Our Mission

Horizons for Youth is dedicated to helping homeless and at-risk youth achieve personal responsibility, make positive choices and become empowered for their future.  Horizons for Youth sets the standard for physical and emotional shelter where youth can access professional services with dignity. 

More Than a Shelter

• Horizons for Youth was incorporated in 1990 and officially opened its doors in December 1994.
• Horizons offers 24 hour intake, 7 days a week for 35 homeless and at-risk youth aged 16 - 24. 
• There are a minimum of 2 staff on shift at all times.
• Horizons provides food, shelter and programs for  over 1,100 youth annually  
• 35,000 meals served annually. 
• Horizons is overseen by a 10 member volunteer Board of Directors.
• Horizons staff include: Executive Director, 1 Shelter Service Manager, 7 Case Managers, 1 Program Coordinator, and 3 program staff (Day Program, Housing, and Community Outreach/Aftercare).
• Horizons meets the standards set out by the Toronto Hostel Standards Guidelines and is a member of the Youth Shelter Inter Agency Network (YSIN) and the Ontario Association of Hostels.
• Horizons gives out over 10,000 TTC tokens every year.
• Horizons Staff are trained in First Aid, non-violent crisis intervention, anti-discrimination practices, food handling, WHMIS, Hostel Standards and case management.
• It costs approximately $ 90.00  every day to keep one youth off the street.

Our Youth

• Our youth come from all walks of life, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds
• 94% come from the GTA
• The largest contributing factor to youth homelessness continues to be family breakdown
• Many of our youth indicate that abuse is the key factor in leading them to leave home.
• Common Goals:
  • continue education
  • obtain jobs
  • secure housing conquer addictions
  • seek treatment for mental health issues
• The average age of a Horizons for Youth resident is 19
• Over two thirds of the young girls we serve are under 18.
• The average level of completed education is Grade 10.
• Our youth stay at Horizons fro Youth anywhere from one night to six months.
• 3,000 youth are turned away annually because our beds are full.
• 40% of homeless youth lack basic work readiness skills and 42% have gone without food at least one day in the past week.
• Youth who are homeless are more likely to be victims of a crime and less likely to receive adequate health care.

They don’t have to end up like this. Horizons for Youth is here to help – unconditionally.

Our Programs

Horizons helps youth to make positive life choices by providing:

• Life skills training.
• Supportive Counselling.
• Inidividualized case management.
• Crisis intervention.
• Referrals and accompaniment to clinics, youth employment agencies, mental health and addiction counselling and more.
• After shelter support.
• Food packages.
• Advocacy.
• Housing workshops.
• In house programs and services developed in partnership with existing agencies.

Resource programs

Day Program/Drop In - Preparing youth for independent living and helping them to build self esteem

Gives youth the opportunity to become the best they can be! It is a combination of workshops, group work and lessons designed to give them the tools they need to live independently and excel in their lives. The Life Skills Certification Program has various different modules in which youth can graduate. The youth learn how to prepare meals, budget their money, manage their anger, search for employment and develop other life skills.

Individual Case Management - Providing one-on-one support and counseling

At Horizons for Youth, we ensure that every youth is assigned a Primary Worker to works closely with each resident. Together, they work towards the ultimate goal of independent living. Youth are accompanied to medical appointments, job search and housing appointments, and connected with a wide range of employment, health, legal, immigration and other community resources.

Housing Help - Helping youth find and keep affordable housing

This program addresses the needs of our youth to find and maintain housing. Many youth could excel on their own, but lack of affordable housing in the city makes it difficult to find somewhere to live. All youth coming into Horizons for Youth have the opportunity to meet with the Housing Worker every day. In addition, we provide a workshop series - Ready, Set, Home - to educate youth in the realities of living independently, including their legal rights and responsibilities and all the skills needed to maintain their own housing

Outreach and Aftercare - Providing continued support to former residents once they have secured housing

Once housing is secured the Outreach & Aftercare worker takes over and assists youth in maintaining their housing. The Outreach Worker visits youth in their home and can provide assistance, food packages or mediate with a landlord or roommates if necessary.

Funding Requirements and Sources

• Annual operating budget of $1.3 million.
• $90.00 is our cost for each youth each night to provide our full range of programs.
• $54.61 in government funding for each youth each night they stay at Horizons for Youth.
• Approximately 10% of our annual funding comes from the United Way of Greater Toronto.
• Only 8% of our total operating costs in 2005 were spent on Fundraising.
• $300,000 needs to be attained through fundraising to meet our budget this year.

Career Horizons - An intensive employment program for homeless or at-risk youth.

Our success is determined by the number of 'graduates' of the program who secure full-time employment for more than three months. The Career Horizons graduates learn the skills they need to enter the workforce and retain full-time employment.