Wake at Home: a new initiative to support those experiencing homelessness

A Wake County organization has a new initiative to help unhoused residents transition into stable housing. 

Wake County Continuum of Care is launching Wake at Home, a program designed to help people move off the streets and into stable housing. The goal is to strengthen the local community’s ability to end homelessness for more people. 

The initiative is a collaboration involving Wake County Continuum of Care, its governance board, local governments, housing and health care organizations and nonprofit providers across Wake County. 

The program comes in response to proposed House Bill 437, which critics say relies on stricter enforcement and extreme anti-drug restrictions as a plan to address homelessness in North Carolina. 

"Every person deserves the safety and stability of a home," said Tara Waters of the Wake County Board of Commissioners. "This effort recognizes the humanity of people experiencing homelessness while responding to the concerns of the broader community. We believe those goals can and should go hand and hand."

Since 2020, the unsheltered, homeless population has more than doubled in Wake County, according to Wake County government officials. 

Wake at Home will begin with a targeted focus on housing encampments. The program will work with Wake County's Bridge to Home program and the City of Raleigh's Unsheltered Homelessness Response Pilot to connect unhoused individuals with housing, healthcare, employment opportunities and other services that support long-term stability. 

Phase one of the program includes a $22 million investment and will run through December 2027. This phase aims to connect 400 people living in encampments to housing and support services. It will also provide financial assistance to 1,000 people who are experiencing homelessness for the first time, as well as intensive support for unhoused people with 'complex behavioral health needs'. 

Once residents transition from homeless encampments to housing, the area will be restored for public use, and monitored to prevent unsafe conditions from returning. 

The initiative also focuses on preventing long-term homelessness. Although thousands of adults experience homelessness in Wake County each year, many regain housing stability with relatively small amounts of short-term assistance. Wake at Home will provide help with security deposits, provide temporary rental support, and support reunification with family members.