Prime Minister's Council on Homelessness - Annual Report

Annual Report - 2009–10

• Overview
• Membership and term
• Meetings in 2009-10
• Work plan
• Stakeholder engagement
• Future directions of the Prime Minster’s Council on Homelessness
• Appendix A: Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness Membership
• Appendix B: The Road Home – Progress and Lessons - Meeting on priorities and future challenges
• Appendix C: Guest Presenters at Prime Minister's Council on Homelessness Meetings

Foreword

I am pleased to present the first annual report of the Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness. Since the release of the White Paper in December 2008, we have seen governments commit to goals far more ambitious than anything seen in comparable countries—to halve homelessness by 2020 and offer supported accommodation to all rough sleepers who seek it.

Backed by a comprehensive strategy and unprecedented levels of investment to build new homes and create and expand services, this is the most substantial commitment our nation has yet made to tackling homelessness.

Reducing homelessness takes time. This is why the White Paper on homelessness contains a long-term strategy, whose success relies on the ongoing commitment of governments, businesses, communities and the not-for-profit sector. Progress has been made over the past year. It is pleasing to see the White Paper Strategy generating a much stronger focus on prevention and early intervention, and on the economic and social participation of those experiencing homelessness. The groundwork has been laid that will yield reductions in homelessness over future years

However, reducing homelessness has many challenges. The Council has been proactive in examining difficult policy and service delivery issues that have an impact on those who are vulnerable to homelessness, and those who are already experiencing it. We are pleased with the innovation occurring in service responses and are keen to see new approaches, such as integration of mainstream and specialist homelessness services, that recognises the often complex needs of clients.

The diversity of its membership has allowed the Council to provide independent and strategic advice critical to the early years of implementing the White Paper strategy.  I would like to thank all Council members for their dedication to the task over the past year.

We acknowledge the Australian Government’s ongoing commitment to this important agenda and look forward to continuing to work with it in the second year of the Council’s term.

Tony Nicholson

Chair, Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness

1.  Overview

The Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness was established as an initiative under the White Paper on homelessness—The Road Home—which sets out the national approach to reducing homelessness.

In the White Paper, the Commonwealth Government, with the agreement of state and territory governments, set two headline goals for 2020:

• halve overall homelessness
• offer supported accommodation to all rough sleepers who seek it.

The Council is a key national governance body overseeing homelessness reforms across Australia. It comprises a diverse range of prominent Australians with relevant backgrounds and expertise who monitor the achievement of the goals and targets in the White Paper.

During its first 12 months, the Council had an active schedule, with five meetings between August 2009 and July 2010. From this work, the Council has provided government with independent advice on progress, risks and emerging issues under the homelessness reform agenda.

This report highlights the Council’s achievements and ongoing work against the priority areas of data and performance; rough sleeping; service integration; health and mental health; education, employment and training; and quality services.

The Council’s advice on matters considered at each meeting is publicly available through communiqués on its website.

2.  Membership and term

The Council comprises 10 community leaders with backgrounds across industry, philanthropy, academia and the not-for-profit and community sectors:

• Mr Tony Nicholson (Chair)—Executive Director, Brotherhood of St Laurence, Melbourne
• Ms Christine Edwards (Deputy Chair)—Chief Executive Officer, the Myer Foundation and the Sidney Myer Fund
• Ms Patricia Brahim—General Manager, Julalikari Council Aboriginal Corporation
• Mr David Cant—Chief Executive Officer, Brisbane Housing Company
• Mr Ian Carter AM—Chief Executive Officer, Anglicare WA
• Ms Narelle Clay AM— Chief Executive Officer, Southern Youth and Family Services, New South Wales
• Professor Margaret Hamilton AO—Executive Member, Australian National Council on Drugs
• Ms Netty Horton—General Manager, St Vincent de Paul Society Aged Care and Community Services, Victoria
• Mr Alan Kirkland—Chief Executive Officer, Legal Aid NSW
• Ms Marcia Ella-Duncan OAM—(resigned May 2010)

The Council is not intended to be a representative group; members are appointed on the basis of their individual capacity, skills and experience to guide and monitor implementation of national reforms in homelessness policy, programs and services. Members are appointed by the Prime Minister, in consultation with the Minister for Housing, for a two-year term; current membership extends to July 2011. The Council is in its first term of membership.

