By ALESHA CAPONE
THE number of homeless youth is soaring in Melbourne’s West and North-Western Suburbs, according to several advocates in the region.
They have called for more action to address issues which can lead to homelessness including high rates of youth unemployment, mental health, drugs and alcohol, school suspensions and relationship breakdowns.
This comes in the wake of a report from the Council to Homeless Persons, which has proposed that the State Government spend $143 million across a decade to provide more housing and support.
More than 18,000 young people from across the West seek assistance from Youth Junction Inc, based in Sunshine, every year.
General manager Karen Hart said there was a “huge demand and growing” for homeless services, partly due to a lack of affordable private rental homes and social housing in the West.
Chair of the not-for-profit Youth Projects group, Melanie Raymond, said estimates showed more than 40 per cent of clients lived in short-term “insecure accommodation” which often leads to homelessness.
“While inner Melbourne has the highest rates of street homelessness, Melbourne’s outer North and West are seeing a rise in homelessness over the past few years,” Ms Raymond said.
“We have heard of clients sleeping in cars, caravans, old warehouses and on the streets in this area.
“There are single mothers and kids living in expensive and inappropriate boarding houses – just suburban homes crammed full of people and completely unsuitable for children and many may be unregistered.”
Ms Raymond said the most effective programs to combat homelessness and related issues were those designed locally, but they did not receive much funding despite rising demand.
“Together with other charities in this area, Youth Projects are doing more with less,” she said.
“Funding hasn’t kept pace with increased demand for emergency accommodation, mental health counselling and support services and basic material aid.
Well-known youth worker Les Twentyman said he had heard of a Brimbank boarding house which has a practice called ‘hot bedding’, where multiple people sleep shifts in the one bed.
He said more refuges were needed in the West, aside from one in Footscray and another in Sunshine owned by his charity, the 20th Man Fund.
“That’s 16 beds for the whole of the Western Suburbs,” he said.
