ensure services are available where they are most needed, and build a healthier, more resilient Commonwealth.

By establishing a Supportive Housing Operations Fund—a dedicated, flexible funding mechanism to sustain the operations and services that make supportive housing successful—Pennsylvania can reduce reliance on costly crisis interventions and achieve significant long-term savings.

Across Pennsylvania, communities are facing a critical shortage of resources to adequately fund services within supportive housing programs. These programs—grounded in evidence and proven effectiveness—combine stable, affordable housing with tailored, person-centered services that empower individuals and families to overcome complex barriers and thrive. The populations served include those with histories of homelessness, behavioral health conditions, chronic medical needs, substance use disorders, justice system involvement, experiences of domestic violence, older adults, and transition-age youth, among others.

Supportive services are the backbone of these programs, providing the individualized care and coordination necessary for long-term stability.

This document presents an optimal budget framework designed to ensure supportive housing programs are equipped to deliver these essential services at the scale and quality needed to help residents achieve lasting stability and success.

Supportive housing providers are encountering a significant demographic shift as the population of older adults, particularly those aged 50 and above with histories of homelessness, continues to grow. This “graying” of the tenant base presents unique challenges and necessitates adapted approaches to care. Aging adults who have experienced homelessness often face complex health issues, including chronic illnesses and geriatric conditions, significantly earlier than the general population. Additionally, older adults in supportive housing often face distinct mental health needs and potential accessibility barriers. The average life expectancy is notably lower, which further highlights the unique challenges that this group faces.

In response to these needs, this toolkit is designed to equip service and housing providers in New York with best practices solicited from providers across the state.

This report presents a comprehensive assessment of workforce needs in the homeless services sector in Los Angeles County. Using detailed labor market data, industry and occupational analyses, and comparison of postsecondary award trends, this study’s findings reveal a significant gap between workforce demand and educational supply of trained workers.

The people who serve individuals experiencing homelessness are the foundation of the county’s response system. Supporting an adequate number of well-trained workers in this sector is not only a practical necessity, it is a matter of public trust and social equity. Ultimately, the county’s investments in services for the homeless must be matched by investments in the workforce. With data-driven strategies and targeted investment, Los Angeles County can build the workforce it needs to match the scale of its commitment to ending homelessness

A cost analysis developed by the Pennsylvania Supportive Housing Coalition

The Pennsylvania Supportive Housing Coalition’s Supportive Services workgroup has developed a new analysis using budget data from Pennsylvania providers to uncover how current funding structures impact service delivery.

This cost analysis identifies significant challenges that Pennsylvania providers face because of inadequate services funding. These challenges relate to provider wages, caseload size, administrative burdens, and other critical elements that must be addressed to provide high-quality services that keep people stably housed.

Supportive housing combines affordable housing with supportive services to help people who face the most complex challenges live with stability, autonomy, and dignity. CSH created these standards to guide a wide range of groups—including tenant leaders, housing developers, landlords, service providers, funders, property managers, government officials, and health care organizations—to work together to build and operate high-quality supportive housing.

The Quality Standards apply to all types of projects, whether site-based or scattered-site, and in rural, suburban, or urban areas. How the standards are put into practice may vary due to the diversity of supportive housing models.

This resource breaks down the core components of supportive housing and explains how to align a project with the CSH Quality Standards when planning a new development.