Changes needed to address Greater Victoria poverty

The final in a five part poverty series by Sarah Patrescu at the Times Colonist.

Restrictive public policy and regional issues — including low assistance rates, child-support clawbacks and the costly housing market — help drive people into homelessness, advocates said. But they also pointed to a few examples of progress. One program continually lauded by advocates and struggling families is the Burnside Gorge family self-sufficiency program. For up to two years, parents learn financial skills and planning and how to cope if their income or family situation has changed.

Read the article: Changes needed to address Greater Victoria poverty

Source: Times Colonist

Introduction: Growing problem of hidden poverty in Victoria

Part 1: How domestic violence is driving homelessness in Greater Victoria

Part 2: Childhood poverty and the single-parent trap

Part 3: The growing concern of the city’s underemployed and underpaid

Part 4: An aging population in financial limbo and a housing crisis 

Part 5: Changes needed to address Greater Victoria poverty