The release of the Australian Bureau of Statistics’ 2021 Census data on estimating homelessness paints a picture of a bad situation getting worse, with the data revealing a 5.2% increase in the number of people experiencing homelessness nationally between 2016 and 2021 – or 6,067 people.   

While overall homelessness decreased in New South Wales and the Northern Territory, it increased everywhere else. The amount of rough sleeping homelessness decreased in NSW, Victoria, SA and the NT.   

“In Australia, there are no national systems in place to regularly measure the rates of homelessness across the country – rather, we estimate it every five years. Imagine how we’d manage problems like unemployment if we estimated the rates every five years and then took 588 days to release this information,” said David Pearson, CEO of the Australian Alliance to End Homelessness (AAEH). 

The data shows that there was a slight overall decrease in the number of people experiencing rough sleeping, no doubt as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic response measures that were put in place across a number of jurisdictions when the Census occurred.  

“I’m not surprised that Australia’s homelessness figures have increased to more than 122,000. Our services and those we work with across the sector have certainly seen a surge in homelessness in recent years,” said Sharon Callister, CEO of Mission Australia. 

“Behind these numbers are thousands of men, women and children who are living in the most precarious situations, forced to sleep in severely overcrowded dwellings, on a couch at a friend’s house, or even one of the 6% who are rough sleeping on the street or in a car.” 

The Census data is better than nothing, but rather than waiting for governments to make the investments to properly measure this issue, many communities across Australia have taken matters into their own hands.   

Pearson highlighted that while the numbers from the Census are concerning, what should also alarm Australians is that the data released is already 19 months old.   

“You can’t change what you don’t measure, so it’s unsurprising that we’re not really managing the problem of homelessness in Australia. We can do better than this. As a nation, we are better than this,” added Pearson.  

Over 26 communities across Australia are working towards ending homelessness as a part of the Advance to Zero Campaign, which is supported by the AAEH and based on the same methodology used by communities around the world that have successfully ended homelessness.   

One in six or nearly 20,000 people who are homeless are aged 55 years and over, an increase of 4% since the 2016 Census. There are 942 young people aged 12-18 who are couch surfing on any given night. 

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people made up 2.8% of the population but made up 20% of all people homeless on Census night. 

“What we also need is a sustainable way to fund the data collection that is integral to ending homelessness, which is why the AAEH is calling on the Australian Government to financially support the Advance to Zero Campaign so we can measure how many people are experiencing homelessness in communities across the country.” 

“Despite the common misconception to the contrary, the scale of homelessness in Australia is both preventable and solvable. Communities and countries around the world are demonstrating that,” added Pearson. 

These communities work to collect monthly data on people experiencing homelessness, including their name, underlying health and mental health issues, housing needs, location and more, to measure what is occurring at a local level with the ultimate goal of ending homelessness.  

“The Census data shows that when evidence-based, targeted investments are made, like what happened in some states in response to COVID-19, progress can be made,” said Pearson. 

“The number of young people aged 12 to 24 fell by 8.2%, in contrast to a rise of 1.9% nationally. However, the number of people aged 55 and over who were experiencing homelessness rose by 13.4% to 1,615,” said Peter McMillan, CEO of NT Shelter. 

“Australia needs a long-term and far greater commitment from governments to build new social and affordable homes to meet the stark shortfall. This is a nationwide issue that needs a commitment from everyone – all governments, the corporate sector, charities and individuals if we are to have any hope of ending homelessness in Australia,” added Callister. 

NT Shelter, along with over 230 other peak bodies and charities across Australia, has called on the Commonwealth Government to continue to support front-line homelessness services by not cutting $65 million each year from sector funding under the National Housing and Homelessness Agreement.  

Related: David Pearson of Australian Alliance to End Homelessness on achieving ‘functional zero’ homelessness