A biography of each member is included at Appendix A.

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3.  Meetings in 2009–10

The Council meets bimonthly in locations across Australia. During its first 12 months of operation, the Council met five times:

4.  Work plan

Under its Terms of Reference, the Council has been tasked with advising on the implementation of Commonwealth social policy initiatives that relate to the goals and targets in the White Paper and assessing whether reforms are being communicated effectively.

To achieve this, the Council has taken a strategic approach to the policy and program areas in its work plan and over its term. The Council’s plan covers inquiry into and discussion on matters that are critical to the success of the White Paper. The Council has so far assessed the priority areas of data and performance; rough sleeping; service integration; health and mental health; education, employment and training; and quality services.

The Council undertakes a detailed assessment of policy areas in its work plan and collects a range of evidence and input from subject matter experts. The Council’s early success against its work plan has been driven by its resolve and ability to engage key decision makers from across the Commonwealth, non-government organisations and academia.

4.1  Data and vulnerability indicators

Transparent data is essential to policy development and service delivery. The Council has focussed its attention on ways to increase the level of information available on Australia’s homeless population, and has brought its members’ expertise to the national discussions on strategies to improve the integrity of Australia’s homelessness data collection.

At its second meeting in October 2009, the Council determined that a proxy data measure was required as an interim measure until more robust data becomes available. The Council assessed possible options and identified the Centrelink homelessness flag, which helps customer service officers provide appropriate services to people experiencing homelessness, as a useful measure to obtain early data.

To improve the level of information available on Australia’s homelessness population, the Council convened a workshop on rough sleepers (see 4.2). Attendees at this workshop shared data collected through their services on rough sleepers across various areas in Australia.  These discussions aimed to enhance understanding of rough sleepers and their needs by looking at program data and services responses for the cohort. 

In addition to increasing the quality of data on homelessness in Australia, the Council has been at the forefront of discussions on data and has shaped the debate on ways to improve Australia’s homelessness data collection. A key part of this work is the Council’s contribution to the ongoing review of the Counting the Homeless 2006 methodology.

4.2  Rough sleeping

The Council has acknowledged that the headline goal of the White Paper—to offer supported accommodation to all rough sleepers who seek it by 2020—is one for which all those involved in its implementation will be held accountable. As such, the Council has made this issue a standing agenda item at all meetings.

In order to meet the targets set out in both the White Paper and the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness, the Council is working to develop a greater depth of knowledge on the characteristics of rough sleepers and the diversity and effectiveness of policy and practice responses to rough sleeping. The Council has been instrumental in shaping two projects to build this evidence base: a synthesis of Australian and international research on rough sleeping, and a workshop on the diverse experiences of rough sleeping.

Acting on the advice of the Council, in May 2010 the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs commissioned the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute to conduct a two-stage research synthesis covering what is known about the nature and characteristics of rough sleepers, pathways into and out of rough sleeping, and effective service responses for the rough sleeper cohort. The research is in its final stages of development and, once completed, will be made publicly available.

For the second project, the Council convened a workshop for government program managers, practitioners supporting rough sleepers and academics. The workshop identified examples of leading practice service responses for rough sleepers, through an enhanced understanding of the characteristics and experiences of rough sleepers, and on‑the‑ground responses to this cohort. The findings from the workshop will assist in the ongoing assessment of service responses to rough sleepers and consideration of whether the homelessness reform agenda is on track to meet the 2020 goals.

4.3  Service integration and engaging mainstream services

Over a number of meetings, the Council was briefed by mainstream and specialist homelessness service providers, senior Commonwealth government officials and representatives of advisory bodies about services whose effectiveness depends on the ability to recognise and manage interdependencies between service elements.

