Region’s homeless services under increasing pressure

Six hundred and sixty-seven of those using the service had never used a homelessness service before.

These stats come as a new report has revealed that increasing demand for homeless services has meant that some services can’t even answer the phone.

According to the Smashed: Homelessness Services At Breaking Point report by the Victorian Homelessness Network, 70 per cent of the state’s homelessness entry-point services have had to close for periods due to capacity limits and staff shortages.

Beyond Housing chief executive Celia Adams said that keeping its doors open was a priority for the housing organisation.

“We don’t close our doors, but the limited resourcing we have available often means we are unable to provide the level of support that we’d like to or that people rightfully expect,” she said.

In the past year Beyond Housing provided 6000 nights of accommodation. It saw 140 rough sleepers, the most visible form of homelessness — 60 per cent of these were women.

Ms Adams highlighted that Shepparton did not have any crisis accommodation, a significant issue when motels or caravan parks were full.

She said while staffing levels were not the only issue, having more staff would help.

“We have filled all our vacant positions,” she said.

“Is that enough? No. But do we have resourcing for more? No.”

The Bridge Youth Service, the region’s homeless entry point for young people, is facing similar pressure, according to chief executive Melinda Lawley.

“We are always at capacity, at the moment we have a waitlist,” she said.

A lack of housing means the service is often left with limited options for those it supports.

She said this put their staff in a difficult position.

“It’s getting harder and harder for them to feel positive,” she said.

She’s calling for a greater focus on early intervention to identify at-risk young people.

“We want the opportunity to work with young people early,” she said.