Help in Delaware
For people starting over after prison, foster care, treatment, homelessness, abuse, or trafficking
We've verified 25 places in Delaware, most of them in Wilmington and Dover, plus 19 that serve the whole state. The most help we've found here is for people after prison or jail (13) and leaving homelessness (13).
Delaware 211
Free, confidential information and referral line for the whole state covering shelter, food, utilities, mental health, substance use, legal help, and transportation. Dial 2-1-1 or text your ZIP code to 898-211.
Life Lines
Case management and housing in Wilmington for youth ages 16–23 who are in or aged out of foster care, unaccompanied youth 18–23, and LGBTQ+ youth. Parenting youth qualify for case management but not Life Lines housing.
Centralized Intake / Homeless Helpline
Delaware's coordinated entry point for emergency shelter; most shelters in the state accept referrals only through this line. Call or text 1-833-FIND-BED, call early in the day, and call back daily if no bed opens.
Sunday Breakfast Mission
Wilmington's long-running emergency shelter with separate men's and women-with-children shelters, an evening community meal, monthly food boxes, a medical clinic, and the long-term New Life recovery program. Overnight Guests complete a registration form and follow shelter policies.
Dover Interfaith Mission for Housing
Central Delaware shelter operator running the Walt Bagley Men's Shelter and the Interfaith Pathway Women & Children's Shelter in Dover, with support toward self-sufficiency. Call the men's shelter at 302-380-0331 or the women's shelter at 302-736-3600.
Home-Life Management Center and Community Housing
Emergency shelter, SCHE transitional housing, rapid re-housing, and homeless prevention for women and families in Wilmington, with domestic violence case management, life skills, and culinary and custodial job training. Shelter entry runs through Centralized Intake.
Community Legal Aid Society, Inc. (CLASI)
Delaware's oldest civil legal aid firm, free to people with low incomes, people with disabilities, adults 60+, and victims of violence and crime. Units handle housing, domestic violence, immigration, public benefits, family, disability, and elder law; no criminal or personal injury cases.
Legal Services Corporation of Delaware
Nonprofit law firm for low-income Delaware families focused on landlord-tenant and eviction defense, consumer debt, and unemployment matters. Call the county intake number to find out if you qualify.
Refugee Integration Support Effort (RISE)
Delaware's contracted refugee resettlement provider. RISE case managers help newly arrived refugees and other immigrants find housing and jobs, learn English, and get oriented, and JFS is the state's named partner for Refugee Cash Assistance.
Refugee Cash Assistance
Federally funded cash and medical help for people granted refugee status during their first eight months in the U.S., using TANF eligibility rules. Social services such as job help, ESL, and case management can continue for five years after arrival.
Delaware ASSIST – Apply for Benefits
Delaware's online application and screening tool for Medicaid, SNAP (Food Supplement Program), TANF cash assistance, child care, LIHEAP, WIC, and long-term care. Create an account to apply, check status, report changes, or renew.
Office of Vital Statistics
Issues Delaware birth, death, and marriage certificates at walk-in offices in Newark, Dover, and Georgetown or by mail to the Dover office. Online orders go through VitalChek or GoCertificates for an added fee.
Identification Cards
State ID card for Delaware residents, valid eight years from the next birthday, issued at the Wilmington, Delaware City, Dover, and Georgetown DMV offices. Applicants must present documents from the DMV Required Documentation Table.
National lines that work in Delaware
SAMHSA National Helpline
Free, confidential treatment referral for substance use and mental health. Finds local programs that take your insurance or none.
988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline
Call or text 988 for any mental health or substance use crisis. Available to anyone in any program.
Lifeline free phone program
Free or discounted phone and service for people on Medicaid, SNAP, SSI, or low income. Apply online or through a carrier.
National Human Trafficking Hotline
24/7 confidential hotline for survivors of trafficking and people who suspect it. Connects to vetted local services.
National Domestic Violence Hotline
24/7 confidential help for anyone affected by domestic violence. Advocates connect you to local shelters and legal help.
Start right where you are
Each program has a step-by-step checklist for the first 72 hours, 30 days, and 90 days, so you always know your next step.