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Service Design, Strategy, Outcomes Framework

Toward Home Case Study - Homelessness System Change

Design of a new prevention-focused service model for delivery of homelessness services across Adelaide in South Australia, when 8 providers came together in an Alliance to deliver seameless servicess to every homeless person.

The South Australian Housing Authority (SAHA) sought to redesign the homelessness system in order to reduce the number of those at-risk of entering homelessness and the length of time people are in the system. To do this, SAHA divided its jurisdiction into five discrete regions and called on social service providers to develop solutions. 


In the Adelaide City and South region, Baptist Care SA, Lutheran Care, Mission Australia, The Salvation Army and Sonder came together to form the Toward Home Alliance. 


The challenge for the Toward Home Alliance was to redesign the homelessness system so that service users received a tailored and individualised response. Resources, accommodation and services needed to be aligned to the outcomes for each of the service user groups 

First-time users of homelessness services; 

Those at-risk of entering the homelessness service system;

Long-term users (‘cyclers’) through our system, including rough sleepers; &

Aboriginal people - who required a culturally appropriate, First -Nation led response. 


The challenge of service design was compounded by the prevalence of factors that contribute to homelessness such as mental health, physical health, disability, drug and alcohol and life trauma - requiring the intervention to holistically address these issues too. 

Toward Home Case Study - Homelessness System Change

The project saw us working with partners to 

  • identify client and system outcomes, together with the necessary thresholds and target success rates for each outcome ;

  • Planning a seamless, sensitive transition of clients from the existing system to the new system, and then developing a comprehensive implementation plan ;

  • Designing a data system and measurement: mapping data to outcomes, dashboard reporting and promoting a ‘performance culture’;

  • Working with the Alliance to develop a full commercial and financial model, including avoided costs.

The outcomes was that the Alliance secured the funding in a competitive tender and built a new model for service deliver that is being emulated across the sector.

Toward Home Case Study - Homelessness System Change
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