Blog
Is Homelessness Able To Be Eliminated?
December 3, 2020
Interesting question. Many of us want to scream out “yes” but we know it can only happen if we had the right framework in place*.
This question has been posed in The Conversation by Angela Spinney, a Lecturer/Research Fellow in Housing and Urban Studies at Swinburn Uni of Technology, with her article titled “Eliminating most homelessness is achievable. It starts with prevention and ‘housing first’ ”. The article covers the release of a new report from The Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) called “Ending homelessness in Australia: A redesigned homelessness service system”.
The Conversation article is here: https://theconversation.com/eliminating-most-homelessness-is-achievable-it-starts-with-prevention-and-housing-first-151182
AHURI delivers peer-reviewed research that influences policy development and change to improve the housing and urban environments of all Australians. Their other role is to help inform government on improving policies in the housing and urban development space. We all know the issue of homelessness is never going away and it is getting worse – so please read this very informative article and the research paper. Both AHURI and The Conversation might not be on every one’s radar – but they are both highly recommended as another avenue to hear independent and well-researched, evidence-based, opinions on a wealth of topics.
The graph in this article shows that 18,000 public housing dwellings were built in 1975 – but in 2016 it was less than 2000. Social housing demand is just not keeping up with the demand. I’m not advocating for that level of construction every year, but it needs to not disappear off the budget allocation just because there was a good year of construction. Demand grows, and I will yet again say that same phrase – the gaps between the “haves” and the “have-nots” is increasing. Building capacity with social housing cannot be reduced on the budget line or increased just because a reactionary item after the media starts ramping up attention.
Here is the AHURI publication on homelessness released on 3rd December – 85 pages to fully inform you about the severity of the situation and how the right social policies can eliminate it.
https://www.ahuri.edu.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0027/65952/AHURI-Final-Report-347-Ending-homelessness-in-Australia-A-redesigned-homelessness-service-system.pdf
Here is the 15 page Executive Summary: https://www.ahuri.edu.au/research/final-reports/347
The very well-intentioned but sporadic way of handling homelessness across so many levels of government agencies and by so many community groups screaming out for funding is all based on the re-active model. We’ve got to fix what is in front of us, of course, and re-active. However, imagine the wholistic strategy that is pro-active – getting in first and finding that permanent home. AHURI has their “Housing First model” you can read more about in my September blog.
(*Of course we do need to recognise there are some in our community who will always want to be as they are, and actually cannot for a variety of reasons live in a confined location with a roof over their head. As long as they are visited regularly with appropriate services with someone keeping tabs on them, and not injuring others, their right to live as they wish must be respected.)
Christine
Declaration: I donate to The Conversation