The Challenge to Slash Homelessness by 2020
09 July, 2009
The Salvation Army welcomes the release of state and territory Counting The Homeless 2006 reports today by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare. These provide the benchmark data for the efforts required to address homelessness in Australia.
The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s Counting the Homeless 2006 reports were co-authored by Associate Professor David Mackenzie from the Institute for Social Research at Swinburne University and Associate Professor Chris Chamberlain from RMIT using 2006 Census data, data on users of SAAP services combined with data from a national census of homeless students. Australia is unique amongst Western countries in having good data on the homeless population and on service usage.
Homeless has remained at about 100,000 persons – men, women and children for a decade and in the past period little priority was given to addressing this issue. Some 30,000 units of public housing were lost and real funding for homelessness services steadily decreased. At a time when Government revenues were recording unprecedented surpluses and unemployment reached a fifteen-year low, homeless people were not able to benefit nor was public money invested in the issue.
The Rudd Government has given homelessness a high priority on its social policy agenda. The White Paper released in December, 2008 by Minister Tanya Plibersek was a landmark document with strong policy positions. However, the global financial crisis has caused huge dislocations in the international economic system and unemployment rates are beginning to rise. Reports are coming in of disadvantaged people being especially affected.
The number of rough sleepers in the inner-city areas of capitals throughout Australia has increased, with the exception of Melbourne, along with the number of children 12 years and under and elderly people 65 and older.
Young people (aged 12 to 25 years) are a significant group in the homeless population on census night – 32,444 individuals in total. The good news is that the number of homeless teenagers on their own has decreased by some 21% from 2001 to 2006 and this is attributed to the impact of early intervention. However, over the same period the number of homeless families increased by 17 per cent. There were 2714 homeless children under 12 in Victoria on census night 2006 – compared with 2618 in 2001 – an increase of 7 per cent. During 2006-2007, the AIHW report Homeless people in SAAP for Victoria reported that 20,500 children had accompanied a parent(s) who were clients of SAAP services.
The Salvation Army is committed to working with the Commonwealth and State Governments to develop effective responses to homelessness. We are particularly concerned about the growing numbers of homeless families. The Global Financial Crisis and the crisis in supply of affordable housing impact this group significantly. It is imperative that we develop early intervention strategies to prevent more families becoming homeless and that interim housing options are put in place for those who lose their homes.
The bold targets set in the Rudd Government’s Homelessness White Paper are achievable but can only be realised if community groups, local communities, corporate and government work collaboratively at the local level to prevent people becoming homeless and respond quickly and appropriately to those experiencing housing crisis. These Census figures assist us to confront these challenges. For media comment and details please contact:Major David Eldridge
Territorial Social Program Secretary
0420 450 212
