The Temporary Emergency Accommodations Dashboard provides information about people experiencing homelessness in Ottawa.
Housing data and analysis
Analysis of factors related to housing and homelessness during COVID-19 (September 2021) – Public health and economic measures to control the spread of COVID-19 infections created unique housing market conditions in 2020. In Ottawa, some policies and programs introduced during the pandemic offered temporary financial relief to low-income residents while other conditions intensified housing challenges that were present before COVID-19.
Dashboard
The Temporary Emergency Accommodations Dashboard provides information about people experiencing homelessness in Ottawa.
It includes people who have stayed in a City of Ottawa funded shelter, transitional housing program, and overflow sites which include hotels/motels and post-secondary institutions. The data also includes physical distancing centres that have been set up to facilitate physical distancing within City-funded shelter programs during the COVID-19 pandemic. As with any form of administrative data, there are limitations. To better understand the limitations within the dashboards, visit Open Ottawa.
This data will help measure homelessness in Ottawa. Partners, the community, and funders can use it to assess progress towards the goals outlined in our 10-Year Housing and Homelessness Plan.
Definitions
Temporary Emergency Accommodations: includes shelters, transitional housing programs, overflow hotels/motels/post-secondary institutions, and physical distancing centres which all play a vital role in the continuum of housing and homelessness services.
Shelters: designed to meet the immediate needs of people who are experiencing homelessness and where stays are intended to be short-term.
Transitional Housing Programs: programming with a residential component, the goal of which is to provide residents with the required supports to transition to independent living and self-sufficiency.
Overflow Hotels/Motels/Post-secondary Institutions: sites with which the City enters into agreements to provide temporary emergency accommodations when the family shelter system is at capacity.
Physical Distancing Centres: temporary sites that create additional capacity within the temporary emergency accommodation system in order to facilitate implementing physical distancing recommendations from Ottawa Public Health related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Keyboard shortcuts in the Power BI Dashboard
Keyboard shortcuts are helpful for moving around in Power BI reports using a keyboard. When accessing a Power BI report, you can press Shift + Question mark (?) to show keyboard shortcuts.
To enter the Power BI report from the main Temporary Emergency Accommodation Dashboard by using a keyboard, press Tab once after the 'full screen view' link and then press Ctrl + Enter. A small box will appear in the top left corner of the report. Press Tab three times to navigate through the options and you will then be inside the report. From there you can navigate through the content of the report by using Tab and the other keyboard shortcuts enumerated below.
| Commands | Shortcuts |
|---|---|
| Show keyboard shortcuts | Shift + Question mark (?) |
| Commands | Shortcuts |
|---|---|
| Move focus between sections | Ctrl + F6 |
| Move focus forward in section | Tab |
| Move focus backward in section | Shift + Tab |
| Commands | Shortcuts |
|---|---|
| Multi-select | Ctrl + Space |
| Collapse a single table | Left arrow |
| Expand a single table | Right arrow |
| Collapse all tables | Alt + Shift +1 |
| Expand all tables | Alt + Shift + 9 |
| Open a context menu | Windows context key or Shift + F10 |
| Commands | Shortcuts |
|---|---|
| Move focus to visual menu | Alt + Shift + F10 |
| Show as table | Alt + Shift + F11 |
| Enter a visual | Ctrl + Right arrow |
| Enter a layer | Enter |
| Exit a layer or visual | Esc |
| Select or unselect data point | Enter or Space |
| Multi-select | Ctrl + Enter or Ctrl + Space |
| Right Click | Windows context key or Shift + F10 |
| Show or hide data point tooltip | Ctrl + H |
| Clear selection | Ctrl + Shift + C |
| Commands | Shortcuts |
|---|---|
| Slicer control | Ctrl + Right arrow |
All clients dashboard
Users can filter the data by the years of their choosing. The following measures change when filters are selected. This dashboard displays temporary emergency accommodation services for all clients and is comprised of data on:
- All clients: total number of unique clients who have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation.
- Annual number of clients: number of unique clients who have stayed at least one night in the calendar year selected.
- Annual numbers of stays: adds all stays by clients each year.
