Community resource and social safety net information, knowledge, and use among parents of young children in a homeless shelter

Homelessness among families with young children challenges parents and entails risks to development. Community resources (CR) and social safety nets (SN) buffer risks and build resilience. Yet, some families who experience homelessness are not connected to CR and SN, precluding more resilient outcomes. Little is known about how families experiencing homelessness learn about CR and SN and how they use them. Information about CR and SN is critical for improving access to and use of supports. We asked sixteen parents with young children living in a homeless shelter how they learn about CR and SN, and how they use those CR/SN. Parents primarily used self-reliance, and not professional helpers, to learn about CR and SN by purposefully seeking information and by using knowledge from previous experiences of homelessness and poverty. Families were not always enrolled in CR/SN suggesting missed opportunities for more resilient outcomes.