What was included in “support services”?
Support services include a wide array of assistance to help families overcome their individual barriers to self-sufficiency. Services may include child care, financial help, skills training, counseling, budgeting assistance, assistance obtaining clothing appropriate for work, domestic violence counseling for adults and children, legal advocacy, life skills classes, mental health services, chemical dependency counseling, transportation, and food programs. While Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation funds were not sufficient to cover all of these needs, they were used to help social service providers target these services to the families living in supportive housing units. One thing we learned from the Sound Families evaluation is that families benefit from supportive services that are flexible, coordinated, and highly tailored to their unique needs.
