Barwon Homelessness Network Update – 16 Dec 2020

SOURCE: Equity Economics- Double return –how investing in social housing can address the growing homelessness crisis and boost Australia’s economic recovery

News:

PRObono News- 14^th December- ‘The worst is yet to come’: Growing number of Indigenous women seeking homelessness support
PRObono News- 8^th December- ‘ We need to overhaul the system’: Welfare advocates say Jobseeker must be raised permanently
ABC News- 7^th December- ‘It would make me feel like I belong’: Mick Combo’s lifelong quest for a home
The Conversation – 3^rd December- Eliminating most homelessness is achievable. It starts with prevention and ‘housing first’.
The Conversation- 2^nd December- What did COVID do to the rental markets? Rents fell as owners switched from Airbnb
The Guardian-11^th December- Homelessness services turn away 260 people daily due to lack of accommodation
The Guardian – 9^th December- Third of young people leaving Victoria’s out- of- home care are homeless within three years

Training/Resources/Reports:

Community Services Industry Alliance-  A decade of reform recommendations for the community services sector
AHURI- December 2020- Executive Summary Ending homelessness in Australia: a redesigned homelessness service system
Policy coordination and housing outcomes during COVID- 5^th November
Tenants Victoria- 14^th October- Changes to Tenancy Law and Family Violence recording (53 min)
Tenants Victoria- COVID-19 Guide for Renters
AHURI- Renting in the time of COVID
Tenants Victoria- A step by step guide to Rent Reductions and Rent Relief Grants
Justice Connect- Dear Landlord
SHS training calendar for Semester Two 
MARAM practice guides and resources
MH Vic- Semester Two training calendar
Consumer Affairs Victoria- Coronavirus (COVID-19) and your rights
FEED Geelong- Where can I get emergency food in Geelong
Consumer Affairs Victoria- Changes to the Residential Tenancies Act resources for community organisations

Webinars:

CHIA Vic- 17^th December- What do you need to successfully participate in the Big Housing  Build?

Conferences/Grants/Submissions:

Australian Parliament- October 2020-Inquiry into Homelessness Interim report
CHIA Vic Conference the 27^th & 28^th May, 2021
Victorian Youth Strategy – Engage Victoria-opened 1^st October

AHURI Homelessness Conference 2020 recordings of presentations

30^th November Political Panel: Homelessness in Australia moderated by Fran Kelly
1^st December
–         Lockdown- Homelessness and domestic and family violence in the context of COVID- 19
–         Fires, floods and the future: Creating homelessness responses that break the link between ecological crises and homelessness
–         Research launch - Ending homelessness in Australia: A redesigned homelessness services system
–         The Exchange - Youth Homelessness - “But guess what? We are the future.”
–         Plenary: Building back better: Can the crisis become an opportunity to reduce homelessness
–         Towards Zero – what’s working to reduce rough sleeping?
–         What is the impact of “better” quality crisis accommodation? The COVID switch away from crowded accommodation
–         Without a home and without safe care – What are the solutions for children who experience homelessness alone

2^nd December
-          Lunchtime Presentation: the Australian Bureau of Statistics - "Every Stat tells a Story"
-          Plenary: Indigenous Homelessness in COVID-19: what have we learnt
-          Beyond the hotspots: regional and remote
-          Trying to make Housing First not people last
-          The Exchange - Journey to Social Inclusion (J2SI), Ending Chronic Homelessness in Australia
-          A generation of impact: what will young people face
-          It’s support but not as we know it: supportive accommodation
-          The COVID-19 lens – overcrowding in social housing
-          Plenary: Capturing the public’s imagination