LGBTQ+ Affirming Recovery Residence Toolkit
Practical resources for creating safer, more affirming recovery housing environments.
Recovery looks different for everyone, and every person deserves a place where they can feel safe, respected, and fully themselves. The LGBTQ-Affirming Recovery Residence Toolkit is here to help you create that kind of home.
Designed for recovery housing operators, boards, staff, peers, and community partners, the toolkit offers practical assessments, sample policies, feedback tools, and guidance you can put to work right away. It is grounded in recovery-oriented systems of care and informed by FSARR and NARR standards.
You do not have to complete everything at once. Start where your organization is, choose the areas that need attention, and move forward one step at a time. Each step helps build recovery housing rooted in safety, equity, belonging, and genuine affirmation for LGBTQ+ residents everywhere.
Organizational Readiness & Self-Assessment
☐ Draft or update your mission statement to explicitly affirm LGBTQ+ recovery and safety
☐ Adopt core values rooted in equity, trauma-informed care, peer leadership, and intersectionality
☐ Identify priority areas for improvement and set a realistic implementation timeline
☐ Use the resources below to complete an LGBTQ-specific organizational self-assessment
Self-Assessment for Recovery Residences
Use this data-collection survey to set up your residence's self-assessment, then send it to owners, leadership, and staff to evaluate your LGBTQ+ inclusivity efforts. This tool includes a scoring rubric.
Format: Editable Excel workbook (.xlsx)
Treatment Center Input
Invite referral partners to assess how safely and affirmingly your residence services LGBTQ+ people. Includes an editable survey and scoring rubric.
Format: Editable Excel workbook (.xlsx)
Staff Readiness Assessment
If your house is ready but your staff is not, then you are not ready. Use this self-assessment survey to gauge how ready your staff is for LGBTQ+-affirming housing.
Format: Editable Word document (.docx)
Alumni Survey
Gather feedback from former residents about safety, belonging, affirmation, and their overall experience in your program.
Format: Editable Excel workbook (.xlsx)
Resident Feedback Tool
Hear directly from current residents about whether your environment feels safe, respectful, affirming, and responsive to their needs.
Format: Editable Excel workbook (.xlsx)
Policy and Administrative Setup
☐ Confirm compliance with state regulations, housing codes, and NARR standards
☐ Establish or update governance structures with LGBTQ+ representation
☐ Review insurance, risk management, and financial sustainability plans
☐ Adopt or revise LGBTQ-affirming policies, including:
☐ Non-discrimination and anti-harassment
☐ Chosen name and pronoun use
☐ Gender-affirming housing and bathroom access
☐ Confidentiality and disclosure
☐ Resident rights and responsibilities
☐ Review the resources below as examples to get you started with creating LGBTQ-affirming policies
Sample Resident Handbook
What does an example of an LGBTQ+ affirming recovery residence handbook look like? Check this one out...
Format: Editable Word document (.docx)
Sample Resident Policies
It's not always easy to know where to start. Use these sample policies as signposts.
Format: Google Drive folder — opens in a new tab
Sample Staff Policies
Policies for residents are a great start; creating policies for staff is just as important. Check out these sample policies for examples.
Format: Google Drive folder — opens in a new tab
Program Design & Resident Experience
☐ Adopt recovery programming that affirms LGBTQ+ identity and lived experience
☐ Integrate trauma-informed, recovery-oriented, and peer-led practices
☐ Implement inclusive intake and onboarding processes using affirming demographic questions
☐ Establish resident engagement structures (peer buddies, advisory groups, leadership roles)
Ready to Implement the Curriculum?
The free toolkit helps you assess and strengthen your organization. Together We Rise gives you a complete seven-session LGBTQ+ centerd recovery curriculum without requiring you to develop a program from scratch.
Together We Rise, Facilitator Manual
A complete guide for delivering the seven-session curriculum, with step-by-step lesson plans, timing, discussion prompts, activities, and debrief questions - saving you from developing an LGBTQ+-centered program from scratch.
Format: External purchase page — opens in a new tab
Together We Rise, Participant Manual
A ready-to-use companion to the seven-session LGBTQ+-centered recovery curriculum, featuring accessible concepts, guided activities, personal reflections, and Recovery Buddy assignments that deepen learning between sessions.
Format: External purchase page — opens in a new tab
Environment & Culture
☐ Ensure the physical environment reflects inclusion (signage, bathrooms, artwork, visibility)
☐ Create flexible, safety-centered sleeping and rooming arrangements
☐ Communicate clear community agreements around respect, identity, and safety
Community Partnerships
☐ Build relationships with LGBTQ-competent healthcare, legal, and social service providers
☐ Develop a local LGBTQ+ resource directory
☐ Establish MOUs with key referral and crisis response partners
☐ Participate in community events and visibility efforts
Evaluation, Sustainability, & Growth
☐ Collect regular resident and staff feedback on safety, belonging, and program quality
☐ Track key outcomes (retention, engagement, well-being, recovery stability)
☐ Conduct annual reviews of policies, training, and outcomes
☐ Develop long-term funding, leadership, and succession plans
You Do Not Have to Implement This Alone
Dolan Research International provides training, consultation, and implementation support to help recovery residences assess readiness, adapt policies, prepare staff, deliver affirming programming, and create sustainable organizational change.
FAQ
Where should our organization begin?
Can we adapt these tools and templates for our residence?
Does using the toolkit guarantee legal or regulatory compliance?
Where can we get training or implementation assistance?
Closing Reminder
This toolkit is not about perfection; it’s about progress. Each step you take strengthens your organization’s ability to provide recovery housing that is not only compliant but truly affirming, humane, and effective.
Recovery is for everyone. Belonging makes it possible.