The Council has been instrumental in leading discussion and thinking on the importance of integrated service responses.  The Council has made clear that program and policy responses by specialist homelessness services alone will not be sufficient to deliver on the integrated approach of the homelessness strategy.  This will require quality and integrated support across specialist, mainstream and allied services, which wrap services around individuals in order to holistically address the causes and complexities of homelessness.

The Council has reviewed service and system models that are delivering integrated services to clients and has formulated a set of principles that are important to fostering and driving service integration. These are: shared objectives across different services; governance and funding structures that join up policy and delivery at a high level; integrating fewer services well rather than all services poorly; shared accountability to ensure that all services are equally accountable to each other and to government; and performance measurement that is long term so that governments can ensure that integration of services remains sustainable.

These principles may present some challenges for service providers; acceptance of the approach that homelessness is everyone’s responsibility is a relatively recent one within mainstream services, so widespread service integration is likely to take some time. The Council supports appropriate capacity building within the workforce to provide the crucial foundation for ongoing, effective service integration.

In an effort to engage critical stakeholders in support of the movement towards an integrated approach to service delivery and to assess the barriers to integration, the Council led a forum on priorities and future challenges at Parliament House on 22 June 2010 (see 5.2). Attendees included stakeholders capable of driving service integration, including executive policy and program managers from Government and non-government organisations, those delivering services on the ground, experts in homelessness research, and policy advocates. 

Outcomes focussed on the need for governance and funding arrangements to be developed in a way that fosters service integration, and for performance frameworks to be outcome, rather than output focussed.  Discussions acknowledged the importance of dedicated champions within the sector to promote real change in attitudes, behaviours and processes.  Partnerships with local government and the philanthropic and private sectors were also recognised as needing more attention as they offer opportunities to improve service responses.

The detailed outcomes from this forum are included at Appendix B. 

4.4  Health and mental health

The Council was briefed on the national health and hospitals reforms and has identified a number of opportunities in policy, service and program design to ensure there is adequate attention to people experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness. In its early assessment of the direction of the reforms, the Council advised the Department of Health and Ageing of key areas for greater attention, including the Medicare Locals network; changes to the operation of emergency departments; more sub-acute beds and packages to reduce hospitalisation and support transition from hospital to community-based care; and the Access to Allied Psychological Services program.

The Council and the Department of Health and Ageing have agreed to engage in ongoing dialogue and interaction to pursue these opportunities.

4.5  Education, employment and training

Some of the most significant changes will occur by tackling structural drivers of homelessness, such as unemployment and disengagement from education. The Council is working to ensure that people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness are given the greatest opportunity to remain in school or connected to the education system, and that they have access to employment services to enable their economic participation.  

The Council corresponded with the Secretary of the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations to request information on initiatives in place in each state and territory for students vulnerable to homelessness, as well as advice on the existence of any care planning requirements for students who are excluded from school. The Council is using this information to conduct an analysis of programs to determine whether at risk students are receiving appropriate support, whether excluded students are able to connect to alternative education options, or whether this is a gap area requiring further policy attention.

The Council has also reviewed the recent changes to Australia’s national employment system, Job Services Australia, and assessed available data on the program to determine how those who are homeless or at risk of homelessness are faring under the new system. The Council has determined that this mainstream program provides an opportunity to support people vulnerable to homelessness, and is working with the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations to see how the program could provide more effective outcomes for people who are experiencing, or are at risk of, homelessness.  

4.6  Quality services

The development of mechanisms to support quality services has continued to be a priority for the Council. Achieving better outcomes for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness by improving the quality and integration of services they receive is a fundamental area of reform. The Council has provided input and advice through all stages of the development of the National Quality Framework for homelessness services. In early meetings, Council members advised that the Framework should be phased in over time, incorporating a national system of service standards. The Council supported a National Quality Framework covering specialist homelessness and mainstream services such as health, employment and allied services.

