Homelessness in Queensland
On the best available data, 26,782 Queenslanders are homeless every night.
Of these, 5,165 people are sleeping rough. Twenty-seven per cent of Queensland's homeless are children aged 18 or under and twenty-three per cent are elderly, aged 55 or over. Over 2,000 are Indigenous.
The Australian and Queensland Governments are committed to reducing homelessness.
What we are doing
In December 2008, the Australian Government released the White Paper on Homelessness,
The Road Home, whichcalled on all levels of government, business, the not-for-profit sector and the community to join together to reduce homelessness.
The Road Home outlined the need for new investment in homelessness and reform of existing services. Homelessness should be prevented wherever possible. People who experience homelessness should be supported to move quickly through the crisis system into long term housing and at the same time get help to reconnect with education, employment and the community. Mainstream services and homelessness services have to work together more effectively to reduce homelessness.
In
The Road Home, the Australian Government adopted two headline goals to:
- halve overall homelessness by 2020;
- offer supported accommodation to all rough sleepers who seek it by 2020.
The White Paper also included interim targets to 2013 to contribute to these long term goals.
Queensland has primary responsibility for the delivery of essential public services such as health, education, community services, social housing, justice and policing. The Queensland Government committed to tackling homelessness through its
Responding to Homelessness Strategy, announcing $235 million over four years (2005-09) in its 2005-06 Budget. In the 2007-08 Budget, the Queensland Government provided $500 million over 5 years from the Queensland Future Growth Fund to expand social housing. Queensland has also introduced the One Social Housing System, providing priority access to social housing for people who are homeless.
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Work already under way
In
The Road Home the Australian Government committed to boost its efforts across all areas of government to achieve the 2020 headline goals and interim targets for reducing homelessness. This is especially important in areas such as social housing, employment, income support and aged care.
Specific Australian Government initiatives include:
- $1.17 billion to build around 4,132 new social housing dwellings across Queensland as part of the $5.6 billion Nation Building Economic Stimulus Plan. An additional 253 houses are being built under the National Partnership Agreement on Social Housing at a cost of $80 million;
- $1.2 billion over 10 years for Queensland to provide new houses and upgrades to existing houses in remote Indigenous communities under the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing;
- $1 billion nationally over the next four years to build 50,000 affordable rental properties under the National Rental Affordability Scheme;
- Improvements to Centrelink's capacity to respond to people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness; and
- Additional emergency relief funding, more personal helpers and mentors for people living with severe mental illness, innovative employment services and increased capital and recurrent funding for elderly people who are homeless.
Some specific initiatives under Queensland's
Responding to Homelessness strategy include:
- A call centre for homeless people or those at risk of becoming homeless, called Homeless Persons Information Queensland (HPIQ);
- Service hubs for homeless people; and
- Additional crisis accommodation for homeless families and transitional accommodation for young people.
New work through the National Partnership Agreement (NPA) on Homelessness
As part of
The Road Home, in December 2008, the Council of Australian Governments established a National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness. Under the Agreement the Australian Government has agreed to provide additional funding for homelessness to the States and Territories who have agreed to match Commonwealth funding and deliver services and capital projects that will contribute to an overall reduction in homelessness.
The Commonwealth and Queensland Government will contribute
$284 million over five years to reduce homelessness under the Agreement. Queensland has developed an Implementation Plan setting out new initiatives and services which will make a substantial contribution toward the achievement of the 2013 interim targets to reduce homelessness.
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The Implementation Plan
Queensland's Homelessness Implementation Plan includes specific measures for particular groups such as rough sleepers and young people. Measures include:
A Place to Call Home
- 143 homes for homeless people will be purchased or built over 5 years. Support for people moving into these homes will be provided through Referral for Active Intervention and Family Intervention Services. This is a State-wide initiative.
A Focus on Young People
- Youth Housing and Reintegration Services 30bungalows will be provided in the backyards of family or care givers' homes in Townsville, Rockhampton, Toowoomba, Inala, Mt Isa and Hervey Bay.
Support for People Exiting from the Care or Custody of the State
- Integrated Transitional Support Models and Offender Reintegration Support Services will be established in correctional centres in Greater Brisbane, Rockhampton, Cairns, Maryborough, Gold Coast, Rathdowney, Townsville and Woodford.This initiative will be of particular benefit to Indigenous prisoners on release.
Emergency Department Liaison
- Welfare workers will be employed to assist people who are homeless when they access hospital Emergency Departments at Gold Coast Hospital, Royal Brisbane and Women's Hospital (Herston), Princess Alexandra Hospital (Woolloongabba) and Logan Hospital.
Post Care Support for Young People Exiting Care with a Disability
- 300 young people who have a disability and are exiting state care will be helped each year to develop the living skills for an independent life. Post Care Services will be provided in 10 locations.
Street to Home Initiatives for Rough Sleepers
- Assertive Outreach teams will bring people off the street into the housing they need to end their homelessness permanently. The teams will provide up to 3360 people over 4 years with the support they need until they are ready to move into permanent accommodation and intensive support to resettle.
- A Common Ground style facility will be developed in inner Brisbane for 150 clients, 75 of whom will be homeless.
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Helping People Sustain their Tenancies
- RentConnect, which provides assistance for households to access the private rental market, will be expanded to Rockhampton, Caboolture, Brisbane, Cairns, Townsville and the Gold Coast. Clients will be able to get help with: how to find a rental home; understanding the rental application process; and preparing a rental application.
Home Stay Support
- Up to 1,200 vulnerable families and singles will be helped each year to maintain their tenancies through the provision of early intervention and post crisis support. New services will be provided in eleven locations.
Working with Local Communities and Local Services
- Regional level coordination will support the homelessness reform agenda through service integration. Regional coordinators will be provided in government agencies and new funding will be provided for non-government coordinators.
System Improvements and Coordination
- A common assessment tool to assess the housing and support needs of clients will be developed.
- Reform of the existing homelessness sector will continue to improve long term outcomes for homeless people.
- A case-mix based approach to funding will be piloted.