Homelessness should not be quantified as being without a house; rather, it defines a state in which a person lacks a secure base to establish secure routines of living. The majority of long term homeless people are found in the large cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Brisbane. The Australian Bureau of Statistics breaks this down into 5 groups:[1]
- "Rough sleepers" - people who are living on the streets, with no formal shelter at all.
- Emergency shelters
- Temporarily residing with friends
- Boarding houses
- Trailer park residents
Of 100,000 homeless people in Australia on census night in 2001:[2]
- 58% were Male (58%)
- 42% were Female (42%)
- 36% were between the age of 12 - 24
- 10% were under the age of 12.
- 8.5% were Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders
- 23% were staying in boarding houses
- 49% were staying with friends and relatives
- 14% were sleeping rough
- 14% were staying in services funded through the SAAP
Common causes[3]
- Domestic and family violence (22%)
- Eviction/previous accommodation ended (11%)
- Relationship/family breakdown (11%)
- Usual accommodation unavailable (11%)
- Financial Difficulty (10%)
External links
- ^ http://www.abs.gov.au
- ^ Australian Federation of Homeless Organisations. 2001 Census Statistics. Retrieved 2006-05-30.
- ^ Australian Federation of Homeless Organisations. 2001 Census Statistics. Retrieved 2006-05-30.