- Total length of stay: total number of nights a unique client or family member has stayed in temporary emergency accommodation in a calendar year.
- Average length of stay: total number of bed nights used divided by the total number of unique clients who have stayed in temporary emergency accommodation in a calendar year.
- Monthly number of clients: number of unique clients broken down by month. Adding monthly numbers is not expected to equal the annual numbers as the monthly numbers look at unique clients in a given month, while the annual numbers look at unique clients for a calendar year.
To better understand the limitations and to download the data, visit Open Ottawa.
To enter the Power BI report from the main Temporary Emergency Accommodation Dashboard by using a keyboard, press Tab once after the 'full screen mode' link and then press Ctrl + Enter. A small box will appear in the top left corner of the report. Press Tab three times to navigate through the options and you will then be inside the report.
To ensure consistent language within the dashboard make sure your browser language settings are set for your preferred language.
Having trouble viewing the Dashboard? Try viewing the All Clients Dashboard in full screen mode.
Single sector dashboard
This dashboard groups temporary emergency accommodation services for single clients into five sectors. Temporary Emergency Accommodation services include safe, non-judgmental, and secure temporary emergency accommodation supports for those experiencing homelessness. Users can filter the data by the years and sectors of their choosing. The following measures change when filters are selected:
- Men’s shelters: total number of unique clients who have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation for men.
- Mixed-gender shelters: total number of unique clients who have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation for all genders. Temporary COVID-19 physical distancing centres are included.
- Offsite/overflow singles: total number of unique clients who have stayed at least one night in a temporary emergency accommodation overflow site, which include hotels, motels, and post-secondary institutions (singles are primarily accommodated within the singles shelter system).
- Women’s shelters: total number of unique clients who have stayed at least one night in a temporary emergency accommodation for women.
- Youth shelters: total number of unique clients who have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation for youth (18 and under).
- Annual number of clients: number of unique clients who have stayed at least one night in the calendar year selected.
- Annual average length of stay: average number of consecutive stays by clients in a calendar year.
- Monthly number of clients: number of unique clients broken down by month. Adding monthly numbers is not expected to equal the annual numbers as the monthly numbers look at unique clients in a given month, while the annual numbers look at unique clients in a calendar year.
As with any form of administrative data, there are limitations. To better understand the limitations and to download the data visit Open Ottawa.
To enter the Power BI report from the main Temporary Emergency Accommodation Dashboard by using a keyboard, press Tab once after the ’full screen mode' link and press Ctrl + Enter. A small box will appear in the top left corner of the report. Press Tab three times to navigate through the options and you will then be inside the report.
To ensure consistent language within the dashboard make sure your browser language settings are set for your preferred language.
Having trouble viewing the Dashboard? Try viewing the Single Sector Dashboard in full screen mode.
Single demographics dashboard
This dashboard further examines the demographics of single clients, namely clients who have not reported they are a part of a family. Non-binary gender data is not included as this data does not surpass a threshold where client identity would be confidently protected. The demographics shown in the dashboard are defined below:
- Offsite/Overflow singles: total number of unique clients who have stayed at least one night in a temporary emergency accommodation overflow site, which includes hotels, motels, and post-secondary institutions (singles are primarily accommodated within the singles shelter system).
- Single adult males: total number of unique, self-reported males over the age of 18 (at the time of their book-in) who have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation.
- Single adult females: total number of unique, self-reported females over the age of 18 (at the time of their book-in) who have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation.
- Single Youth 18 and under: total number of unique clients who are 18 and under (at the time of their book-in) and have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation.
The annual measures are defined the same as the Single Temporary Emergency Accommodation Sector Dashboard.
As with any form of administrative data, there are limitations. To better understand the limitations and to download the data visit Open Ottawa.
To enter the Power BI report from the main Temporary Emergency Accommodation Dashboard by using a keyboard, press Tab once after the ’full screen mode' link and press Ctrl + Enter. A small box will appear in the top left corner of the report. Press Tab three times to navigate through the options and you will then be inside the report.
To ensure consistent language within the dashboard make sure your browser language settings are set for your preferred language.
