One thing I do know from my colleagues who provide the direct service, the social workers, is that it's that “ordinarily reside and receive services from” that's the bigger issue. They do give out the letters of attestation as people request them. But they can do it only if they are able.
For example, if someone comes to the Intercommunity Health Centre, which provides a lot of the services, the centre doesn’t necessarily know where that person ordinarily resides. So it would be dependent upon a shelter. it could be a shelter where the person may have just come in that night or it could be a shelter that provides a nightly service, like a managed alcohol drop-in or recovery situation where people come and go.
Again, it's the “ordinarily reside” that becomes an issue. That letter is helpful for some but not all.