Homeless in Newtown

Later in the morning, the forum split into two workshops. The first was on understanding how and why people are homeless. The second focused on how to increase the supply of social housing, including a range of strategies such as providing tax incentives for developers, as well as making use of planning legislation to ensure a greater provision of affordable rental and social housing.

At the end of the forum, participants were given a rousing performance by the Sydney Street Choir, performing some original songs as well as favourites such as Lou Reed’s  Perfect Day.

According to Paul Adabie of the NNC, “It was a great way to end the morning, and it helped to ‘keep it real’ for all involved”. Lisa Bruns of the NNC added: “What surprised me about the day was the number of services that attended. I did not think we’d get so many people. This is an issue not only affecting what we traditionally see as older men. It’s an issue affecting families, young people, single parents, everyone.”

As an outcome of the homelessness forum, the NNC has proposed the idea of establishing a clinic to streamline access to social housing and other services within the area. It is also intending to write a submission on the Federal Government’s new Green Paper on Homelessness in Australia which was released on May 22.

The Green Paper is now available for public comment and can be accessed though the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs. (http://www.facsia.gov.au/).