Salmon Arm is struggling with homelessness and the housing crisis, alongside the rest of the province.

The official BC Housing provincial homeless count included the first point-in-time count conducted in Salmon Arm. Numbers from a point-in-time count provide a very accurate snapshot of people experiencing homelessness in a 24-hour period, including details about demographic characteristics, use of services and other important information, reads the 2023 report.

In Salmon Arm, the homeless count was conducted during the evening of April 5 and during the day on April 6. It identified 69 people experiencing homelessness.

The report defines an individual as experiencing homelessness if they 鈥渄id not have a place of their own where they paid rent and could expect to stay for at least 30 days,鈥� including those who stayed overnight the night of the count in a homeless shelter, transition or safe house, and people with no fixed address temporarily staying in hospitals, jails or detox facilities. These individuals were defined as 鈥榮heltered鈥�.

Also included in the definition are those who stayed outside in alleys, doorways, parkades, parks and in vehicles and those staying temporarily at someone else鈥檚 residence or using homelessness services, defined as 鈥榰nsheltered鈥�.

Out of the 69 individuals, 46 per cent were identified as sheltered and 54 per cent unsheltered. Of the unsheltered respondents, the report stated 32 per cent stayed somewhere outside on the night of the count, 30 per cent stayed in a makeshift tent or shelter and 19 per cent stayed in a vehicle.

The emergency shelter in Salmon Arm closed on April 30, meaning the percentage of individuals counted as 鈥榮heltered鈥� in that facility would have changed after the count was complete.

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Read more: 4 to 8 people use new emergency shelter in Salmon Arm for first few nights, opinions mixed

The age breakdown of the respondents include four per cent categorized as 鈥榶outh鈥� (under 25 years of age), 78 per cent between 鈥榓dult鈥� ages of 25-54, and 18 per cent as 鈥榮enior鈥�, 55+. Sixty-one percent identified as a man, 37 per cent as a woman, and two per cent as another gender identity.

Forty per cent of these people said they鈥檇 experienced homelessness for the first time as a youth. Nine per cent identified as 2SLGBTQIA+ and six per cent said they identified as having a 鈥渢rans experience.鈥�

Seven per cent of the population in Salmon Arm鈥檚 latest census identify as Indigenous, compared to 30 per cent of those counted in this survey. Ninety-two per cent of these respondents reported having lived through or had generational experience with residential school.

Some of the racial identities of Salmon Arm鈥檚 respondents include five per cent labelling themselves as Black, two per cent as South Asian and two percent as Latin American.

Other statistics state the reason for housing loss was reported as 鈥榥ot enough income鈥� for 41 per cent of respondents, mental health issues for 22 per cent and conflict with a spouse/partner for 20 percent.

Several health concerns were listed, including a medical condition (affecting 46 per cent), a physical disability (38 per cent), mental health (67 per cent), addiction (48 per cent) and learning disabilities (27 per cent). An acquired brain injury was reported by 31 per cent of respondents and 73 per cent stated they suffered from two or more of these health concerns.

As for how long they鈥檇 been experiencing homelessness, 19 per cent said 鈥榰nder six months鈥� and 58 per cent said 鈥榦ne year or more鈥�. Eighty-one per cent of respondents had been in the community for more than a year, and of these, 50 per cent have been here for five years or more and seven per cent said they have always been in the community.

Food services were accessed by 79 per cent of respondents, 53 per cent had accessed housing services and 51 per cent reported having been to the emergency room.

In the last year, 61 per cent said they鈥檇 stayed in the homeless shelter, 43 per cent reported staying outside and 39 per cent said they鈥檇 stayed at someone else鈥檚 residence. The report notes that new for the 2023 point-in-time count, respondents were asked to check all the locations they had stayed in the last year from a list rather than only being asked if they鈥檇 stayed in a shelter, with a yes or no response.

Ninety-one percent reported having an income source, with the most common being income assistance and disability benefits and around six per cent of respondents reported having a full-time job.

Importantly, the report highlights that point-in-time counts are an 鈥榰ndercount鈥� and represent only those identified during a specific 24-hour period. The numbers are understood to be a minimum and represent those experiencing homelessness on a given day. All questions are based on self-reporting. A person doesn鈥檛 need to be diagnosed with a medical condition to answer 鈥榶es,鈥� for example, reads the report. As well, 鈥榓ddiction鈥� is defined as any substance use or behavioural addiction, including cigarette and cannabis use.

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