Toronto’s Houselink is working to hire “people with lived experience”—including former clients—at all levels
Houselink Community Homes is a non-profit, charitable agency based in Toronto that provides a range of supportive housing options, individualized supports and community-based programs. As one of the pioneers in the concept of ‘supportive housing’, Houselink created a brand new option for people leaving psychiatric institutions: a home that was permanent, affordable and a support based environment. Houselink is currently home to over 430 members living in virtually every neighbourhood in the city of Toronto.
Now Houselink is working to become a more fully inclusive employer—promoting a workplace that values “lived experience.” Employees can be former Houselink clients as well as employees with disclosed or nondisclosed lived experience with mental illness, homelessness, or other related experiences.
We speak with Judy James, a supportive housing worker with Houselink Community Homes, who brings her “lived experience” to the role.