The Council also provided advice and recommendations on the importance of involving the service delivery sector and states and territories in the development process. It agreed that development of the Framework should occur through a two-stage consultation process, with the first stage focussing on working with the sector to build consensus on what quality is and how this can be recognised.

The first stage of consultations considered ideas on what quality service provision is and introduced the concept of a National Quality Framework. Input came from people experiencing homelessness, service providers, government, community groups and others with an interest in improving the quality of services for people who are homeless. This stage is now complete.

The second stage will identify the most appropriate options for a National Quality Framework and include an analysis of the relative costs and benefits of those options. The Council will continue to provide input during this stage.

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5  Stakeholder engagement

The Council recognises the important contribution from all parts of the Australian community in tackling the difficult issue of addressing homelessness and implementing the White Paper reforms. The Council has an active role in communicating these reforms to homelessness services and the broader service sector to ensure that the goodwill and momentum demonstrated to date can be maintained and further encouraged. To this end, it has been involved in a number of government and non-government forums, as well as consulting with key stakeholders on the priority areas of its work plan.

5.1  Agency forums and stakeholder engagement

Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness meetings: In considering the progress of the implementation of the White Paper reforms,the Council finds it useful to consult on specific issues with subject matter experts and senior government officials. At its meetings, the Council has engaged with Commonwealth government representatives, advisory bodies, academia and other stakeholders such as from the legal services field, to exchange information and views on the homelessness reform agenda. The full list of attendees at Council meetings is at Appendix C.

Australian Government Homelessness Delivery Review Board: Mr Tony Nicholson (Chair) and Ms Christine Edwards (Deputy Chair) attended the meeting of the Australian Government Homelessness Delivery Review Board in February 2010, and the Council has continued regular engagement with the Board and its members. The Homelessness Delivery Review Board comprises high-level representatives from Commonwealth departments with a role in implementing the homelessness reforms. In its engagement, the Council emphasised the urgency of focussing efforts on practical and innovative initiatives that will contribute to the White Paper goals.

5.2  Maintaining momentum and showcasing achievements

The Council is committed to highlighting early progress and showcasing practical examples of initiatives rolling out across the country, as well as maintenance of existing services, and has facilitated the sharing of knowledge about leading practice models and innovation.

On 22 June 2010, the former Minister for Housing, the Hon Tanya Plibersek MP, convened The Road Home—Progress and Lessons, at Parliament House, Canberra. This forum showcased homelessness services, highlighted progress under the National Affordable Housing Agreement and its related partnerships, raised awareness of the homelessness reform agenda and brought together key stakeholders from across the homelessness sector, including executive policy and program managers from government and non-government organisations, those delivering services on the ground, experts in homelessness research, and policy advocates.

The Council Chair facilitated discussions on priorities and future challenges (see 4.3). Council members Professor Margaret Hamilton AO and Mr Alan Kirkland provided introductory comments on the practical implementation of service integration and the challenges of working together with mainstream services. Council members Ms Narelle Clay AM and Ms Netty Horton also participated actively.

Information and promotional material from the event are available on the

Information and promotional material from the event are available on the National Homelessness Information Clearinghouse website.

6.  Future directions of the Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness

The Council’s work plan covers its two-year term until July 2011. In its second year the Council will continue its role of overseeing and monitoring the performance of the White Paper reform agenda. It will also examine other policy areas relevant to the achievement of the White Paper goals including housing supply, Indigenous peoples’ access to housing and homelessness services, youth and homelessness, the elderly and homelessness, community services, workforce capacity and development, and migration and refugees.

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Appendix A

Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness Membership

Membership

Tony Nicholson (Chair)

Tony Nicholson has dedicated almost 29 years to improving conditions of those living on or close to the edges of society.  A feature of his work has been his ability to collaborate with colleague social justice organisations, governments and businesses to achieve reform in public policy and service delivery to the benefit of disadvantaged Australians. 

Mr Nicholson’s expertise in understanding the historic and emerging needs of Australians experiencing homelessness led to his appointment in January 2008 as Chair of the Federal Government’s Steering Committee for the development of the White Paper on homelessness.  Mr Nicholson brings stability and consistency from his experiences in the development of the White Paper to its implementation.

