‘It’s crucial we have a plan’: Stakeholders call for youth homelessness strategy
Experts say changes to Jobseeker, youth allowance and rent assistance payments could help young Tasmanians get into homes quicker. LATEST >>
Tasmania
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Stakeholders say a national strategy is needed to address youth homelessness in Tasmania as new data shows more young people are without a place to call home.
Youth Network of Tasmania CEO Tania Hunt said there were more young people at an increased risk of homelessness than ever before.
“We have young people that can’t break into the private rental market, they’re not allocated social housing, they’re on low wages, they’re experiencing financial hardship,” Ms Hunt said.
“We’re seeing a group of young people that typically wouldn’t have been at risk of homelessness previously.
“We’re calling for a stand-alone national child and youth homelessness and housing strategy.”
Ms Hunt said more investment was needed.
“We need to see more investment in the existing service system, to ensure we can meet current demand, we need to see and increase in social housing and we need to see young people allocated social housing in our community and we need young people to be part of the solutions,” Ms Hunt said.
TasCOSS acting CEO Charlie Burton said youth poverty and unemployment was a major contributing factor to youth homelessness.
“One of the things we need to do immediately is make sure young people have secure income, we need to raise the level of youth allowance which is so poor it’s barely reaching half of the median rent in Tasmania,” Dr Burton said.
“We need to raise the rate of Jobseeker and Commonwealth rent assistance so we can give young people the best chance.”
Shelter Tasmania CEO Pattie Chugg said homelessness in Tasmania had increased by 45 per cent over the past five years.
“When you unpack that again, one in four of those are young people,” Ms Chugg said.
“We know from evidence if young people aren’t safely housed, they will end up in pathways to long term homelessness.
“It’s crucial we have a plan.”
Ms Chugg said the housing crisis had a big impact on youth homelessness.
“The number one reason why people are presenting to our homelessness services is because they don’t have an affordable home,” she said.
“We’ve got a housing crisis, that rolls on to young people, but really the long-term impact of homelessness is traumatic … people can’t stay in education, they can’t secure employment.”
Toni Smith shares experience of homelessness as a single parent in Tasmania
Young people are finding it harder to gain access to social housing amid the rising cost of living and a housing crisis, youth advocates say.
Young parent Toni Smith was left feeling stuck and overwhelmed after being thrust into homelessness at 21 years old.
As a single parent, they said they struggled to find accommodation after a relationship breakdown, and eventually realised getting a private rental on their own just “wasn’t going to happen”.
After couch surfing, and staying with a friend, their living circumstances resulted in them being without custody of their young daughter for seven months.
“Eventually I was lucky and got a spot in a shelter in Hobart for 12 weeks; they were amazing, they really advocated on behalf of me to my caseworker,” Toni said.
Toni was then moved to a transition property, where just one week later, they received the call they had been waiting 12 months for.
“I got the call to say ‘we’ve finally got you a house’,” they said.
The whole experience, including being without their daughter for months, and their attempts of finding a job while homeless, had been “chaotic”.
“Ninety-nine per cent of the time I was lucky, I had a roof over my head,” they said.
“It was tough, I got to see her still, but it’s not the same as having them with you every night.
CEO of Youth Network Tasmania, Tania Hunt, said while the factors that drove homelessness for young people were varied, more Tasmanians were at risk due to low wages, insecure work, the increased cost of living and an inability to break into the private housing market.
“Currently, only a small percentage of young people under 25 years of age are allocated social housing,” Ms Hunt said.
“Young people continue to report age-based discrimination when attempting to secure a private rental property,
“Many property owners are reluctant to rent to young people, particularly those seeking to enter shared housing arrangements.”
According to 2021 Census data, Tasmanians aged 12-24 represent 25 per cent of the state’s homeless population.
Ms Hunt said as part of the 2023 Youth homelessness Matters Day on Wednesday, calls were being sounded for the development of a stand-alone national child and youth homelessness and housing strategy.
Toni said there were many moments that had left them feeling trapped and exhausted by the process.
“You feel very stuck, and it’s all very overwhelming and it feels like everything is moving at a million miles an hour because there are so many forms you have to fill out, and different applications, and a thousand people you have to talk to get things approved,” they said.
“But even though you’re doing all these things, you still feel so stuck in your position, you can’t just move on to the next stage; it’s exhausting.”
Toni, now 23, has now entered a new phase of their life where they feel optimistic, like a “different person”.
They are now volunteering at a youth arts centre, working with Monash Uni to develop a new youth mental health service, and employed within the disability and mental health sector.
“It kinda makes you feel like it was worth all of that, obviously it was not the best experience, but I went through it and now I can help someone else that might be trying to navigate the housing system, or deal with being a single parent for the first time,” they said.
“I think lived experience is invaluable.”
For information on Youth Homelessness Matters Day go to: https://bit.ly/41z671A
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