2022 Needs Assessment Focused on Community Members of Color 

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 Read the full needs assessment report here:

About the Needs Assessment

Following the directive of the West Hollywood City Council, the City’s Human Services Division contracted with Maroon Society, a behavioral research and consulting firm, to conduct a citywide needs assessment focused on the social services needs of community members of color. The goal of the needs assessment was to understand potential gaps in services and disparities in outcomes, particularly among Black, Indigenous, and people of color, who have faced centuries of systemic inequality in American economic, housing, education, and healthcare systems.

This needs assessment endeavored to accomplish four goals:

1. Measure interest and utilization of City funded human services among community members of color;
2. Identify unmet social service needs of community members of color;
3. Determine the extent to which community members of color have equal access to current City-funded social services; and
4. Propose solutions to overcome barriers people of color experience accessing services.

Findings

Service Utilization: The needs assessment found that community members of color have slightly greater interest in social services than White community members; yet, their utilization of social services is proportionately less than White community members when looking at service utilization based on their size in the population (28.7% of residents are people of color and only 23% of social services were used by people of color).

Interest and Need for Human Services: Community members of color reported the greatest interest in rental assistance, mental healthcare, food and nutrition, healthcare, and   employment services. Community members of color report a greater need for “help with life necessities” than their white counterparts. However, they have lower awareness about City-funded social services, which presents their largest barrier to service access.

Unmet Need for Human Services: Community members of color made recommendations for new service categories. However, they made a stronger request for the City and contracted agencies to increase awareness about existing services so more people in need can take advantage of available services.

Barriers to Current City-funded Human Services: People of color experience internal and external barriers to services. The internal barriers include: (1) perceived stigma that the provider will reject the person because of their identity or circumstances, (2) misunderstanding about costs for free services, and (3) lack of home Internet to seek out and receive services. External barriers to accessing services include (1) ineffective communication strategies to raise awareness among people of color about available services, (2) inconsistent levels of clarity about eligibility criteria and the application process, and (3) long wait times for agencies to review and approve service requests.

Recommended Solutions to Increase Access to Social Services

In support of West Hollywood’s vision for racial equity, the needs assessment presents six recommendations for consideration. It is anticipated that implementing these recommendations will yield a greater level of access to, and utilization of, West Hollywood funded social services by community members of color:

1. Develop an Awareness Campaign Targeting People of Color Working in West Hollywood;
2. Expand the Food & Nutrition Program to Include Non-Resident Community Members;
3. Develop a Racial Equity Based Service Utilization Strategy;
4. Evaluate Progress Toward Equity Based Service Utilization Goals with an Evaluation Plan;
5. Create a Centralized Information Portal About Contracted Social Services for Community Members to Quickly Identify Available Services and Qualification Criteria; and,
6. Standardize Provider Capacity to Communicate About Services Offered.

 Additional details regarding the needs assessments methodology, findings, and recommendations can be found in the full report here.

The needs assessment analysis and recommendations will be used to advance policies and practices that promote racial equity within social services. As with findings from the previous demographics analyses, the 2022 needs assessment will inform the Human Services Request for Proposal (RFP) and funding decisions for the 2022-2025 grant cycle.

Background Documents: Staff Reports and Press Releases

• News Release Encouraging Community Members to Participate in a Short Survey about Social Service

• City Council Report (10/19/20) -- SOCIAL SERVICES NEEDS ANALYSIS FOCUSING ON PEOPLE OF COLOR IN WEST HOLLYWOOD

• City Council Report (4/5/21) -- SOCIAL SERVICES UTILIZATION BY COMMUNITY MEMBERS OF COLOR DURING THE 2019-20 CONTRACT YEAR

• City Council Report (8/16/21) -- REPORT ON SOCIAL SERVICES UTILIZATION BY COMMUNITY MEMBERS OF COLOR AND AUTHORIZATION TO RELEASE A REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR A CONSULTANT TO CONDUCT A NEEDS ASSESSMENT

• Request for Qualifications for Needs Assessment (RFQual released 8/18/21) -- NEEDS ASSESSMENT OF ACCESS TO SOCIAL SERVICES BY COMMUNITY MEMBERS OF COLOR

• City Council Report (11/1/21) -- AGREEMENT FOR SERVICES WITH MAROON SOCIETY TO CONDUCT A NEEDS ASSESSMENT FOCUSING ON COMMUNITY MEMBERS OF COLOR

• Human Services Commission Report and Presentation (11/9/21) -- NEEDS ASSESSMENT FOCUSING ON COMMUNITY MEMBERS OF COLOR

Contact Information 

For additional information about the citywide needs assessment focused on the social services needs of community members of color,  please contact Human Services Division at (323) 848-6510. For specific inquiries to Maroon Society, please contact Patricia Ortega at assessment@maroonsociety.com or at (310) 694-8075. For people who are Deaf or hard of hearing, please call TTY (323) 848-6496.