Having trouble viewing the Dashboard? Try viewing the Single Demographics Dashboard in full screen mode.
Temporary emergency accommodation for families dashboard
This dashboard displays data about the use of temporary emergency accommodation services by clients belonging to a family and their placement into long-term housing. A family unit is comprised of two or more family members. The demographics shown in the dashboard are defined below:
- Family units: total number of unique family units who have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation for families.
- Family members: total number of unique clients that are part of a family unit who have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation. Single clients are not included.
- Households: total number of unique family units and single clients who have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation for families.
- Household members: total number of family members plus the total number of single clients who have stayed at least one night in temporary emergency accommodation for families.
- Total length of stay: total number of cumulative nights a family member has stayed in temporary emergency accommodation.
To further explain the difference between the categories, consider the hypothetical example of an overflow motel that has three rooms. One is occupied by a family of four, comprised of two adults and two children. The second room is occupied by a single parent with two children, and the last room is occupied by a single client. In this scenario we would have the following counts for all the clients residing in the motel:
| Room 1 | Room 2 | Room 3 |
|---|---|---|
|
|
|
Family unit: 2
Family members: 7
Households: 3
Household members: 8
The annual measures are defined the same as in the Single Temporary Emergency Accommodation Sector Dashboard and Single Demographic Dashboard.
As with any form of administrative data, there are limitations. To better understand the limitations and to download the data visit Open Ottawa.
To enter the Power BI report from the main Temporary Emergency Accommodation Dashboard by using a keyboard, press Tab once after the 'full screen mode' link and press Ctrl + Enter. A small box will appear in the top left corner of the report. Press Tab three times to navigate through the options and you will then be inside the report.
To ensure consistent language within the dashboard make sure your browser language settings are set for your preferred language.
Having trouble viewing the Dashboard? Try viewing the Family Demographics Dashboard in full screen mode.
Families, households, and members housed
When a client leaves a temporary emergency accommodation program, staff are required to enter a “reason for discharge” in Homeless Individual and Families Information System (HIFIS). The options related to a long-term housing are private market, supportive, or subsidized housing. Numbers from these options are added together to define the long-term housing measure. At this time, the dataset only represents clients moving to these housing options from the Family Shelter Sector and Offsite Services (hotels, motels, post-secondary institutions).
As with any form of administrative data, there are limitations. To better understand the limitations and to download the data visit Open Ottawa.
To enter the Power BI report from the main Temporary Emergency Accommodation Dashboard using a keyboard, press Tab once after the 'full screen mode' link and press Ctrl + Enter. A small box will appear in the top left corner of the report. Press Tab three times to navigate through the options and you will then be inside the report.
To ensure consistent language within the dashboard make sure your browser language settings are set for your preferred language.
Having trouble viewing the Dashboard? Try viewing the Family Households and Members Housed Dashboard in full screen mode.
Annual usage trends
This report is intended to allow users the freedom to select and graph any combination of possible temporary accommodation categories along with available years or months. Users can select multiple categories and compare numbers onto a single graph. You are also able to export the data you have selected by clicking "..." and then "export data" where you can choose to download the data contained in your graph onto an excel or csv file.
The measures found in the dashboard are defined below:
- Number of clients and/or families: total number of unique clients, families, or family members within those families who have accessed temporary emergency accommodation for at least one night
- Total length of stay: total number of cumulative nights a unique client or family member has stayed in temporary emergency accommodation.
- Average length of stay: total number of bed nights divided by the total number of unique clients who have stayed in temporary emergency accommodation in a calendar year.
As with any form of administrative data, there are limitations. To better understand the limitations and to download the data visit Open Ottawa.
To enter the Power BI report from the main Temporary Emergency Accommodation Dashboard by using a keyboard, press Tab once after the 'full screen mode' link and press Ctrl + Enter. A small box will appear in the top left corner of the report. Press Tab three times to navigate through the options and you will then be inside the report.
To ensure consistent language within the dashboard make sure your browser language settings are set for your preferred language.
Having trouble viewing the Dashboard? Try viewing the Annual Usage Trends Dashboard in full screen mode.