The St Vincent de Paul Society has used National Homelessness Week (3 – 9 August) to urge the Australian Government to act on this year’s theme, Homelessness Action Now by recognising housing as a fundamental human right and making it a national priority.
Research findings from the Society suggest every night, more than 122,000 Australians are without a home. Across the country, an average of 350 people are turned away from homelessness accommodation every day because the services they need do not have the capacity to respond.
“No one should be turned away when they have nowhere safe to sleep,” National President of the St Vincent de Paul Society, Mark Gaetani said. “Homelessness is not a personal failure; it is a policy failure.
“The theme of this week could not be clearer: Australians want homelessness action now because we overwhelmingly believe everyone deserves a safe, secure and affordable place to live.”
The Society is calling on the Australian Government to take three immediate steps:
Treat housing as a human right. Under international law, secure and adequate housing is a human right, essential for survival with dignity. The Society continues to call for housing to be recognised as a human right and for the National Housing and Homelessness Plan to be legislated. Most Australians agree that everyone has a right to live a decent life, which begins with a safe, secure place to call home.
Expand social and affordable housing. The Society is calling for investment strategies to restore social and affordable housing to at least six per cent of total housing stock within a decade, and to 10 per cent over the longer term. Australia would need to build 36,420 social and affordable homes every year for the next decade to reach the six per cent target. A chronic shortage of social and affordable housing, that has worsened over several decades, means people are trapped in crisis accommodation with no pathway out, which prevents them from finding work, studying, and caring for themselves and their families.
Fund specialist homelessness services properly. The Society is calling for specialist homelessness services to be funded to $670 million per year. With 350 people turned away each day, the current level of resourcing falls well short of community need.
“Our experience and research reveal that too many people are just one life event away from housing stress – losing a job, falling ill, ending a relationship, or experiencing family and domestic violence. All these pathways cost more money to remedy,” Mr Gaetani said.
“It is shameful that a single person on JobSeeker cannot afford to rent anywhere in Australia. This is the reality behind the numbers, and it demands urgent national action.”
The St Vincent de Paul Society provides a range of housing and accommodation services in every state and territory, which may include short-term crisis accommodation, transitional housing, medium to longer-term community housing, accessible housing for people living with disability, and homelessness services.
“This National Homelessness Week, we are asking the Government to match its rhetoric with resources,” Mr Gaetani said.
“Australians overwhelmingly believe everyone deserves a decent life. Treating housing as a human right and funding the services and stock to make that right real, is where action must begin.”
