Drew reached out to us concerned with how the Ministry of Social Development and Poverty Reduction (MSDPR) administered their income assistance benefits. Drew was homeless and did not have a mailing address to receive income assistance benefit cheques. MSDPR put their cheques on hold because Drew had not picked up their cheques in person. Drew was also unable to apply for a renewal of their Permanent Resident card because MSDPR would not issue an advance of the Identification Supplement.

We spoke with a Community Relations and Service Quality Manager at MSDPR and learned that there had been some challenges communicating with Drew. We also learned that Drew may be eligible for additional supports from MSDPR, but Drew was resistant to discussing these potential supports with staff. To resolve the issues, we recommended that MSDPR designate a staff member to connect with Drew directly and to provide additional support to them on a trial basis. MSDPR agreed and also provided additional oversight and support to its staff during this trial period. The manager confirmed that Drew had applied for a renewal of their Permanent Resident card and that a service request had been created to reimburse them.