Calls to double of NSW crisis accommodation amid warnings of unseen Xmas crisis hitting vulnerable Aussies

An unseen Christmas crisis is looming for thousands of vulnerable Australians, with urgent calls emerging in one state for more crisis accommodation as the holiday period looms.

A peak homelessness advocacy body is warning of an unseen crisis this holiday season as one in two people attempting to access temporary or crisis accommodation are rejected.

Short-term housing providers face increased drastically demand during Christmas, putting more pressure on temporary accommodation services which already have to turn one in two people away.

Homelessness NSW chief executive Dom Rowe said short-term services see a spike in demand during the Christmas holidays, with families put under increased financial and social pressures.

“There can be increased social conflict or conflict within families, where you can see a spike in domestic violence happening,” she said.

“It’s a very difficult time of the year and you can imagine it’s very scary for those women and children suffering that violence.”

Homelessness NSW chief executive Dom Rowe said homelessness shelters were in very high demand during the holidays. Picture: iStock

Ms Rowe said one operator in the Illawarra area was “highly distressed” after she had to reject 11 people accessing her services on the weekend.

“It’s a sign of something larger that’s happening in NSW.”

Homelessness NSW is calling on the state government to double its availability of temporary accommodation over the next three years.

Data release on December 12 from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare found 68,400 people used a homelessness service in the 2022-23 financial year, however 51 per cent of people accessing emergency short-term accommodation were turned away.

A report released by Homelessness NSW found the need is exacerbated in regional areas, especially for women and children escaping domestic violence, where they may need to travel long distances to find safe and secure accommodation away from the perpetrator.

“You shouldn’t have to choose between a violent home or being homeless, and supports need to be in place.” she said.

“That’s why we’re suggesting the need to double the amount of temporary accommodation, because right now one in two people don’t have a place to go.”

She feared that people being turned away from services were at risk of “falling out of the system entirely”.

Homelessness NSW has called for a doubling of temporary accommodation services. Picture: NCA NewsWire/ Christian Gilles

Other recommendations also included increasing temporary accommodation in rural and regional areas, plus establishing a 20 per cent allocation for women and children escaping domestic violence in temporary accommodation services.

NSW Minister for Housing and Homelessness Rose Jackson acknowledged the holiday period can be “hard for so many,” and said the government will “continue to review our current initiatives to ensure people are able to access the support they need, not just for this period but all year round”.

“There are so many people struggling right now and we want to make sure as many people as possible can access temporary accommodation and aren’t turned away,” she said.

“We know there is no single solution to our housing and homelessness crisis and are committed to addressing this issue from every direction.”

Since taking government in March, the NSW Labor has removed the annual 28-day cap for people seeking temporary housing, while also extending the period people are allowed to seek accommodation from two days to seven.

Rent seeker diaries, where people needed to fill out applications for private rental properties, were also scrapped.

Housing and Homelessness Minister NSW Rose Jackson said the government was committed to tackling the homelessness crisis ‘from every direction’. Picture: NCA NewsWire/ Gaye Gerard

The cash access limit for people seeking temporary accommodation has also been increased from $1000 to $5000, and removed altogether for people escaping domestic and family violence.

Ms Rowe said that while the measures have allowed more people to access accommodation, demand was still outstripping supply.

It was also an issue acknowledged by Ms Jackson, who flagged building more housing, especially in the regions, as a priority for the government.

“You can’t solve homelessness if you don’t have homes for people to live in,” she said.

“In last budget we invested $70m to help accelerate the delivery of social and affordable homes for primarily regional NSW and put in an extra $11m urgent funding injection to temporary accommodation to ensure there is even more support for people who need emergency housing.”