Homelessness in Australia

This article discusses the issue of homelessness in Australia, including its causes, government policies, and potential solutions. It highlights the need for affordable housing and effective support services to address this social problem. Desklib offers study materials and resources to help you understand and research this topic.

1
Homelessness in Australia
Australia is a developed country, and its citizens enjoy a high standard of living. The
expectancy is high, unemployment is low, and more than two-thirds of Australians own a home.
Nonetheless, the country still faces issues of homelessness. Safe and secure housing is a must for
building healthy communities.
Background
Australian Bureau of Statistics based on 2011 census states more than 100,000
Australians to be homeless (3 p128). Despite steady economic growth, homelessness has risen in
Australia between 2011 and 2016. For every10,000 people, there are 50 who are homeless in
Australia (5). The elderly and the young are the most vulnerable to homelessness. It is indeed
disturbing and embarrassing for a prosperous country like Australia. The latest data shows that
Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander make 20% of the homeless (5).
The Australian government has floated several homelessness programs over the last three
decades. However, it seems that those policies and programs have failed to achieve their
optimum objectives. Australian policies have shown interest in homelessness issue ever since the
early 1970s. Homeless Persons Assistance Act (1974) was passed to help chronically homeless
persons (2 p128). The Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) was set up in
1985 to focus on the young, women and single. The Federal Government subsequently launched
the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) in 1985 (2 p128).
Public housing is mostly effective because it is inexpensive and offers long-term security
for insecurely housed people. The private rental properties have become unaffordable for people,
and the public housing waiting list is witnessing a rise. The homeless sleep out in the open, intent
or improvised dwellings. They may go to supported accommodation for the homeless or get

2
temporary accommodation with other households. Others look for boarding houses or are forced
to stay in overcrowded dwellings.
Certain forms of homelessness have increased in overall numbers in recent years. For
example, severe overcrowding’ has been seen in extreme level in some states like Victoria and
NSW (6 p 84). It is due to the shortfall of four bedrooms in a home. The number of women in
need of accommodation is rising because of domestic violence and housing affordability stress.
Another important sub-category of homelessness that has recently increased disproportionately is
rough sleeping. ABS Census indicates that people living in improvised dwellings and tents has
grown by 20% in the five years NSW (6 p 84).
The Road Home
State and Federal policies have recently issued fundamental changes towards
homelessness. Federal Government released a White Paper to address homelessness - “The Road
Home: A National Approach to Reducing Homelessness” (7 p1). The new national plan intends
to offer services for homeless people with a commitment of $1.2 billion. The twelve-year plan
plans to reduce homelessness by half. National Affordable Housing Agreement too commenced
in 2009. ABS Census of Housing and Population statistics report that homelessness has increased
in Australia by more than 13% over the past five years 95). Homelessness reflects a systems
failure and a shortage of affordable housing for the population. If the homelessness services
continue to get ignored and underfunded, the housing affordability crisis will reach a chronic
stage.
Current situation
About 1,500 SAAP services run across the country and get AUS$400m in recurring
funding (2 p 128). The number of homeless families has increased ever since the release of the

3
White Paper. The number of people looking for Department of Housing help has risen. Most
people are not able to find a house in their local neighborhood, and these trends indicate that the
problem of homelessness is going to remain. There is clearly a lack of political obligation to
build affordable homes and strengthen social housing. A shortage in public and community
housing and the increasing housing costs add to the issues of homelessness.
The characteristics
The White Paper “The Road Home” plans to use a social framework to address the issue
and intervene early to prevent homelessness. Well-connected and responsive services can
motivate economic and social participation that can break the cycle for those who become
homeless. The White Paper also focuses on increasing the availability of affordable housing (7 p
33). Australia government and local communities are working hard to deal with homelessness.
There are different governance and accountability arrangements in each jurisdiction that tracks
the performance at the state and territory level. A stronger and governance and accountability
framework is essential for monitoring the White Paper strategies.
Potential contribution
The Federal Government highlights a number of causes of homelessness such as
unemployment, family breakdown, alcohol abuse, substance abuse, and mental illness. The rising
costs, inadequate housing, being indigenous or a refugee and other legal issues lead to
homelessness. When the Australian Government set out actively to deal with the issue of
homelessness in 2008, and its strategy is aimed at early intervention and to break the cycle of
homelessness (6 p 85). The National Rental Affordability Scheme (NRAS) and the National
Program for Remote Indigenous Housing (NPARIH) were the affordable housing programs
launched. The aim was to cut down the overall homelessness by half by 2020 (6 p 85).

