Measuring what matters: how outcomes measurement helps us do better for people facing homelessness

By Stefano Verrelli and Dylan Jansz

At The Salvation Army, we believe that taking action means more than just delivering services. It means asking ourselves — is what we are doing making a real difference in people’s lives?

The theme for this year’s Homelessness Week — ‘Homelessness Action Now’ — does just that. It challenges all of us to do more, and to do it better, for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

To ensure we can answer the big question, we have introduced outcomes measurement across our homelessness services.

As the program manager of a homelessness service in South Australia puts it:

“The outcome measurement project has been an insightful tool for case managers. In a difficult environment, connecting people to housing has been a challenge, and if we only measure success by securing housing or not, it does not tell the full story.

Our service looks at a client’s situation holistically and now we have a tangible way to measure that impact. Completing the outcomes measurement tool particularly at review allows the case manager and client to reflect on the impact working with the service may have had.”

What are outcomes?

Outcomes are the meaningful changes that take place in a person’s life as a result of the support they receive. These changes can be practical, such as securing safe and stable housing, as well as emotional, relational and spiritual shifts that reflect a deeper transformation.

In our homelessness services, we focus on outcomes that reflect what matters most to the people we walk alongside. These include:

• Having safe, stable, suitable and affordable housing
• Having the resources to meet daily needs
• Feeling connected to culture, identity and community
• Strengthening relationships with family, friends and support networks
• Improving health and wellbeing
• Building knowledge, skills and confidence to live the life they want

These are not just metrics or targets — they are the real signs that someone’s life is moving in a positive direction.

Why measuring outcomes matters

Traditionally, homelessness services have collected information on what they deliver. This is known as measuring outputs. Outputs capture things like the number of nights of emergency accommodation provided, the number of meals served, or the number of support sessions delivered.

While this information tells us about the scale of our services, it does not show whether those services made a difference in a person’s life.

Measuring outcomes shifts the focus from what was delivered to what has changed. It allows us to understand if the support provided is contributing to meaningful and sustainable improvements in people’s lives.

There are several reasons why outcomes measurement is essential to our work:

• It helps us improve the quality of our services by identifying what is working well and where we need to adapt or innovate 
• It supports a culture of continuous learning and reflection, guided by evidence and feedback from lived experience 
• It strengthens our ability to advocate for change, using real data to influence systems, policies and funding
• It ensures we remain accountable to the people we serve, with a focus on dignity, empowerment and self-agency

When we measure outcomes, we’re not just collecting data — we are listening, we are learning, and we are asking ourselves the hard questions and committing to change where it’s needed. Most importantly, we are making sure that the people at the centre of our work are not only supported, but also heard and valued.

How we measure outcomes

The Salvation Army has developed a consistent outcomes measurement approach for our homelessness services. This approach is designed to reflect the complexity and diversity of people’s lives and our commitment to understanding and responding to people holistically.

We measure outcomes in a few key ways:

1. Using existing data

In many cases, we already collect useful information through our client management system. For example, changes in housing or employment status can help us track progress over time without asking clients to provide the same information more than once.

2. Introducing new outcome tools

In areas where existing data does not provide the full picture, we have introduced purpose-built outcomes tools to fill the gaps. The tools are:

• Simple and trauma-informed: short, plain-language questions that integrate into our homelessness practice
• Evidence-based: adapted from robust research instruments trusted across the Australian social services sector
• Holistic: measuring areas that people tell us matter most, such as housing, safety, health, relationships, resources, and confidence in managing day-to-day life

Before rolling the tools out across services, we pilot-tested them nationally across a diverse mix of homelessness services. The feedback from clients who completed the tools during their support was encouraging.

Every client we heard from said they understood why the questions were being asked, and felt safe and respected while answering them. The majority also shared that the process prompted valuable self-reflection, helping them reflect on their support needs and goals, as well as better recognising the changes that had occurred since beginning their support journey.

3. Listening to people’s experiences

Understanding how people experience our support is just as critical as measuring outcomes. People with lived experience have told us that how support is delivered can matter just as much as what is achieved.

That’s why we invite clients to complete a short, confidential feedback survey about their time with our services. This information helps us reflect on the extent to which we are delivering support in line with the practice principles that guide our work — being person-centred, strengths-based, trauma-informed and inclusive.

We also ask clients for suggestions on how we can improve. These insights help us identify what’s working well and where we need to do things differently. Most importantly, they ensure our work stays grounded in the voices of those we are here to serve.

Conclusion

Homelessness Week allows us to all reflect and act so we can make a difference. For The Salvation Army, that means walking alongside people with dignity and respect, but also with accountability. Measuring outcomes helps us stay true to that commitment. It helps us learn, improve, and make sure we are not only delivering quality support but creating meaningful change.