A local advocacy group is sounding the alarm about a lack of housing for those released from custody.
Founder and director of Turnings, a not-for-profit focused on rehabilitation, told Your VOCM Mornings it’s getting harder for inmates released from HMP to find stable, safe housing in the capital city region.
The housing crunch is one aspect of the problem, but those released from custody also need wrap around supports.
But Dan McGettigan says those supports are often lacking.
“They need so many services because of recent behaviors, mental illness, addictions issues, lack of treatment,” says McGettigan. He says people trying to reintegrate into the community also need support to get a job, go back to school and strengthen family ties.
He says without those supports, people have nowhere to go and often end up back in the corrections system. He says there’s a real need for greater collaboration.
“People need interventions, they have certain gifts inside that need to be developed, they need training and skills, they need spiritual direction. That’s a big piece too, because a lot of these people do believe in a higher power and they need supports from faith communities to interact with them, to welcome them.”