"Queensland mothers are going without dinner so their kids can eat, in a shocking poverty crisis that is deepening due to rent assistance covering only one-quarter of the actual rent bill.
More than one in five children – about 212,300 kids – are raised in the poorest homes and are on the edge of homelessness."
"As we continue to navigate our way through the ever-changing world of COVID, it feels as though we are continually adapting the way we work and the services we offer to best support our community.
Our outreach workers continue to adapt and swing into action during snap lockdowns supporting women leaving domestic violence, families who are homeless, individuals and couples rough sleeping or staying in overcrowded housing squats.
Our Home for Good Teams have been particularly busy over the last 3 months with 81 individuals and 24 families securing long-term housing."
'From 1st Jan - 10th June 2021, the BDVS Team have supported a total of 1,986 women and 261 children affected by domestic and family violence.
Our BDVS Team have also recently wrapped up Domestic Violence Prevention Month which is held every May. We would like to take this opportunity to thank everyone who joined us for our virtual Candle Lighting Vigil and our Inala Community Candle Lit Circle, as well as everyone who generously donated to our Mother's Day Spread the Warmth Campaign. Through this campaign we were able to raise over $5,000 and distribute 170 beautiful bathrobes to women in refuges and emergency accommodation.'
“A coordinated and housing-focused response has the capacity to end homelessness for some of the most vulnerable people who are sleeping rough on the street,” Dr Clarke.
In 2018/19, 92 per cent of the 167 people who accessed housing through Micah Projects' Street to Home program remained housed 12 months later.
"Everybody should have enough money or resources for the basic needs of life – enough food for oneself and for one’s family; a roof over one’s head; and resources to cover clothing, education and health expenses."
ACOSS and UNSW Sydney have partnered to monitor trends in poverty and inequality in Australia.
Domestic and Family Violence (DFV) continues to be one of the main causes of homelessness in Australia. When the specific needs of women experiencing DFV are recognised and addressed it increases safety, certainty and stability for everyone.
"Housing First is an approach to homelessness that prioritises providing permanent housing to people experiencing homelessness quickly, thus ending their homelessness and serving as a platform from which they can pursue personal goals and improve their quality of life."
"Homelessness in major cities, especially severe crowding, has risen disproportionately in areas with a shortage of affordable private rental housing and higher median rents."
"Governments must find ways to urgently increase both the supply and size of affordable rental dwellings for people with the lowest incomes. We also require better integration of planning, labour, income support and housing policies targeted to areas of high need."
Nine more have ended veteran homelessness. It’s part of a national program called Built for Zero that uses a data-based approach to help officials figure out exactly who needs what services. Now it’s launching in 50 more cities.
"Communities in the program use a coordinated approach. Bergen County, New Jersey, with a population of nearly 1 million, was the first in the country to end chronic homelessness, reaching the goal in 2017. (Six months earlier, it had also ended veteran homelessness.) The county created a “command center” that brought together various organizations working on homelessness, and then began using real-time data about each person experiencing homelessness so that everyone could work together to get them housed. Like many places, Bergen County also committed to a “housing first” approach, meaning that people move into permanent housing as a first step before also getting help with finding a job, mental healthcare, or other issues."
A big congratulations to Find and Connect on receiving their first international award (the Society of American Archivists Philip M. Hamer and Elizabeth Hamer Kegan Award), and the only successful project outside of the US and Canada to win this prestigious prize.