Victoria sees ‘alarming’ 24 per cent surge in homelessness, new data reveals
Homelessness in Victoria has surged a staggering 24 per cent in just five years, newly released data shows.
Homelessness in Victoria has surged a staggering 24 per cent in just five years, newly released data shows.
The number of people experiencing homelessness in the state was estimated to be 30,660 on Census night 2021, up from 24,817 in 2016.
That 24 per cent increase dwarfs the national 5 per cent rise.
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Council to Homeless Persons chief executive Deborah Di Natale said the “alarming surge” needed to be the catalyst for the state government “to act urgently by continuing to invest”.
“These grim numbers show exactly why the Victorian Government must fund highly successful programs like From Homelessness to a Home (H2H), which provides stable housing and support for people who are sleeping rough,” she said.
“H2H has successfully housed people placed in hotels during Covid but the numbers today reveal more is needed.”
The program, in line with what is known internationally as a Housing First approach, was launched in mid-2020 to support about 2000 Victorians.
CHP says the program’s future is in jeopardy, with its funding not guaranteed beyond June 30.
Its state budget submission calls on the government to spend $47.5m in the next financial year to extend H2H — as part of $220.6m over four years to expand the program to 2400 households — as well significant investment in social housing.
The Victorian Greens support a Housing First approach, which means making sure people have secure housing as a first priority, from which they can then look to address any other issues or hardships.
Tenants Victoria chief executive Jennifer Beveridge described the trends shown in the 2021 Census data as “very concerning”.
“Two years on from when this data was collected, we are not hearing that it’s getting any better for the renters experiencing disadvantage that our services assist daily,” she said.
Ms Beveridge called on government to “appropriately fund” frontline services.
More than 122,000 people across Australia experienced homelessness on Census night, up from about 116,500 in 2016.
The 2021 Census numbers are considered to be the state’s most accurate picture of homelessness because it was conducted during lockdown, allowing more people to be reached and counted than would have been in previous years.
A state government spokeswoman said the $5.3bn Big Housing Build was “the largest single investment in social and affordable housing by any state or territory government” and would deliver more than 12,000 new homes.
They said Victoria’s specialist homelessness services responded to the needs of more than 100,000 people experiencing or at risk of homelessness every year through more than 70 access points.
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Originally published as Victoria sees ‘alarming’ 24 per cent surge in homelessness, new data reveals