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Homelessness in NSW

This study used a broad definition of homelessness that consists of three main categories:

• primary homelessness, which includes sleeping ‘rough’, in cars, on trains and in squats
• secondary homelessness, in which people move frequently from one form of temporary shelter or accommodation to another, including emergency accommodation and family and friends
• tertiary homelessness, which in this study includes people who live in boarding houses on a medium- to long-term basis and marginal residents of residential or caravan parks.

While homelessness has been categorised in this way, it has been conceptualised as a process, rather than a static state. Some people are homeless for a short time before regaining housing, while others become entrenched in homelessness, or move in and out of homelessness, or between different forms of accommodation on a regular basis.

On Census night 2001, an estimated 33 500 people in NSW were homeless by this definition. However, in contrast to the traditional view of homelessness as an inner-city problem, nearly half of the homeless people in NSW live outside the Greater Sydney area. While the concentration of homeless people living in the inner city is one of the highest in the State, some regional areas, in particular coastal NSW, also have very high rates of homelessness.

The homeless population also has a diverse demographic profile. An estimated 43% of homeless people are under the age of 25.² These young people tend to be fairly transient, moving between refuges, transitional housing and friends and families. Forty per cent of the homeless in NSW are female, with the proportion of the homeless who are women highest in the younger age groups. Data also indicate that there are increasing numbers of families experiencing homelessness. As might be expected, the vast majority of homeless people have no income, are on social security or have a very low income.

Also disproportionately represented in the NSW homeless population are Aboriginal people, people recently released from prison, people who have at some time been placed in state care, transgender people and people recently arrived from overseas. Finally, mental illness, alcohol and other drug abuse and histories of trauma and abuse are more common among some sectors of the homeless population than in the general population, particularly those living at primary levels of homelessness.

Thus, in addition to people living on the streets in inner-city areas, homeless people are also found in suburban, regional and rural areas. They are not just older men or ‘street kids’; they also include women and families who may be escaping domestic violence and family breakdown, young people living with family and friends, and people living in boarding houses and caravan parks. The discussion in this report about legal issues, barriers to justice and legal service delivery to homeless people strongly reflects this broader conceptualisation of homelessness.