Every year, between 1,300 and 1,500 students attending Richmond Public Schools are listed as homeless.

These are students who stay on friends’ couches, live temporarily with relatives or wind up in shelters, with stable housing just a dream for themselves and their families.

That could change under a new program to assist those students and their families.

The Robins Foundation announced March 5 that it has awarded its annual $500,000 Community Innovation Grant to the nonprofit Housing Families First to support a program called “Bringing Families Home.”

The one-time award would enable HFF to assist families of RPS students enrolled in a special program with identifying places to live and with rental applications, lease negotiations and move-in funds.

The goal is to improve the students’ attendance and outcomes in school, according to the foundation.

The students must be registered in RPS’ McKinney-Vento Program, a federally funded effort to provide educational and support services to those who are homeless.

The grant would not solve the problem, given the costs and the number of students and families who are homeless. But HFF, a leading provider of crisis housing, described it as a strong step in raising awareness and opening the door to raise more money to support the work.

Though based in Henrico County, HFF is targeting Richmond through the grant because the city has the largest population of homeless students in the region.

But the need is substantial in Henrico and Chesterfield counties. Henrico reports nearly 1,000 homeless students, while Chesterfield reports nearly 800.

Along with Bringing Families Home, HFF is known for the Hilliard House, a short-term shelter that assists single parents with children.