III. Directions Programs

Hours of Operation

• Directions is open and providing services for youth 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week.

Staffing

• The reception area is staffed 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week.
• Reception personnel is responsible for intake procedures for youth, monitoring security cameras, working within the security plan, and coordinating staff patrols of the exterior front of Directions and key weather-protected public areas in the front of adjacent buildings (the Burrard Medical Centre building and the Burrard Inn building).
• At all times, a member of staff is designated to expedite the admission of youth to prevent outside queuing. 
• All staff members are trained in Directions' established risk management procedures. 
• All staff members are oriented to protocols within the management plan, including responsiveness to community concerns. 
• The staff to client ratio meets best practice standards and is constantly evaluated to ensure these standards are maintained. In the event of a significant change in the number of clients accessing the centre, staffing levels will be adjusted by management accordingly.

Core Services

Day Resource Centre	Available to youth under 18 years of age. Services provided include: access to housing support workers; life skills support and programming; counselling; assistance in accessing community services (i.e. health and mental health assessment and support, drug and alcohol intervention, shelter services and MCFD).
Night Resource Centre	Available to youth under 21 years of age. Provides a safe space, laundry facilities, hot meals, showers, clothing, toiletries, one-to-one counselling and referral and access to health services, including a doctor and a nurse.
After Hours Crisis Response Service	Available to youth under 21 years who need immediate assistance from social services or police and for youth who need a safe place to be while waiting for daytime community services to open.
Youth Employment Program	Available to youth 15-24 years of age. This program offers a range of employment opportunities for street involved youth through government and private sector funding. Presently, this program provides the community with needle pick up and graffiti removal.
School	Available to youth 13-18 years of age. This is a joint program with the Vancouver School Board. Students work at their own pace toward high school completion. Staff work to assist youth in accessing all other education services available to them, including integration back into regular high school. The program also offers a vocational and life skills component.
Housing Support	Available to youth under 18 years of age. Additional services available for youth aged 18 – 24. Youth can make an appointment to access a housing worker who will assist them in securing safe/affordable housing. Housing workers work closely with the MCFD and MHR and assist youth with life skills development necessary to maintain housing, as well as any other resource planning required. Housing workers liaise with landlords and make others aware of safe and unsafe housing resources in the city.
Outreach Services	Available to youth under 18 years of age. Additional services available for youth aged 18 – 24. Outreach workers identify new youth on the streets of Vancouver; assist youth at risk in immediately accessing services such as health, mental health, MCFD or police; return youth to home or home community; and coordinating a response with others. Outreach workers will assist the Centre to ensure that youth do no loiter outside the centre. Outreach staff will work closely with police to ensure safety for clients who wish to access the centre as well as for community members.
Victim Service Workers	Available to youth under 18 years of age. Victim Service workers assist youth who are victims of violence to access resources, report a crime to police, and prepare for court.
Reception	The reception area of the centre will be staffed 24/7 and works in partnership with the day, night and crisis response resource. Staff in reception will be able to monitor the outside areas of the building and will process youth wishing to access centre services.

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