Specialist homelessness services annual report 2020-21

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) have released the Specialist Homelessness Services Annual report 2020-21 which summarises national data from the Specialist Homelessness Services Collection (SHSC).

It describes the characteristics of clients of specialist homelessness services, the services requested, outcomes achieved, and unmet requests for services.

National data highlights a growing number of Specialist Homelessness Services (SHS) clients who have a current mental illness. In the 10 years to 2020–21, the number of SHS clients with a current mental health issue who received support increased by an average of 7.8 per cent annually, faster than any other client group over the period.

The report also highlights the higher representation of women and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people accessing services.

In Western Australia

Data from WA shows that one in 109 people in Western Australia (WA) received homelessness assistance in 2020-21, lower than the national rate (1 in 92).

The top three reasons for clients seeking assistance were: family and domestic violence (39 per cent), financial difficulties (32 per cent), and lack of family and/or community support (25 per cent). Figures also show that two out of three requests for accommodation assistance were unmet during this time.

Reports

The full report can be found here. The WA Factsheet is available here.

AIHW will release the findings of the 2021 National Social Housing Survey on Thursday, 20 October 2022.