SSVF Program Update Friday April 3rd, 2020

From: Supportive Services for Veteran Families
Sent: Friday, April 3, 2020 1:21 PM
Subject: SSVF Program Update Friday April 3rd, 2020

Topics:

1.NEW: Homeless Prevention Modified Guidance
2.REGISTER NOW: Expanding SSVF Services in Response to COVID-19, Friday, April 3, at 1:00 EST
3.REGISTER NOW: SSVF National Webinar: Promising Practices and Stories from the Field – April 9, 2:00 pm EST
4.REMINDER: SSVF COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions


NEW: Homeless Prevention Modified Guidance

The SSVF Program Office has modified guidance in response to the current COVID-19 crisis.  In anticipation of the economic impact this crisis will have on low-income Veteran families, our office will no longer require that grantees complete stage 2 of the Homelessness Prevention Screening Tool.  Our office will also waive the minimum requirement of 60% spending for RRH households for the remainder of the fiscal year.  We are recommending that Grantees continue to prioritize those who are literally homeless, while recognizing the need for flexibility in the coming months.

While the SSVF Program Office anticipates an increased need for Homeless Prevention services, Grantees should not use HP assistance in cases where there is a moratorium on evictions and there is the potential that other resources, such as employment, may become available to support rental payments.  Grantees are strongly encouraged to work with Veteran families to negotiate and resolve the housing crisis prior to TFA expenditures, as they have always done.


REGISTER NOW: SSVF National Webinar: Expanding SSVF Services in Response to COVID-19 Friday, April 3 at 1:00 EST

This webinar will review the recent modifications to guidance that allows SSVF providers to expand services to Veterans in response to the COVID-19 crisis.   Program leaders from GPD, HUD-VASH, and SSVF will discuss coordination among VA homeless programs.  SSVF Program Office staff will also present information on increased access to homeless prevention, emergency food assistance, HMIS data entry guidelines, and ease of selected administrative requirements.   The target audience for this webinar is SSVF grantees.  Please register using the link below:

https://tacinc.adobeconnect.com/e2cpqctndb7d/event/registration.html


REGISTER NOW: SSVF National Webinar: Promising Practices and Stories from the Field– April 9, 2:00 pm EST

Title: SSVF promising practices and success stories from the field in response to COIVD-19.

In this webinar, SSVF providers will share tools, strategies, and promising practices learned while dealing with the recent public health emergency.  Grantees will describe how they overcame challenges related to the COVID-19 outbreak, including best practices related to use of technology, staffing, operations and other helpful resources.  We will also highlight some SSVF grantee staff going above and beyond to ensure Veterans are being served during the pandemic.

We encourage all SSVF providers to register for this webinar using the link below:

https://aip.iccapi.audiocontrols.net/ccapi/listNumbersByCode?confCode=4755634191


REMINDER: SSVF COVID-19 Frequently Asked Questions

The SSVF Program Office has developed a Frequently Asked Questions document in response to the many grantee questions about COVID-19.   We encourage grantees to communicate questions to their Regional Coordinators so that we can update the FAQ document on an ongoing basis.  Questions from the 3/20/20 webinar will be added soon.

Available on SSVF Website at https://www.va.gov/HOMELESS/ssvf/


Thank you,

SSVF Program Office