Every day, the Homelessness Response System (HRS) in King County serves thousands of community members. The goal of the HRS is not only to provide resources and services, but to make sure each person that interacts with the system (whether someone experiencing homelessness, a service provider, or other community member impacted by the system) is treated with dignity and respect.
To strive for this consistency and to identify gaps in our system, KCRHA has an Ombuds Office, a department which offers a way for constituents to voice their concerns about services they receive or any other issues that may impact them. Ombuds offers a pathway to raise concerns, identify barriers, learn from lived experience, and support people in understanding the system.
Established in 2022, the KCRHA Ombuds Office was one of the first in the country created to specifically address issues in the Homelessness Response System. Our office is unique in its hybrid approach, meaning that KCRHA’s Ombuds can provide facilitation for specific complaints, investigate potential issues within a program or organization, while also collecting data on broader system trends.
Because of this hybrid approach, KCRHA’s Ombuds Office creates a built-in feedback loop for ongoing system improvement. Our ombuds staff listen to those with lived experience, service providers, and the community to fulfill the following core responsibilities:
- Collect data and gather feedback to improve operations and outcomes
- Ensure ease of contact for people using services
- Resolve concerns
- Investigate complaints
- Recommend improvements in homeless services, funding, or oversight
- Submit an annual written report to the Governing Board
From these responsibilities, the Ombuds Office produces a variety of resolutions within the system. This can include anything from investigating issues concerning KCRHA contract holders, resolving issues by facilitating discussions with relevant parties, and providing information & referral for appropriate King County human services.
What happens when a community member contacts KCRHA’s Ombuds Office?
When someone in our community reaches out to KCRHA’s Ombuds Office, the Ombuds reviews the case and identifies the most appropriate tool at the office’s disposal to assist.
What happens when a community member contacts KCRHA’s Ombuds Office?
Pathways for assistance are:
- Information & Referral
- Assistance & Facilitation
- External Review
- Program Review
After identifying the appropriate path forward, the Ombuds Office then tracks progress, closes cases, and gathers data. This information is summarized and incorporated into internal reports and included in external quarterly and annual reports to promote transparency and accountability.
KCRHA Ombuds Accomplishments
Our Ombuds Office has done much over the past three years. Ombuds has improved provider responsiveness to grievances and constituent concerns; strengthened relationships and trust with providers; developed a comprehensive data framework to identify trends in complaints and inquiries; and established a fair process that captures constituent experiences and translates them into actionable improvements.
Community feedback must be integrated into systemic change for a system to be truly accountable. The Ombuds Office is the vehicle at KCRHA that helps us to implement those changes for a better Homelessness Response System for our region. Our Ombuds staff are genuinely passionate about serving our unhoused neighbors and working alongside homeless service providers to deliver better outcomes for our community.
For more information on the work of KCRHA’s Ombuds Office, you can read through our Ombuds Primer. Later this year, we’ll be releasing our 2025 Ombuds annual report. Subscribe to our newsletter and follow us on social media to make sure you don’t miss it.
