Services We Provide

VCRHYP agencies provide three critical types of services that act as a crucial safety net for Vermont youth and their families. While these three programs are distinct, they are also interwoven threads that create a safety net for some of Vermont’s most vulnerable youth. These three programs work together to ensure that youth age 12 to 22 have access to services that support their age-specific development needs.

Transitional Living Programs

Transitional living Programs (TLP) help youth age 16 to 22 who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, and lack familial support to help them make the difficult transition into adulthood, promoting a smooth transition toward self-sufficiency. The program's ultimate goal is to help youth become responsible tenants, dependable employees, valued community members, and healthy individuals.  Young people can receive housing supports in the form of a room in an agency housing complex -- or rental subsidies for their own apartment. While in the program, youth work with a counselor to develop vital life skills around money management, job skills, community participation, reaching educational or vocational goals, and housing self-sufficiency. Participants are required to be in school or working while in the program. Over time, subsidies lessen as youth take increasing responsibility for their own living expenses.  

During fiscal year 2011, 408 youth participated in this program.

Runaway and Family Stabilization

This core service is aimed at stabilizing families in crisis, and strives to resolve existing crises and reunify families. Coalition members work with youth forced to leave home, as well as families experiencing severe levels of stress that could lead to a youth leaving home. All Coalition members provide youth and families with 24-hour, year-round crisis care, access to safe temporary shelter for youth, and a commitment to work with youth and families through counseling, mediation and a variety of supportive services.   In extreme cases where reunifying a family would not be safe, VCRHYP members help youth and family members explore options with Vermont’s Department for Children and Families, and often serve as a support for the youth throughout the process of entering the foster care system.

During fiscal year 2011, 567 Vermont youth participated in the Runaway and Family Stabilization Program.

Street Outreach Program

Through the Street Outreach Program, community agencies employ youth to work in direct outreach to their peers. They help staff drop-in centers, host community events, and contact youth directly on the street. Peer Outreach Workers also distribute information about services,  and provide food and hygiene products to youth whose needs aren’t being met elsewhere. They educate young people at risk about substance abuse, domestic and sexual violence prevention, and other relevant topics. Peer Outreach Workers are among VCRHYP’s most valuable resource, playing a direct role as ambassadors to youth who may be reluctant to ask for help on their own.

During fiscal year 2011, Peer Outreach Workers made contact with over 4,000 Vermont youth, distributed 1,396 health and hygiene products, and 7,493 food items. Their work resulted in 172 referrals to runaway & family stabilization or TLP services, and 454 referrals to other services in the community.