North Battleford supportive housing for unhoused people to double capacity

The project would double the two homes’ combined capacity to 16 residents, providing 24-hour supervised housing for people facing significant barriers to finding a home, including complex mental health and addiction challenges.

The construction of the addition is expected to be completed in December, with resident intake expected to start in January 2027.

The interior of Haven-4-Eight in North Battleford on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026. (Image Credit: Kenneth Cheung/battlefordsNOW)

(Image Credit: Kenneth Cheung/battlefordsNOW)

At a press conference for the new home Tuesday, Friendship Centre executive director Jackie Kennedy said the existing eight spaces have remained occupied, with no spare rooms available.

Métis Nation–Saskatchewan is contributing $200,000 through Reaching Home, while Battlefords Agency Tribal Chiefs has contributed $60,000, Kennedy said.

The provincial contribution is through the rental development program, which provides funding to develop affordable housing for people most in need.

North Battleford contributed serviced land for the original Haven-4-Eight, allowing for the expansion. The city’s community safety and well-being plan identifies a need for more supportive and transitional housing.

Leech said the Friendship Centre helped connect him with Haven-4-Eight. He had been living at the Lighthouse, now Miwasin Kikinaw, and waited until he was sober before moving in.

Today, he gets help travelling to medical appointments and joins other residents for swimming, movies and picnics at the lake.

Haven-4-Eight resident William Leech in North Battleford on Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026. Leech says the home’s activities and support help him maintain his sobriety. (Image Credit: Kenneth Cheung/battlefordsNOW)

Haven-4-Eight manager Hadassash Kovacs said residents each have a private room and bathroom. Staff provide food, prepare three meals a day from Monday to Friday and administer medication. Residents can also cook for themselves.

Programming through the Friendship Centre and Catholic Family Services gives residents access to additional support, while they retain freedom over how they spend their days.

“We do pretty much whatever we want to do,” Leech said.

Kovacs said she has seen residents make substantial progress. One man arrived after coming out of a coma and could barely walk. He is now approaching two years of sobriety and can walk without a walker, she said.

“So, yeah, we’ve turned some people’s lives around… It’s been really nice to see,” Kovacs said.

For some residents, the home offers lasting stability. Kovacs said one woman has no plans to leave and can stay indefinitely.

“They’re free to just be themselves, and we feel like a family here,” she said.

Leech hopes the expansion will bring the residents of both homes together, giving more people the chance to support one another.

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Kenneth.Cheung@pattisonmedia.com

by Kenneth Cheung

North Battleford supportive housing for unhoused people to double capacity

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