Public Housing tenants speak

22 Jul 2020
Fiona & Shane talk to three public housing tenants, Jenny and Vanessa who are living in one storey units in the West, and Royal who lives in an older persons high rise in the southern region.  They were not part of the hard lock down, and have had very different experiences of the COVID-19 responses.  As with many public housing communities, they are looking out for each other - but finding the social isolation a struggle.
Listen in on 3cr.org.au

Housing Support – Intake and Referral Worker

Submitted by Ruben on

We are seeking an enthusiastic housing support worker to join our intake and referral team at Home at Last. You will be providing over the phone information and referral to older people across Victoria. During COVID-19 lockdown, there will be no face-to-face work with clients and you will need the ability to work from home. You will have high levels of empathy for older people in stressful housing situations and a professional manner with service providers.  Knowledge of the housing sector, including public and social housing, and the health or community services sector is desirable.

Open Letter to the Prime Minister regarding people sleeping rough during COVID-19

An open letter calling on the government to address the urgent situation concerning homeless people sleeping rough and COVID-19.

Joint submission to the Victorian Homelessness Inquiry: LGBTI Older People at Risk of Homelessness

LGBTI communities are at a higher risk of becoming homeless compared to the wider community. This risk is further compounded for older LGBTI people who are faced with additional challenges related to ageing and lifelong experiences of stigma and discrimination. The lack of services and programs available to these older people has contributed to a growing trend of older LGBTI people retiring into homelessness.

This joint submission arises from the LGBTI Elders Housing Project, being led by HAAG in partnership with Switchboard Victoria, Val’s LGBTI Ageing and Aged Care, Transgender Victoria and Thorne Harbour Health.

PDF icon Read the submission here

At Risk: Older women facing homelessness in Australia

4 Aug 2020

You are invited to the launch of two reports:

“At Risk: understanding the population size and demographics of older women at risk of homelessness in Australia”, commissioned by Social Ventures Australia, written by Dr Debbie Faulkner and Laurence Lester, University of Adelaide

“Older women in the private rental sector: unaffordable, substandard and insecure housing” by Dr Emma Power, Western Sydney University.

This event will be held on Zoom - Please Register and you will be emailed a link to access the meeting on the day prior to the event.

Brief presentations will be followed by Q&A.

Hard Lockdown in Older Person's Highrise

8 Jul 2020
Fiona talks to three of our Housing Support Workers, Darwin, Paola and Nese, about the impact of the hard lockdown on public housing tenants in North Melbourne.  The hard lockdown was implemented without warning on 9 public housing towers, including 2 older person's housing blocks.  Our housing support workers relay what they found when contacting their clients in the days that followed, many of whom come from a non-English speaking background.
Listen in on 3cr.org.au

Older Tenants Voice - Winter 2020

Our winter newsletter is packed with information on our response to the coronavirus, the lockdown, along with our many projects and services. And for the first time it incorporates the National Alliance of Seniors for Housing stories from around the country.

PDF icon Read the Newsletter here

We need more Health Care and less Police

HAAG was shocked at reports of a “hard lockdown” being enforced by police on public housing tenants in Flemington and North Melbourne on Saturday.  This response was inappropriate and stigmatized low income, mostly migrant Victorians, many of whom have English as a second language.

Older Victorians have No place to call home

Today HAAG released a report showing the extent of the housing crisis for older Victorians. Written by Dr Debbie Faulkner from the University of South Australia, it combines census data with data from Specialist Homelessness Services to closely examine the housing circumstances of people aged 55+ in Victoria.

 

No Place to Call Home: Older People at Risk of Homelessness in Victoria

Homelessness is a rapidly growing problem in Victoria. Between the 2006 and 2016 Census the number of people experiencing homelessness in Victoria increased from a rate of 35.3 per 10,000 population to 41.9 per 10,000 population. A desperate shortage of affordable housing and skyrocketing rents are driving more and more people, from diverse backgrounds, out of their homes and into homelessness.

Belying the old stereotypes of homeless people being “rough sleepers: with complex needs, the fastest growing cohorts of people becoming homeless are women and older people. For many homeless means couch sur ng, living in severe overcrowding,
and temporarily in rooming houses and emergency accommodation.

This report examines the cohort of older people, over 55 years old, who are homeless, or at risk of becoming homeless. During the same period between 2006 and 2016, older persons homelessness grew by 58 per cent. Drawing on Census, as well as Specialist Homelessness Services data from across the state, this report examines the makeup of this growing and often hidden demographic of homeless people.

PDF icon Read the full report

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