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No home, no justice? The legal needs of homeless people  

, 2005 This report into the legal needs of homeless people explores the capacity of homeless people in NSW to obtain legal assistance; to participate effectively in the legal system; and to obtain assistance in legal processes from non-legal advocacy and support agencies. It also examines the role of non-legal support workers and agencies in assisting homeless people to identify and address their legal issues. It is based on a review of existing literature and consultations with legal and non-legal service providers and homeless people themselves....


Appendix 1


SAAP definitions

Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP)

SAAP is a joint program of the Commonwealth and the States that funds non-government organisations to provide ‘a safety net’ of services to people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. SAAP services include homeless persons’ hostels, women’s refuges and youth crisis accommodation. The following definitions are drawn from the glossary provided in AIHW’s National Data Collection annual reports on homeless people in SAAP.1

‘SAAP client’

A person aged 18 years or older, or a person of any age not accompanied by a parent or guardian, who:


‘SAAP support period’

A support period commences when a client begins to receive support and/or supported accommodation from a SAAP agency. The support period is considered to finish when:


If it is not clear whether the agency or the client has ended the relationship, the support period is assumed to have ended if no assistance has been provided to the client for a period of one month. In such a case, the date the support period ended is one month after the last contact with the client.

‘Accompanying child’

A person aged under 18 years who accompanies a client to a SAAP agency during a support period or who requires and/or receives assistance from a SAAP agency as a result of their parent or guardian being a client of the same agency. An accompanying child may or may not require or receive assistance.