The St Vincent de Paul Society NSW calls on next State Government to boost homelessness funding

The St Vincent de Paul Society NSW is grateful for government funding for specialist homelessness services but calls on the next State Government to boost it to match unmet need.

“Over less than 10 years, the proportion of people contacting specialist homelessness support services whose needs go unmet has increased from 16% in 2013-14 to 50% in 2021-22.

“That 50% includes one in three women and children escaping domestic and family violence,” St Vincent de Paul Society NSW Acting CEO, Yolanda Saiz, said.

“Need going unmet is not because specialist homelessness services are not trying, they are demonstrably helping more people than they have funding for.

“There has been no real growth in specialist homelessness service funding in NSW since 2014.

“In 2020-21, specialist homelessness service providers assisted more than 70,000 people despite only being funded to support 58,000 clients.

“This means they are running at about 30% above capacity and about half of people still have their needs go unmet,” Ms Saiz said.

“The Productivity Commission has calculated that the NSW Government investment in specialist homelessness services works out to be $42.87 per day per client.

“This is not enough to support people who need to find long-term housing and address complex needs, especially when they don’t have enough money to purchase food or are escaping a violent partner,” Ms Saiz said.

“Australia is supposed to be a country that has safety nets to help people who are experiencing disadvantage,” St Vincent de Paul Society NSW State Council President, Paul Burton, said.

“We are seeing these being eroded rapidly at all levels, from unemployment support at Federal level to specialist homelessness support at the state level.

“It’s sad to say that NSW makes the second lowest investment in specialist homelessness services of any jurisdiction.

“We should not be leaving people to languish in disadvantage, we need to ensure that the next NSW Government does more to help people most in need,” Mr Burton said.

“The Society is one of the biggest providers of specialist homelessness services in the state and is grateful for the government funding it receives to keep them running.

“However, demand for assistance is already overwhelming and it is only increasing,” Mr Burton said.

Media contact: Lachlan Jones 0417 446 430