YWCA executive director, Donna Brooks, said a new batch of funding from the provincial government will be put towards a deficit at Our House.
In a press release sent Friday morning the provincial government announced $171,000 in funding for emergency shelters in cities across the province.
The funding is in addition to previous funding announced in April and “will help emergency shelters meet extra cost pressures and further support staff and client safety.”
“A number of sectors have needed a helping hand during the COVID-19 pandemic,” Social Services Minister Lori Carr said. “We continue to support Saskatchewan’s emergency shelters that have done incredible work to adjust and respond to COVID-19.”
Brooks said Our House can’t run with the same capacity they usually do with physical distancing.
The cold-weather shelter that usually runs out of the basement at Our House was moved to the grandstand on the exhibition grounds because it has more space for physical distancing and beds.
Funding for the cold-weather shelter came from the Reaching Home program run by the federal government.
Not being able to run with the same capacity at Our House has had an effect on revenue, Brooks said.
“Especially for our male beds because our male beds we have to bill the ministry of social services for them and we can’t put as many people in there,” Brooks said.
Brooks said Prince Albert YWCA received $11,000 of the funding announced Friday, which will go towards the deficit at Our House.
