Webinar on Rural Housing and Homelessness – Gaining insight
Housing has become increasingly unaffordable for rural Ontarians. People are struggling to find adequate, appropriate, and affordable housing. This precarity of shelter adds a mental toll. People experiencing homelessness or living in encampments can have life-threatening conditions. The lack of a permanent or precarious address making it difficult to provide adequate ongoing health services and emergency response.
According to a report by the Association of Municipalities in Ontario, the population of people who are experiencing homelessness grew by over 30% in rural communities in 2025. Social housing in Ontario remains a municipal responsibility. As this challenge escalates in rural regions, strong partnerships are needed to solve an issue that extends into areas of health, community well-being, and mental health servicing.
Housing & Homelessness in Huron County
Huron County, like many other rural regions, is facing a challenge of housing affordability. According to the Living Wage Network, in 2025, Huron County is part of the region with the second highest living wage at $24.60, just after Toronto.
An estimated 1,175 households - very low and low-income - in Huron County had housing that was in poor condition, mismatched to their needs, or unaffordable. These challenges can be multi-dimensional and additive:
Available housing is unaffordable.
And the housing needs major repairs.
And the housing is not accessible for reasons of mobility or developmental disabilities.
And there are limited housing units for appropriate transitional care options such as supportive or long-term senior care.
Planning for the future is imperative to take proper steps to address housing needs in rural areas. The County of Huron has released a Long-Term Affordable Housing and Homelessness Plan for the County of Huron (2026-2035). In this plan they project that the population will increase by 12,200 residents with demand increasing for a supply of purpose-built rentals and non-market options.
Housing Webinar
On Tuesday, September 15th, 2026, Gateway Centre of Excellence in Rural Health hosted a lecture series event on “Housing and Homelessness in Huron County: Plans and Progress.”
Speakers included:
Lynn Higgs Ryan Erb Rodney Phillips Erin Schooley
Lynn Higgs is the Chief Nursing Executive and Vice President of Clinical Services with the Huron Health System, serving both the Alexandra Marine and General Hospital and South Huron Hospital.
Ryan Erb is the Executive Director of the Perth-Huron United Way. He has 25-plus years of non-profit management, community development, and fundraising experience.
Rodney Phillips is the Manager of Outpatient Mental Health Programs with the Huron Perth Healthcare Alliance. He leads teams focused on delivering accessible, high-quality care and improving the overall client and family experience.
Erin Schooley is the Homelessness Programs Supervisor with the County of Huron for over 9 years. She has a history working in Emergency Management with the Canadian Red Cross.
This webinar highlighted some of the work organizations are doing locally to promote rural housing well-being.
For example, The United Way is Perth-Huron's First non-profit housing organization dedicated to creating and sustaining mixed-income rental units. They have made a substantial financial investment into building affordable housing units throughout Huron-Perth.
Projects include:
Musical Hall Apartments
North Perth Library
South Huron Housing project
The United-Way Perth-Huron, in conjunction with local municipalities, partners with the Coldest Night of the Year to fundraise money to end chronic homelessness. Money raised in February goes directly into investing community-based support in areas such as shelters for women and children escaping violence, youth transitional housing, and bridge programs.
The County of Huron has done several different projects and programs within Housing and Homelessness Services. One of the key core efforts is a by-the name list. It is a voluntary centralized list of all people experiencing homelessness in a community. Maintained by community organizations, this list enables data that can be used to track the need for support services and trends over time.
Local hospital networks such as the Huron Perth Healthcare Alliance and the Huron Health System can act as initial bridges of connection to these community supports and serve to identify community needs.
If you would like to register for the upcoming season to attend future webinars click the link below: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_XlO2os_USV6y1gl28r8_UQ#/registration ion - Zoom
About Gateway Centre of Excellence in Rural Health
Founded in 2008 in the community of Seaforth, ON, Gateway CERH is a not-for-profit rural health research organization run by a community-based volunteer board of directors. Gateway CERH's main mission is to better the health and quality of life of rural residents through research, education and communication. Follow on Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube
A brief disclaimer: the views expressed in these lectures may not necessarily reflect Gateway CERH’s views or opinions, but we believe in providing a platform for a range of perspectives and thoughtful discussion.
Gateway CERH has a full library of lectures and information about the upcoming presentation that can be found on our website, to view this library click here.
Or watch all past lecture online on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@GatewayCERH/videos
Addressing the growing housing crisis and shelter precarity in rural communities is such an urgent and crucial challenge, especially given the heavy mental toll and healthcare hurdles it creates for those affected.
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What practical solutions do you think local communities and policymakers should prioritize first to make housing more accessible and affordable for everyone?