Homelessness Funding Inquiry

Summary and Key Points

This is a summary of the key messages and findings in the Report, followed by a table comparing Shelter WA and the Western Australian Alliance to End Homelessness (WAAEH’s) submission with the Report recommendations.

A summary of the minority report is provided at the end.

All Paths Lead to a Home Action Plan

• All Paths Lead to a Home: Western Australia’s 10-Year Strategy on Homelessness 2020–2030 (All Paths Lead to a Home) has strong support within the homelessness services sector for a Housing First model. However, the implementation of Housing First as a philosophy, integrated system and program, has not been realised.
• The outcomes, priorities and proposed actions under the All Paths Lead to a Home Action Plan 2020-2025 (Action Plan) are appropriate and provide the foundation for a strong response to homelessness throughout the state.
• There is limited progress reporting on All Paths Lead to a Home and the Action Plan, and it recommended that the Department of Communities publish annual updates about the progress of implementing specific priority actions under the First Action Plan and subsequent Action Plans (Recommendation 15).
• Current funding of homelessness services does not sufficiently allow for the costs of transition to a Housing First approach under All Paths Lead to a Home, as well as the delivery of current service models.
• Given the many changed circumstances since the release of All Paths Lead to a Home in December 2019, more investment in public housing, and innovative delivery, is urgently needed to successfully implement All Paths Lead to a Home.

Crisis Accommodation

• Accommodation is very limited across the entire housing spectrum from short-term crisis accommodation, longer-term transitional accommodation through to permanent long-term housing, which has led to bottlenecks throughout the homelessness service system.
• Recent initiatives such as the purchase of the Murray Hotel and the Djuripiny Mia 100 supportive landlord pilot are encouraging, however many more such initiatives are needed.
• There are a number of recommendations to increase, expedite or extend funding for a range of services and pilots state-wide (see table below for more detail). Outside of Perth, this includes:
  • Funding more crisis and transitional accommodation
  • Expediting proposed Aboriginal short-stay accommodation in Geraldton and East Kimberley and investigating the demand for short stay facilities in other regional areas
  • Funding another Kalgoorlie Summer Support Hub
  • Extended funding for medical respite centres for people experiencing homelessness in areas of the state other than central Perth.

Contracts for Homelessness Services

• Because many contracts for delivery of homelessness services have been in place since around 2012, and have been subject for short term contract extensions, it is very difficult for service providers to properly plan their service delivery and attract and retain staff.
• Over half of the homelessness services funded by the Department of Communities are funded under contracts dating from between 2009 and 2011.
• In many cases, contracts for the provision of homeless services do not reflect the current value of the cost of delivering contracted services, the increasing demand for services and the increasing complexity of service delivery.

Commissioning and New Contracts

• New commissioning of services under the Commissioning Plan should take into account current costs of service delivery, which are impacted by increasing complexity of clients, higher levels of demand and increasing costs, with a recommendation that the Department of Communities conduct state-wide, place-based assessments of the extent to which currently funded services meet identified local needs.
• The Department of Communities’ commissioning process for homelessness services should be informed by all of the priorities of All Paths Lead to a Home, including Housing First (Rec 32).
• The Department of Communities include in new homelessness services contracts, a provision for the necessary costs of safe and effective service delivery such as adequate staffing levels and security (Rec 30)

Lived Experience Expertise

• The Committee gave particular thanks to the people with lived experience of homelessness who told their stories to the Inquiry, made written submissions, attended site visits and contributed their stories to service providers’ written submissions.
• The report includes case studies and direct quotes from people with lived experience and finds that there is a need for greater lived experience input into the design of homelessness services in Western Australia.
• This finding feeds into recommendations that where possible the Department of Communities consult people with lived experience of homelessness in the design and delivery of homelessness services (Rec 42) and that the government increase funding for peer support workers in homelessness services (Rec 43).

Minority report by Hon Don Caddy

• The minority report finds there is a significant community stigma around social housing, and in response to this recommends: “That the State Government actively prioritise integrated, well planned social housing to benefit the whole of the community and promote this concept”. (Rec 1)
• It also finds that the refocussing of Homelessness services in Western Australia will be unsuccessful if there is not a significant focus on the improvement in delivery of culturally appropriate services for Aboriginal people, and recommends: “The State Government place a sustained focus on improving delivery of culturally appropriate services for Aboriginal people as part of the refocussing of homelessness services more broadly”. (Rec 2)
• Finally, the minority report finds that while the State Government has increased funding to Homelessness services, Commonwealth funding, as a percentage, has decreased. It is recommended that “The State Government advocate for increased, as well as sustained funding from the Commonwealth to ensure service sustainability”. (Rec 3)