Mr Nicholson is currently Executive Director of the Brotherhood of St Laurence in Melbourne.  He brings to the task of leadership at the Brotherhood a strong record of service development and innovation, research and policy analysis and compelling advocacy on behalf of those disadvantaged in our community.  Mr Nicholson and his colleagues at the Brotherhood have for several years been at the forefront of knowledge development and practice of a genuinely Australian approach to social inclusion.  In recognition of this leadership Mr Nicholson was appointed member of the inaugural Australian Social Inclusion Board by the Prime Minister in May 2008.

Mr Nicholson was appointed to the Victorian Premier’s Climate Change Reference group in June 2008.

He is also Chairperson of the Victorian Government’s Community Support Fund Community Advisory Council.

Christine Edwards (Deputy Chair)

Christine Edwards is Chief Executive Officer of the Myer Foundation and the Sidney Myer Fund. Both the Foundation and the Fund continue the philanthropic legacy of Sidney Myer and the succeeding generations of the Myer family.

Ms Edwards’ career has spanned health, community services, and the philanthropic sectors. In Victoria, she has been the Chief Executive Officer of St George's Hospital and Bethlehem Hospital, responsible for delivering inpatient and community services for the aged, people with chronic and progressive neurological conditions, and people requiring palliative care. Prior to settling in Victoria, Ms Edwards held senior positions in Western Australia and Tasmania in portfolios of mental health, aged care, dental, alcohol and drug services, women’s health, child protection and youth justice.

Ms Edwards is a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Management, an Associate Fellow of the Australian College of Health Service Executives, and a member of the Institute of Public Administration Australia.  She is also Deputy Chair of the Asia-Pacific Philanthropy Consortium.

Ms Edwards graduated from Curtin University in Western Australia, has postgraduate qualifications from Flinders University in South Australia and recently completed a Master of Health Administration at LaTrobe University.

Ian Carter AM

Ian Carter is the Chief Executive Officer of Anglicare in WA. He began his working career as a teacher and then a Youth Education Officer in State High Schools.  He continues to be involved in a number of community organisations and activities.

During the 1980s and early 1990s Mr Carter worked in various Government departments and agencies, with a particular emphasis on economic development in rural communities.  His final Government appointment was as Director of Community Economic Development in the Department of Commerce & Trade until April 1995 when he was appointed Chief Executive Officer of Anglicare WA.

Mr Carter was Chairperson of the State Government Taskforce on Poverty during 1997, Chairman of the Anti Poverty Week Steering Committee in WA in 2004 and co-Chair in 2005.  In December 2008 he was appointed Chair of the Western Australian State Government Social Housing Taskforce.  He was also one of the founders and a Director on the Board of JOBfutures, a new and innovative national not-for-profit employment company.  Mr Carter has been President of WACOSS for four years and Deputy President of ACOSS for two years.

In 2002 Mr Carter was appointed to the honorary position of Adjunct Professor in the Division of Humanities at Curtin University.

In January 2009 Mr Carter was appointed as a Member of the Order of Australia in the General Division (AM).

Alan Kirkland

Alan Kirkland has been Chief Executive Officer of Legal Aid NSW since July 2008.

Mr Kirkland has previously been employed as Executive Director of the Australian Law Reform Commission; Director, Community Access, with the Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care (NSW); and Director of the NSW Council of Social Service.

Mr Kirkland has been a member on the boards of a range of non-government organisations, including the Australian Council of Social Service; the Welfare Rights Centre, Sydney; the Public Interest Advocacy Centre; and the Public Interest Law Clearinghouse.

Mr Kirkland has also held statutory appointments to bodies including the Social Security Appeals Tribunal (Commonwealth), the Administrative Decisions Tribunal (NSW) and the Sustainability Advisory Council (NSW).

Mr Kirkland has degrees in Arts and Law from the University of New South Wales and a Master of Business Administration (Executive) from the Australian Graduate School of Management.

