A by-the-numbers look at the people who use emergency homeless shelters

OTTAWA – The federal government has released new numbers about shelter usage in Canada that show fewer people are staying in shelters, but those stays are getting longer. The study provides details for the first time about veterans and aboriginals. Here are some of the key numbers from the report:

136,866: Estimated number of shelter users in 2014

156,030: Estimated number of shelter users in 2005

5,057,813: Estimated number of times a shelter bed was used in 2014

4,759,753: Estimated number of times a shelter bed was used in 2005

2,950: Estimated number of military veterans who use emergency shelters

1,095: Estimated number of refugees who use emergency shelters

45,820: Upper range estimate of the number of aboriginals who used a shelter in 2014

40: Average age for male shelter users

36: Average age for female shelter users

2: Percentage of shelter users who stayed in a shelter each year between 2010 and 2014

70: Percentage of shelter users each year who are making their first stay in a shelter

22: Days a family tended to stay in a shelter in 20124

8.3: Days a family tended to stay in a shelter in 2005

(Source: Employment and Social Development Canada, “Highlights of the National Shelter Study, 2005-2015”)