Housing, Health, Hunger & Help: Resources for Library Staff
Librarian's Guide to Homelessness
- Librarian's Guide to Homelessness WebsiteRyan Dowd's online portal offering advice on how to deal with common issues such as body odor, too many bags, sleeping, and much more. Sign up for weekly newsletter to receive tips from Ryan on how to work with homeless, addicted, and mentally ill patrons.
The Librarian's Guide to Homelessness by ISBN: 9780838916261Publication Date: 2018-05-31In this book Dowd, executive director of a homeless shelter, spotlights best practices drawn from his own shelter's policies and training materials. This resource debunks widespread myths; explains issues facing these individuals and how libraries can shift towards supporting them; shares de-escalation techniques and using proper body language; walks readers through dealing with common issues like offensive behavior and asking a patron to leave; and advises on how to provide backup to a colleague and when to call the police.
- MANNA Micro Library
The MANNA Micro Library aims to serve all people by offering books free of charge without requiring I.D. or proof or permanent residence. - Street Books
A nonprofit founded in June, 2011, Street Books is a bicycle-powered mobile library, serving people who live outside in Portland, Oregon. Patrons are issued an official Street Books library card without being required to show proof of address or identification.
Efforts and Resources at the Boston Public Library
- BPL Press Release Announcing Hiring of Full-Time Outreach WorkerMayor Martin J. Walsh in October 2017 announced the hire of a full-time outreach manager for the Boston Public Library, who will work as part of a team providing assessment, crisis intervention and intensive case management services to unsheltered individuals drawn to the spaces and resources of the Boston Public Library.
- Pine Street Outreach Team
Pine Street Inn's Street Outreach teams offer clothing, food, blankets, health care referrals and human contact to homeless men and women who - often struggling with mental illness and addiction - choose not to come into shelter. If you see an individual who may be in need of Outreach services, please call us:
Daytime (5:00am – 9:00pm): 866.910.7463
Nighttime (9:00pm – 5:00am): 617.633.0170
If the situation is an emergency, call 911. - Legal Services Center
10am-12pm every Friday: Legal Services' staff will meet with patrons seeking legal assistance with civil legal services issues and provide them with advice and referral information about the areas of the law that LSC provides services in.
- Housing, Recovery & Health Resource Pocket GuidePrintable version of pocket guide available at all branch locations. Helplines, substance use assistance, shelters, health care, and more.
- Social Service Office HoursPrintable version of the Social Service Office Hours postcard available at all branch location. Promotes weekly, drop-in office hours with Pine Street Inn, Victory Programs Mobile Prevention Team, and Legal Services Center.
- Quick Advice offered by the Librarian's Guide to HomelessnessQuick tips and advice for library staff on deescalation techniques, ways to approach patrons to minimize conflict, use of body language, methods to reduce conflict or miscommunication, suggestions for using the "right words", and best practices for managing common patron concerns such as body odor, too many bags, and mental health.
Below are patron scenarios that may require informational assistance to supportive or emergency services. This is by no means an authoritative instruction guide, but is meant to provide library staff with useful suggestions to phone numbers or resources. As always, if you suspect someone is experiencing an emergency, call 911 immediately.
If a patron requests housing assistance, is unsheltered, or at risk of homelessness:
1. Refer them to the Department of Neighborhood Development's Emergency Shelter list.
2. Provide them with the Housing, Health and Recovery Resource Pocket Guide or refer them to resources listed on this LibGuide
3. Call the Mayor's Hotline at 3-1-1
4. Contact Pine Street Outreach Team, 24hr/day @ 866.910.7463 (daytime, 5am-9pm) or 617.633.0170 (nightime, 9pm-5am)
5. Alert them to Social Services Office Hours at the Central Library every Thursday, 9:30-11:30am. Harvard University's Legal Services Center provides legal support and referrals on the 1st Thursday of each month and may be of assistance with tenant rights, eviction, and housing inquiries.
6. E-mail or call the BPL's Outreach Navigator
If a patron requests domestic violence resources:
1. Provide them with the SafeLink Hotline phone number, 877.785.2020 (toll-free) or 877.521.2601 (TTY), for information, support, and resources
2. Direct them to statewide DV listings on mass.gov.
3. Connect them to the Boston-based organization, Casa Myrna, and help them navigate its listing of supportive services
4. E-mail or call the BPL's Outreach Navigator
5. Review resources included on BPL's Libguide, Addiction Recovery Resources in Boston and Massachusetts.
If a patron or staff member requests harm reduction services, assistance, or referral:
1. Connect them with the Massachusetts Substance Use Helpline 800.327.5050
2. Provide phone numbers to Victory Programs Mobile Prevention Team
3. Refer them weekly Social Services Office Hours at the Central Library, Thursdays, 9:30-11:30am, Mezzanine. Victory Programs attends on the 1st and 3rd Thursday of each month.
