One of the most important, and resource intensive, aspects of a PiT Count is volunteer training. To be successful, volunteers must gain a basic understanding about the experiences of homelessness and a thorough grasp on the count methodology, particularly the survey instrument.
An effective PiT Count relies on clear and thorough training. Training prepares volunteers for their role as survey administrators and importantly, increases their understanding about the issue of homelessness. Having volunteers present and willing to engage in the issue is a tremendous opportunity to gain allies in our efforts to end homelessness.
– Excerpt from the COH PiT Count Toolkit
A Focus on Youth
The success of your Youth Count will depend largely on the quality of your volunteer training. The more complicated your methodology and survey instrument, the more training is required to ensure that volunteers precisely follow the instructions you have given them. Though training is resource intensive, it is an investment that must be made. Not only will properly trained volunteers ensure useful data, they will emerge from their Youth Count experience with a better understanding of youth homelessness and a greater commitment to helping end homelessness.
TABLE 8. THE FIVE W'S OF YOUTH COUNT TRAINING
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Who should attend training? |
All survey volunteers, regardless of their prior experience with research and/or youth homelessness, must attend training. Although sector-workers are familiar with the population, they must familiarize themselves with the Youth Count survey. We recommend that you make training mandatory. |
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What should the training cover? |
Ensure that you provide your volunteers with all the necessary information but resist the urge to conduct an overly lengthily training session. Where possible, we suggest that volunteer training be kept to a maximum of two hours. In your volunteer training, be sure to cover the following:
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Where should training be held? |
If you are conducting training prior to the Youth Count, choose a location that is central and easily accessible. Some communities may require multiple training locations, due to their size. Consult your Youth Count partners for suggestions. |
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Why is training important? |
Thorough training will improve the quality of the data that you collect and ensure the safety of your volunteers and participants. Volunteers will be more willing to follow instruction if they understand the importance of doing so. |
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When should training be held? |
You can schedule training before the count, preferably no more than one week in advance. Alternatively, you can hold a training session at headquarters on the day of the count. Training sessions held on the day of the count tend to be shorter. If your methodology is especially complex, we encourage you to conduct training in advance. In both scenarios, Team Leaders should be trained in advance. |
Location Specific Training
Volunteers, depending on their survey location, will require different instruction. However, there are aspects of volunteer training that are applicable to all volunteers. We recommend that you hold a single training session for all volunteers, and then break your volunteers into groups depending on their roles (ex. street count volunteers, magnet event volunteers, etc.) Team Leaders, given their increased responsibilities, should receive separate training.
Youth Involvement
As you develop your training agenda, seek input from your Youth Subcommittee. Determine what role, if any, the individual members of your Youth Subcommittee want to play in volunteer training. Some youth may be willing to share their experiences with volunteers, while others may be uncomfortable doing so.
Volunteer Training Guide
Effective volunteer training will cover a lot of material in a short time period. While it is inadvisable to give volunteers homework, consider providing training guides to volunteers. If you are holding training on the day of the count, send your volunteers electronic training materials in advance. The following table contains a number of resources, prepared by the Canadian Observatory on Homelessness and the Homelessness Partnering Strategy (HPS), which can be adapted for your Youth Count Training.
TABLE 9. VOLUNTEER TRAINING GUIDE RESOURCES
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Suggested Sections |
Helpful Resources |
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1. Overview of the Count |
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2. Role of the Volunteer |
COH PiT Count Toolkit: Volunteer Role Description |
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3. Safety |
Youth Count Toolkit: Duty to Report |
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4. Preparing for the Count |
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5. The Survey Instrument |
Youth Count Resource: Sample Survey |
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6. Interviewing Strategies |
COH PiT Count Toolkit: Interviewing Guide |
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7. Dealing with the Media |
COH PiT Count Toolkit: Media Tip Sheet |
Volunteer Forms
The COH PiT Count Toolkit contains a number of volunteer management forms. These forms can be easily adapted for your Youth Count. Refer to COH PiT Count Toolkit: Working with Volunteers for the following templates:
- Oath of Confidentiality
- Volunteer Waiver
- Volunteer Evaluation Form
- Registration
More information
Refer to the COH PiT Count Toolkit: Volunteer Training for more information on:
- Team Leader Training
- General Training
- Training Timing
- Headquarters Training
- Planning for a Safe Count
Building Alignment: Tips & Strategies
In most instances, combined training sessions will be the most practical option. In the COH PiT Count Toolkit we recommend that all volunteer training cover basic issues around age of consent and youth participation. Combined counts should place an even greater emphasis on ensuring the safety of youth participants, especially those under the age of 18. Due to the overrepresentation of LGBTQ2S youth among populations of youth experiencing homelessness, we strongly recommend that you train volunteers on the importance of asking all survey questions, including those about gender and sexuality, neutrally and without bias.