4
Australian Government’s re-commitment to homelessness can be seen in the 2017 Budget with a
plan to build found a new National Housing and Homelessness Agreement (NHHA). The drive is
towards creating affordable housing. However, it is indeed challenging to reverse the rate of
homelessness given the multi-dimensional causes behind. Various social and economic
developments can place pressure on homelessness.
Comment
Regrettably, the administrations over the years have ignored these policy priorities,
objectives, and strategic vision. There is no significant investment in longer-term housing
solutions as it is believed that market forces can help provide affordable housing for homeless
Australians. The recent publications demonstrate that homelessness continues to rise (6 p 85). It
is not easy to predict patterns of homelessness as different factors impact the homeless.
However, if no steps are taken, the problem is expected to get worse in the future and
homelessness will rise further. Particular groups like older people, children in care and prisoners
are more vulnerable to homelessness. Currently, homeless people do not seek help from the
specialist homelessness services because of a shortage of beds. The state and territory
governments must remove the critical issues of low wages, unemployment and high staff
turnover that can further translate to homelessness. Specialist homelessness services should focus
on achieving sustainable outcomes for people (1 p 10). Working relationships with the not-for-
profit sector need to improve and strengthen.
Discuss the innovation
National Affordable Housing Agreement asserts that employment services, education
services, health services, legal, policing, family and children’s services and aged care services
work together to deal with the issue of homelessness (1 p 38). They work to improve their

5
connections with specialist homelessness services in order to break the cycle and prevent people
from falling into the trap of homelessness. Australian Government is working with state and
territory governments to develop homelessness action plans in the state. Collaboration between
mainstream and homelessness services must improve to enhance case assessments, management,
and planning.
Recommendation
Homelessness has been viewed as a temporary crisis and was believed to be addressed
with transitional support and short-term emergency accommodation. The geographic distribution
and demographic characteristics of the homeless population have changed over the years (2 p
128). SAAP guidelines and principles have remained the same as it was founded on the
fundamental notion of homelessness being a temporary issue. One should keep in mind that the
housing market and needs today are very different from those of the eighties. There is a growing
demand for rented rental accommodation in urban areas, and it is getting increasingly scarce.
Public housing funding and public housing stock have declined in real terms. Unemployment has
been on the higher side among the younger population.
The SAAP figures reflect that the issues of family breakdown, family violence mental-
health, and substance-abuse complications are often the reason of homelessness (4 p 52).
However, these are not greatly implied in the White Paper. Moreover, the homelessness data in
remote areas is confusing, and often the Indigenous status is not reported in the classified
homeless. As the homelessness is seen to be higher in rural and remote areas, the policies and
programs on homelessness must focus on challenges faced by the rural and remote communities.
The Australian Government must review the specialist homelessness services being provided
based on geographic distribution of the homeless.

6
There are various causes of homelessness based on the social, geographical and social
fabric. While the low-cost and faster solutions may promise a high likelihood of success, these
do not solve the issue for all in the long run and may be useful only to a fewer homeless people.
Issues like domestic violence and mental health problems would lead to the flow of new entrants
(4 p 56). The only real prospect is to create institutional accommodation on a long-term for
mental health patients. The cost of resolving homelessness in distant areas for the Aboriginal
homelessness is very high, and thus the chance of success is likely to be low for these (4 p 56).
The short-term assistance for a family breakdown will not provide a long-term solution.
When designing new remedies for homelessness, it is essential to study the probability of
success and timeliness of the solutions It is essential to know what percentage of the homeless
population they can be applied. The current remedies are unlikely to result in large reductions.
Different causes of homelessness need customized solutions to make a positive impact. The
policymakers need to reset their focus and place sufficient investment and interest in the long-
term needs of the homeless population. The components of the homeless market need to be
understood on ground levels and work on feasible remedies.

7
Reference list
(1) Australian Broadcasting Corporation. The Road Home. Commonwealth of Australia:
Australia; 2008. 1-80 p
(2) Herault, N. and Guy Johnson, G. Homelessness in Australia: Service Reform and
Research in the 21st Century. RMIT University: Australia; 2016. 127-144 p.
(3) Homelessness Australia. Homelessness statistics [Internet]. Homelessness Australia:
ABN; 2019 [cited 2019]. 00 p. Available from:
https://www.homelessnessaustralia.org.au/about/homelessness-statistics
(4) Johns, G. Paved With Good Intentions: The Road Home and the Irreducible Minimum of
Homelessness in Australia. Australian National University Press; 2012. 41-59 p.
(5) Knaus G. Homelessness in Australia up 14% in five years [Internet]. The Guardian; 2018
[cited 2018 Mar 13]. Available from:
https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2018/mar/14/homelessness-in-australia-up-
14-in-five-years-abs-says
(6) Pawson, H., Parsell, C., Saunders, P. Hill, T, and Liu, E. Australian Homelessness
Monitor 2018. Launch Housing: Australia; 2018. 109 p.
(7) Simon, K. Homelessness in NSW. NSW Parliamentary Library Research Service:
Australia; 20019. 1-41 p.