County Expands Human Services Hub At Administration Building

On a hot Wednesday afternoon in the heart of Doylestown Borough, the Bucks County Administration Building opened its new Human Services Hub to a number of employees and onlookers. 

The new location in the county building gives the staff an expansion from the previous office.

Originally introduced in 2021, Human Services Hub at the Administration building covers everything from mental health and food insecurity to housing.

The new space allows for more services to be covered and for easier access to the public, officials said.

The ribbon cutting ceremony, which took place in the new Hub in the former law library on the first floor of the building, was led with remarks by Rachael Neff, a licensed social worker and Bucks County Director of Human Services.

After Neff finished speaking, Commissioner Bob Harvie, a Democrat, said a few words about the new HUB space. Commissioner Diane Ellis-Marseglia, a Democrat, helped cut the ribbon.

Something that was stressed at the ceremony is how much growth the Human Services Hub as a whole has seen since its opening in 2021. It went from a tiny office around the corner of where it is now, which includes room for numerous staff to work and provide services for the community. 

At the Hub, 30 percent of the calls they receive are about housing from those struggling to find or keep it.

Hub staff said that is the number one issue that people reach out for help and the new, larger Hub on the first floor of the Administration Building will be able to help those people more than before. 

Since it opened, the Human Services Hub has been able to help Bucks Countians with many different serious situations.

When SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) benefits were first halted last year, the Hub staff was able to help out the people in the community by connecting them with resources.

As part of the assistance, Doylestown Area FISH, a volunteer charity, was able to donate up to $20,000 worth of SNAP gift cards for people in need. 

One of the bigger changes to the new facility is the addition of a food pantry in the back of the area. It is open to people who need it and is something that was not there before the new renovations. In the main room for the pantry, there are cabinets with food and other different supplies. 

The food pantry is named after Christopher Cramp, a longtime coordinator for social services who died last April in Bristol Borough.

The Human Services Hub is open Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. and is located on the first floor of the building.

In addition to visiting The Hub at 55 E. Court Street, First Floor, in Doylestown Borough, residents from anywhere in the county can call 215-348-6201 or email the team for assistance.