Catholic Communications, Sydney Archdiocese,
7 Dec 2012
The St Vincent de Paul Society of NSW has pledged to find 120 homeless families or single men and women longterm accommodation in private rental properties over the next 12 months as part of the Government's Rapid Rehousing initiative.
This week the NSW Government announced it had chosen Vinnies as a partner in the pilot program which will trial new approaches to break the cycle of homelessness.
To enable Vinnies to access affordable long term rental properties for families and individuals who are currently homeless or at risk of homelessness, as well as provide the back up support services necessary to help them make the transition from the uncertainty of temporary often overcrowded accommodation, the NSW Government will release $1 million to its partner agency.
"St Vincent de Paul Society is a leading provider of homeless services in NSW and as such is well placed to work in homelessness prevention and intervention," says Michael Perusco, CEO of Vinnies NSW.
The Vinnies chief who has a passion for social justice and is dedicated to eliminating homelessness, has long lobbied for an increased commitment to public and social housing by both the state and commonwealth governments to help break the cycle of homelessness.
Three weeks ago, he welcomed an announcement by Federal Minister for Housing, Brendan O'Connor that the Commonwealth would commit one year's interim funding to the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness while a new agreement was negotiated, and expressed his concern that the number of homeless continued to rise.
In figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics last month based on analysis of the 2011 Census it was found that the number of homeless men, women and children had increased by 17% on the 2006 Census stats with this percentage as high as 20% in NSW. Overall it was found that there are now 105,237 people who are sleeping rough each night or living in crowded insecure accommodation.
At the time Mr Perusco said one of the key factors in this increase was the lack of affordable housing, particularly in cities such as Sydney.
"Sydney's housing market is in crisis and fundamental reform is required to ensure it delivers for all Australians," he said pointing out that the nation's housing market produced high gains for some, largely as a result of tax incentives such as negative gearing, while simultaneously driving others into poverty or keeping them in the grinding misery of homelessness.
Now hot on the heels of last month's promise by the Federal Government's to provide interim funding the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness, comes the promise by the NSW Government's Department of Family and Community Services to partner with Vinnies and help fund a pilot initiative to combat homelessness by finding permanent affordable rentals for some of the city's most vulnerable.
"Across the State our members visit people in their homes and provide financial assistance to help them meet the cost of living pressures and to help prevent them from falling deeper into crisis and potential homelessness," says Michael Perusco. "Day to day we see the challenges people face in accessing safe and affordable accommodation and it is very encouraging to see the NSW Government establishing a program that will help improve access to the private rental market."
Mr Persuco also pointed out that Vinnies operates more than 40 services for men, women, families and single parents experiencing homelessness to help them get back on their feet as fast as possible. These services matched with Vinnies' experience will be invaluable in the pilot program which will offer long term security to 120 individuals or families who currently have no place to call home.
While this latest initiative to try to combat homelessness has been welcomed by Vinnies, NSW President of the Society, Ray Reynolds warns that the increase in homelessness figures as shown by the 2011 Census leaves no room for complacency.
"The increase in the number of those who are homeless is completely unacceptable in a country as wealthy as Australia and shows there is still a lot of work to be done to address this issue. Far too many Australians are being pushed to the margins of society and are struggling to find a way out and to rebuild their lives," he says.
SHARED FROM ARCHDIOCESE OF SYDNEY
7 Dec 2012
105,000 Australians are currently homeless
This week the NSW Government announced it had chosen Vinnies as a partner in the pilot program which will trial new approaches to break the cycle of homelessness.
To enable Vinnies to access affordable long term rental properties for families and individuals who are currently homeless or at risk of homelessness, as well as provide the back up support services necessary to help them make the transition from the uncertainty of temporary often overcrowded accommodation, the NSW Government will release $1 million to its partner agency.
"St Vincent de Paul Society is a leading provider of homeless services in NSW and as such is well placed to work in homelessness prevention and intervention," says Michael Perusco, CEO of Vinnies NSW.
The Vinnies chief who has a passion for social justice and is dedicated to eliminating homelessness, has long lobbied for an increased commitment to public and social housing by both the state and commonwealth governments to help break the cycle of homelessness.
Lack of affordable housing leads to homelessness, financial stress and insecurity
In figures released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics last month based on analysis of the 2011 Census it was found that the number of homeless men, women and children had increased by 17% on the 2006 Census stats with this percentage as high as 20% in NSW. Overall it was found that there are now 105,237 people who are sleeping rough each night or living in crowded insecure accommodation.
Michael Perusco, CEO of Society of St Vincent de Paul NSW
"Sydney's housing market is in crisis and fundamental reform is required to ensure it delivers for all Australians," he said pointing out that the nation's housing market produced high gains for some, largely as a result of tax incentives such as negative gearing, while simultaneously driving others into poverty or keeping them in the grinding misery of homelessness.
Now hot on the heels of last month's promise by the Federal Government's to provide interim funding the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness, comes the promise by the NSW Government's Department of Family and Community Services to partner with Vinnies and help fund a pilot initiative to combat homelessness by finding permanent affordable rentals for some of the city's most vulnerable.
"Across the State our members visit people in their homes and provide financial assistance to help them meet the cost of living pressures and to help prevent them from falling deeper into crisis and potential homelessness," says Michael Perusco. "Day to day we see the challenges people face in accessing safe and affordable accommodation and it is very encouraging to see the NSW Government establishing a program that will help improve access to the private rental market."
Commitment to public and social housing crucial to break cycle of homelessness
While this latest initiative to try to combat homelessness has been welcomed by Vinnies, NSW President of the Society, Ray Reynolds warns that the increase in homelessness figures as shown by the 2011 Census leaves no room for complacency.
"The increase in the number of those who are homeless is completely unacceptable in a country as wealthy as Australia and shows there is still a lot of work to be done to address this issue. Far too many Australians are being pushed to the margins of society and are struggling to find a way out and to rebuild their lives," he says.
SHARED FROM ARCHDIOCESE OF SYDNEY
Comments