Title page
Contents
Foreword 6
Membership of the Committee 9
Terms of reference 10
List of abbreviations 12
List of recommendations 15
1. Introduction 26
Referral and conduct of the inquiry 26
Previous inquiries and reports 27
Defining and describing homelessness in Australia 28
Structure of this report 29
2. Context of homelessness 31
Definitions of homelessness 31
Definitions used in the Australian context 32
Evidence on definitions 35
Homelessness data 49
Numbers, rates and trends 49
Data collection and reporting 60
Governance and funding 73
Overview of government responsibilities 73
Evidence on governance and funding arrangements 84
Other Australian Government initiatives 93
Committee comment 101
3. Causes, risks and vulnerable groups 113
Causes of homelessness 113
Poverty and limited income 116
Lack of affordable and social housing 118
Vulnerable groups 122
Women and children affected by family and domestic violence 123
Children and young people 128
Indigenous Australians 132
People experiencing repeat homelessness 135
People exiting institutions and other care arrangements 137
People aged 55 or older 141
People living with disability 148
People living with mental illness 152
Veterans 156
LGBTIQ+ people 158
Migrants, temporary visa holders and people seeking asylum 161
Rough sleepers 164
Rural and remote areas 167
Other factors and vulnerabilities 172
Committee comment 174
4. Addressing homelessness 182
Prevention and early intervention 182
Adopting a 'Housing First' approach 190
Enhancing social housing 201
Need for increased investment in social housing 201
Public housing 206
Community housing 209
Planning and zoning reform 219
Developing a national strategy 222
Committee comment 229
Additional comments - Labor members 238
Appendix 242
A. List of submissions 242
B. List of public hearings 251
Table 2.1. Number of homeless persons and rate of homeless persons per 10,000 of the population, by state and territory of usual residence 50
Table 2.2. Housing policy responsibilities of the three levels of government 74
Table 2.3. Roles and responsibilities set out in the National Housing and Homelessness Agreement 75
Table 2.4. Outstanding state and territory housing-related debts as at 30 June 2018 ($ million) 89
Table 3.1. End Street Sleeping Collaboration November 2019 Survey Results 165
Table 4.1. Numbers of public housing dwellings, by state and territory 207
Figure 4.1. Model of a 'Housing Led' systemic approach 194
Boxes
Box 2.1. Canadian National Occupancy Standard 38