Pat Brahim

Pat Brahim is the General Manager of Julalikari Council Aboriginal Corporation in Tennant Creek - the first Indigenous Organisation that has agreed to a long-term lease of town camps in a regional centre that meets the criteria for funds to flow under the Indigenous Remote Housing National Partnership.

Ms Brahim has been extensively engaged in issues affecting Indigenous Territorian communities for many years and has a sound understanding of the challenges of remote service delivery.

Netty Horton

Netty Horton is the General Manager of Community Services in the St Vincent de Paul Society, in Victoria. Ms Horton has a long history of working in the area of homelessness, beginning as an outreach worker with rough sleepers in 1988.

Ms Horton was also the Chief Executive Officer of the Council to Homeless Persons for more than 12 years, during which time she established and ran the first and second National Conferences on Homelessness in Australia; chaired the Ministerial Advisory Committee on the development of the Victorian Homelessness Strategy; and founded the Council for Homeless Persons Australia, a founding entity of the Australian Federation of Homelessness Organisations and Foodbank Australia.

Professor Margaret Hamilton AO

Prof. Margaret Hamilton has worked for many years in the alcohol and drug field in a mix of clinical, program development, management, research, teaching and training, policy development/advice and general public education roles.

Prof. Hamilton worked in the homelessness sector from early in her career, including being involved as member of Council to the Homeless. She has maintained this connection through drug and alcohol policy and practice work, as well as through ongoing contributions to the homelessness peak journal Parity.

Most recently Prof. Hamilton has been Chair of the Multiple and Complex Needs Panel in Victoria, and Chair of the Project Advisory Group of the Australian National Council on Drugs, including oversight of a project on homelessness and alcohol and drug use.

David Cant

David Cant has been the Chief Executive Officer of the charitable Brisbane Housing Company (BHC) since the Company’s incorporation in 2002.  During this period BHC has developed over 700 homes for those in housing need in Brisbane and won numerous awards for its housing. 

Mr Cant came to Queensland in 2000 after a career in the housing association sector in the UK of over 20 years.  During his career in social housing Mr Cant performed a variety of roles in tenancy management, property development, and housing association finance.

Mr Cant has a strong interest in education about the built environment.  Between 1997 and 1999 Mr Cant was Chair of the Hackney Building Exploratory, an innovative educational project based in Hackney East London which provided residents and school children in one of London’s most deprived boroughs with information about their homes and planning issues affecting their lives. 

In the 1970s Mr Cant secured a first degree in Economics and Politics at Oxford University before completing a Masters Degree in Town Planning at University College London. 

Narelle Clay AM

Narelle Clay is the Chief Executive Officer of Southern Youth and Family Services which provides services in the Illawarra, Shoalhaven and Southern Tablelands areas of NSW.

Ms Clay has been active in the community sector and particularly in the area of homelessness for twenty four years and is well known in her field and more broadly for her activism and commitment to seeking social justice, and her endless energy to challenge but also work with Government to make changes.

Ms Clay’s Member to the Order of Australia Award (AM) is for "Distinguished service to the community through social justice advocacy and the provision of accommodation, housing and support for homeless people especially young people."

Ms Clay is a Commissioner for the National Youth Commission and served on the Independent National Inquiry Into Youth Homelessness in 2007 and 2008. She is currently the National Chairperson of Homelessness Australia, a Member of the NSW Homelessness Alliance, Member of the NSW Minister of Community Services Advisory Committee related to the Wood Commission Reforms, and a Member of the Southern region's Area Managers Group. 

Ms Clay has been a teacher for twenty three years with TAFE in various courses related to human services and a trainer specialising in areas of advocacy, community management, policy development and industrial relations.

Ms Clay is the President of the Australian Services Union NSW and ACT Branches and President of the Australian Services Union NSW, Social and Community Services Branch and a Member of various Commonwealth and State Government Advisory processes.