If a patron requests employment assistance:
1. Refer them to the following BPL Libguides: Job Seekers' Guide; Internship Seekers' Guide, and Reentry Resources for Returning Citizens.
2. Help them navigate resources and workshops available through the Kirstein Business Library, such as resume review workshops and workforce development events.
3. Print out the Job Training & Career Center list created by staff at Rosie's Place.
Professional Resources
- ALA Policy B.8.10 Library Services for the PoorALA policy concerning equal access to information, resources, and programming for all patrons to help address illiteracy, illness, social isolation, homelessness, hunger, and discrimination.
- Classism in the Stacks: Libraries and Poverty2005 Jean E. Coleman Library Outreach Lecture by Sanford Berman, founder of the American Library Association Social Responsibilities Round Table (SRRT) Task Force on Hunger, Homelessness, and Poverty.
- Connecting Individuals with Social Services: The Library's RoleWhile libraries work to become true community centers, can we expect to see more libraries connecting users with social services? And if so, how can they best accomplish this task?
- Give Them Shelter?: Libraries face tough choices when homeless patrons set up permanent residenceGive Them Shelter?, published in American Libraries on June 3, 2019 discusses several public library responses and solutions to the impact of unsheltered patrons while forging community partnerships to help meet this need.
- A Home to the HomelessAmerican Libraries, November 2014. Libraries offer refuge and support to those in need and help foster a new community approach to homelessness.
- Linking the Needy to the Needed | Programs That PopLibraryJournal highlights the outreach programs offered by the Salt Lake City Public Library to homeless and at-risk patrons.
- Providing Social Service Resources in a Library SettingWritten by San Francisco Public Library Social Worker, describing types of resources available, the value of community partnerships, and why it is important to provide social services in a public library.
- Resources for Public Libraries Serving Persons Experiencing HomelessnessPublic Library Association's list of resources and related reading addressing supportive services and programming, inclusion of social workers, tool kits and training to empower staff, and efforts made in public libraries to improve safety for all staff and patrons.
- Social Workers in the Library: An Innovative Approach to Address Library Patrons’ Social Service NeedsQualitative and Quantitative Methods in Libraries Journal -- Social Workers in the Library (SWITL) is a unique program where social workers partner with public librarians.
- BPHC's Overdose Education and Narcan TrainingSince 2007, more than 9,500 individuals in Boston have received training on how to administer Narcan, a medication used to reverse opioid overdoses, and thousands more people have been educated on overdose prevention techniques.
- Webinar: Understanding and Serving People Experiencing Homelessness: A Trauma-Informed Approach to Library ServicePLA's two-part series addresses the prevalence, causes, and impact of homelessness and related trauma on children and adults, while exploring ways to address homelessness in public libraries.
- Reaching Out: Creating Meaningful Library Services for Patrons Experiencing HomelessnessWebinar with resources about providing service to homeless patrons by the Colorado State Library.
- Public Library Association Social Worker Task ForceDevelops and recommends a strategic and coordinated approach for PLA related to how public libraries address the social service needs of customers. The task force will identify best practices and will consider resources to be developed that will allow PLA to offer guidance and technical support to libraries. Connect with other librarians at the Social Work Interest Group.
- Hunger, Homelessness & Poverty Task Force BlogThe Hunger, Homelessness & Poverty Task Force Blog, published by the Social Responsibilities Round Table (SRRT) of the American Library Association, features articles and a robust list of resources for librarians and patrons.
- From Crisis to Collaboration: Pima County Public Library partners with Health Department for Library Nurse ProgramPCPL and the Pima County Health Department (PCHD) developed the Library Nurse Program. The PHN position is located within the library department, PCPL funded the full-time position.
- Social Workers in the Library @ San JoseInformation and referrals with a one-to-one 20-minute consultation with a member of the National Association of Social Workers. Social workers visit different branches.
- LAMBDA (Library Anchor Models for Bridging Diversity Achievement) at UTKPartnership between University of Tennessee’s School of Information Sciences and the Center for Literacy, Education & Employment with the San Diego County Libraries and other public libraries in California and Tennessee to provide education, training, workshops, and support materials to support library staff members who serve LGBTQA+ homeless youth.
- Dallas Public Library's Homeless Engagement InitiativeLaunched in 2013, this project engages members of the homeless community in library programs, mentorship and personalized assistance services such as game day, housing referrals, music classes, and resume and job application help.
- Baltimore County Public Library PAD Packing PartyThe Owings Mills Branch hosted a Period Action Drive (PAD) to collect pads and tampons for people in need during Summer 2019. Teens in grades six through 12 were invited to join.