Organization
History
The Bristol County Continuum of Care (BCCC) is the result of a 2024 merger between two adjoining continuums–the former Homeless Services Providers Network (HSPN) and the Greater Bristol County/Attleboro /Taunton Coalition to End Homelessness each with its unique history.
The original HSPN (MA-505) began in 1994 with a small group of service providers, began meeting to discuss the problem of homelessness in the City of New Bedford. This small group began meeting monthly to identify collaborative strategies to address the increasingly complex set of needs of homeless people-and the increasing number of people faced with homelessness. The group was lead by City of New Bedford Office of Housing and Community Development (OHCD) who also served as its Collaborative Applicant. The HSPN formally organized itself in 1999 into an interactive collaborative network. In 1996 the HSPN prepared its first application to HUD to secure Stuart B. McKinney-Vento funding and to coordinate its local Continuum of Care (CoC) process.
GBCATCH (MA-519)–originally organized as simply “GATCH” representing the cities of Attleboro and Taunton, only. Throughout its own history working throughout the balance of the county in its effort to end homelessness, GBCATCH was guided by its Collaborative Applicant, Community Counseling of Bristol County (CCBC).
In late 2023, the New Bedford Continuum of Care (MA-505) formally entered into conversations with the Continuum of Care directly adjoining it, the Greater Bristol (County) Attleboro, Taunton Coalition to end Homelessness (GBCATCH) also referred to as MA-519 to consider the potential for a continuum merger. A vote in October 2023 was held by both CoCs, independent of one another, at which time both continuum memberships unanimously voted to enter into a STATEMENT OF INTENT TO MERGE COCS. In this document, the two CoCs set forth four specific areas requiring review and consideration as to how these particular aspects of a newly merged CoC might be manifested: governance, homeless assistance system and resource allocation, the coordinated entry system and HMIS implementation.
Once the leadership of both CoCs (which included those with lived experience and expertise) completed their respective consideration of a merger along with a review of the condition of the other with both macro and micro lenses, a draft CoC bylaw for a merged continuum was prepared. The draft merged CoC Bylaw was subsequently presented at both the May 2024 HSPN meeting and May 2024 GBCATCH meeting for each CoC’s memberships to review and vote. Following discussion at both meetings, the result of this process led to both memberships from both CoCs unanimously voted to accept both the merger and the new governance document, the BCCCC BY-LAWS. A temporary colloquial name of “Bristol County CoC (or the abbreviated BCCC or BC3) was agreed upon.
The CoC pursues a comprehensive response to homelessness using a “Continuum of Care” methodology through a community-based network. The BCCC is a membership-driven collective of over 60 organizations, agencies and individuals committed to working together in addressing all variants of homelessness particularly those experiencing chronic homelessness and those unsheltered/unhoused. The continuing mission of the BCCC is:
“…to advocate on behalf of homeless individuals by enlisting the cooperation of homeless providers, to improve the accessibility of existing public resources, to maintain statistical data on the homeless population, and to provide supportive services and empowerment strategies to allow these individuals to be integrated into the community through a compassionate Continuum of Care. The Bristol County Continuum of Care is committed to the concept that each person is entitled to live in dignity.”
Today the BCCC is the area’s lead entity in developing the region’s plans and strategies to organize and deliver housing and services to successfully meet the specific needs of people who are in the midst of a housing crisis and/or are experiencing homelessness as they move to stable housing and maximum self-sufficiency.