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Appendix B

The Road Home – Progress and Lessons - Meeting on priorities and future challenges

22 June 2010, Parliament House, Canberra

Outcomes Report

1.  Introduction

On 22 June 2010, the former Minister for Housing, the Hon Tanya Plibersek MP, convened The Road Home – Progress and Lessons event at Parliament House in Canberra.  Following an exhibition of services in the morning, a meeting was held to discuss priorities and future challenges.

Minister Plibersek provided opening remarks to the afternoon session, encouraging those in attendance to continue to build on the goodwill and momentum already generated.  More than 150 people attended the afternoon meeting, including representatives from mainstream and specialist homelessness services; Local, State, Territory and Commonwealth government officials; experts in homelessness research; policy specialists and policy advocates.

Mr Tony Nicholson, Chair of the Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness, facilitated the meeting on priorities and future challenges over two sessions:

• Session One focussed on increasing integration to more effectively achieve outcomes
• Session Two focussed on working with mainstream services to reduce homelessness.

Two members of the Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness provided opening remarks prior to each session.

2.  Service Integration: Professor Margaret Hamilton AO

Key points raised include:

• There are three levels at which services can be integrated:
  • Systems level: integrating different government and organisation agendas and policies including need for clarity about infrastructure arrangements and models of service needed in the community.
  • Service level: including standards for service integration within accreditation systems of organisations, and appropriate supports and authority for staff.
  • Client level: effective case management and care-plan coordination strategies for integrated service delivery in a time and purpose focussed effort.
• The cultural attitude of an organisation is a key ingredient of effective service delivery – the focus should be on managing the complexity of service coordination rather than solely focussing on the complexity of individual needs.
• Meaningful engagement between services and individuals is vital; but so too are the arrangements that facilitate various services to be involved together.
• Contracts should be clear about expectations of service integration since they define what will be delivered and consideration should be given to including service integration best‑practice principles. 
• There is a need for careful consideration of what data will show us if service integration is occurring and if it is effective.  This data should be collected and monitored to influence further service integration.
• Referral is not the most effective model for providing additional specialist services for clients with complex needs.  Alternatives including the skilled use of secondary consultation and care-plan coordination are alternative ways of bringing services to the client in a holistic response to disadvantage.

3.  Engaging Mainstream Services in Early Intervention and Prevention: Mr Alan Kirkland

Key points raised include:

• Mainstream services are key to preventing homelessness.  Identifying effective prevention interventions is a significant challenge, because this often requires frontline staff to have the skills to identify people who are at risk of homelessness.
• For early intervention to be effective, homeless people must have access to the right mainstream services as early as possible in their experience of homelessness, yet mainstream models of service often make this unlikely.  For example, relying upon homeless people to attend mainstream service points and to make appointments is not an effective way of providing legal services to disadvantaged people.  Shifting these practices does not necessarily require additional resources--change can be achieved through decisions about how and where existing service resources are allocated, for example through outreach services offered to clients where they are.
• Champions at high levels within mainstream services can be effective at leading cultural change.  For senior managers in mainstream services to say that homelessness is a priority focuses the efforts of middle managers, who exercise considerable discretion in decisions about how services are delivered on the ground.

4.  Key Points in Open Discussion

Following each presentation, Mr Nicholson opened the floor to discussions from participants.  Key points from the discussion are outlined thematically below.

4.1  Governance and Funding Arrangements

• Clear, stable governance arrangements between services and agencies are a requirement for improving service integration and will also assist to achieve the services’ outcomes.
• Contractual arrangements and competitive tendering can be a barrier to service integration and can inhibit the development of partnerships between services.
•  A suggestion was made to trial multi-agency contracting, with funding of services based on outcomes and payments split across agencies.
• People are people first and homeless second and they have a right to access mainstream funding to meet their needs.  For example, aged people experiencing homelessness have a right to mainstream funding rather than having homeless services deliver on the full needs of homeless older people.  This approach has seen Wintringham Aged Care access mainstream aged care funding to deliver fully accredited aged care facilities to older homeless people.
• There are clear economic reasons to for mainstream services to intervene early as it reduces the burden on acute and crisis services in mainstream sectors such as accident and emergency and mental health.

