As many as 80% of youth and young adults with FASD have had difficulty sustaining independent living, and more than 30% have been unhoused at some point in their lives.

Youth with FASD are particularly vulnerable to housing instability when they ‘age out’ of services (e.g., foster care, school) or when their caregiver(s) pass away and they do not have strong pre-established housing and social supports. Many individuals with FASD also experience co-occuring mental health and substance use challenges which may create further barriers to acquiring and maintaining safe and supported housing. Service providers, individuals with FASD, and caregivers have described challenges navigating conventional housing support systems which often fail to meet their unique needs.

The Solutions Lab approach will provide a unique opportunity to unite Canadian housing providers, youth with FASD, caregivers, researchers, and policymakers to be innovative. Together, we will co-design an implementation approach in response to needs-based and strengths-based housing for individuals with FASD. This collaboration will facilitate emerging practices that address system-level, person-focused, and relational approaches required to responsively meet this population’s complex housing and support needs. This Lab will also promote capacity building by offering several webinar and self-directed learning opportunities for service and care providers. Our proposed structure will allow for on-going learning and future iteration on best practices as we continue to engage people with lived and service experience in human-centred conversation.