Why a By-Name List (BNL)?

Figure out the “why”

Use these talking points and slide deck to help make your “why” case for forming a By-Name List. You don’t need to limit yourself to just these points; add some of your own to make it click with your local context!

The Quality By-Name List: An Essential Step Toward Ending Homelessness in Your Community

Homelessness is a complex systems problem. To end it, you need a reliable way to know everyone in need of housing by-name and in real time. We call that kind of data a by-name list. Perhaps your community already has a list like that, stored in an Excel sheet or split across several different data systems. Perhaps it gets updated once every couple of months, or, if someone is sick or on vacation, perhaps not at all. If you’re like most communities, only a few agencies contribute to the list, meaning it never really includes everyone.

That list won’t do the trick.

Benefits of a Quality By-Name List

Smarter Triage

• Target limited housing resources to the most vulnerable individuals and families.
• Stretch resources further by connecting people to the most cost effective support to meet their needs.

Improved Systems

• Use aggregate data to see trends, flag bottlenecks, and identify improvement opportunities across your system.
• Test new strategies and know quickly whether your efforts are reducing homelessness.

Resource Advocacy

• Ground your advocacy in concrete data.
• Use monthly data trends to make stable projections and quantify your projected resource gaps.