4.2  Performance Management 

• An outcomes focussed performance framework is powerful in measuring the performance of governments and service providers to aim to achieve results rather than to focus on inputs.  This would improve the delivery of services for both the individual and the program.
• The delivery of specialist homelessness services often requires secondary interactions with other stakeholders, the outcomes of which cannot be directly controlled.  Discussions raised the need for an agreed joined-up policy approach, with common principles for achievement, and/or a joint performance framework and noted that the National Quality Framework and other quality systems were key mechanisms to implement this.
• Evaluation of programs should provide an early assessment of what is/is not working, and to support adjustments to operations and service planning accordingly. 
• Government agencies can reduce the burden on service providers by integrating reporting requirements.

4.3  Change Processes

• There is a high level of goodwill in the sector and the broader community towards homelessness reform and it is timely to capitalise on this momentum.
• Cultural change to address homelessness as a priority takes time and commitment within organisations, society and government.  Dedicated champions are crucial in promoting real change in attitudes, behaviours and processes.  The meeting noted Centrelink is a leading example of cultural change.  Some 18,000 staff were trained to identify and respond to homelessness in a new focussed way. This will deliver many practical improvements for individuals to get the right amount of income support, referral to specialist staff and services.

4.4  Quality Services

• The success of the early intervention approach of the Reconnect program was noted along with its, active referrals to other required services, and research driven practice.  These provide valuable lessons for services aiming to increase their early intervention efforts.
• Innovation is important but past successes can also provide important lessons, and proven programs can be expanded or reinstated.
• Accreditation was acknowledged as important to improving service quality.  There were differing views about how accreditation should be implemented and governed.
• Representatives noted the National Quality Framework (NQF) is an opportunity to improve service quality and support workforce capacity, and participants were encouraged to provide input into Stage Two of the NQF consultations.

4.5  Building Relationships

• Local government was recognised as a key first to know agency, mainstream service provider and stakeholder in the homelessness reform agenda.  Improved engagement and responses can be achieved at the local level by developing relationships with local government to increase their understanding of, and responsiveness to, homelessness. 
• The development of the Common Ground model in Australia was noted as an excellent example of leveraging resources and expertise from the business, philanthropic and private sectors to reduce homelessness.

4.6  Integrating Policy and Programs

• There was support for policy and program integration through protocols within a performance framework.  This would support integration by setting out interagency responsibilities and requirements against which agencies would be measured.
• Delegates noted how critical education and employment are to preventing and breaking the cycle of homelessness.  They urged governments to support an ongoing commitment to effective service delivery for this group and suggested evaluation of employment services to carefully consider their effectiveness for homeless people.  
• Representatives noted there was scope for education authorities to more actively engage in policy responses for vulnerable youth and students at risk of homelessness. 
• Concerns were raised about the adequacy of youth wages and youth income support (Youth Allowance) to support young people to house and support themselves during training.
• Representatives acknowledged that the Health and Hospitals Reforms provide opportunities to improve support for people who are experiencing or at risk of homelessness through local organisations providing tailored solutions for local needs based on data about their specific communities; this could lead to more effectively targeted services.
• The meeting noted the significant shortfall in housing supply presents a serious risk for the effectiveness of homelessness reforms.  The National Housing Supply Council estimates that for private renter households with incomes below the 40th percentile (for 2007-08, households earning $596 per week or less) there is a shortage of 493,000 affordable and available dwellings.  Representatives pressed for governments to continue to increase supply of affordable housing.

5.  Conclusion

Mr Nicholson closed the event by thanking participants for their contributions.  Outcomes of the meeting will be provided to the Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness, Housing Ministers, and relevant Commonwealth, State and Territory bodies for consideration in the review of policy, program and service responses arrangements under the homelessness reform agenda.

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Appendix C

Guest Presenters at Prime Minister's Council on Homelessness Meetings