Homelessness services close doors in the face of overwhelming demand: report

Posted on 19 Nov 2024

By Greg Thom, journalist, Institute of Community Directors Australia

The number of Australians at risk of homelessness has surged by 63% to more than three million according to a new report.

The study released by Homelessness Australia found demand from people desperately seeking help had become so acute that some overwhelmed homelessness services have had to close their doors to those in need.

The report by Impact Economics and Policy Call Unanswered is based on a survey of 23 homelessness services over two weeks in September 2024 and revealed the drastic measures taken to manage overwhelming demand.

In 2022-23 more than 250,000 Australians sought and received assistance from a specialist homelessness service.

“However, with an increasing number of Australians in need of help, too often no one is there to take their call. These Australians must navigate losing their home without support,” the report found.

The study revealed:

83% of homelessness services were at times unable to answer phone calls

74% couldn't respond to urgent emails

40% of services were forced to close their doors during operating hours.

Homelessness Australia CEO Kate Colvin didn’t pull any punches.

“Demand for homelessness services has erupted and the system is so under-resourced that people who are homeless can’t get in front of a worker who can help them,” she said.

“People who could have afforded private rentals just a few years ago are now resorting to couch surfing, sleeping in cars or pitching a tent."

"Under-resourced services simply can't go on like this, with people falling through ever-widening cracks as the worst rental crisis in living memory worsens.”

Council To Homeless Persons CEO Deborah Di Natale.

The research found families with children with no accommodation were turned away on one in five days during the period surveyed, while individuals without dependents were turned away on one in two days.

The surge in demand has also led to less access to services, as workers provide support to those already through the door.

The report found that during a typical two-week period, homelessness services couldn't answer phones for every caller across a 13-hour operating period.

Services were forced to close their doors altogether for one out of every 22 hours while 666 urgent emails went unanswered across the board.

The Homelessness Australia report found the number of Australians at risk of homelessness increased 64% between 2016 and 2022.

The report revealed a key driver of the increase was the 17.9 per cent rise in the number of people experiencing rental stress since the 2021 Census.

Homelessness Australia’s Kate Colvin said homelessness services simply don’t have enough staff to help everyone in need.

“This means opportunities to help people avoid homelessness are missed; and people go longer without support or miss out entirely, making the path out of homelessness longer, more brutal and less likely to succeed.”

Homelessness Australia launched the report as part of a its No one turned away campaign, which calls for increased funding for homelessness services, more investment in homelessness prevention, and an expansion of Housing First programs.

The new report and campaign were backed by sector organisations such as Mission Australia and the Council To Homeless Persons.

"Under-resourced services simply can't go on like this, with people falling through ever-widening cracks as the worst rental crisis in living memory worsens,” said Council To Homeless Persons CEO Deborah Di Natale.

“We have heard from services directly that it is breaking their hearts to turn people away. We need funding for homelessness services to be increased, including increased investment in prevention, and expansion of Housing First programs, so staff can respond to everyone seeking help.”

The housing crisis has placed federal and state governments under enormous pressure to respond.

The Victorian government’s signature housing statement is Spring Street’s blueprint to building 800,000 new homes over the next decade.

It includes controversial plans to speed up development approval times, rebuild the state’s ageing high-rise public housing towers and relax rules around high density housing in established suburbs.

At a federal level, the Greens have seized on the issue of lack of housing supply and rental stress to make life difficult for the Albanese Government.

The Greens have promised to continue withholding support for Labor’s draft housing reforms unless the government agrees to introduce rental caps and scrap negative gearing – something the government has so far refused to do.