Bunbury Houdsing Association

THE demographic of homelessness is changing as the Bunbury region's accommodation crisis deepens and snares people from increasingly different walks of life, according to a new report. bData collected by Agencies for South West Accommodation (ASWA) over the past 12 months shows disturbing housing trends beginning to emerge.

Children are being caught in the accommodation struggle like never before and working families are finding it difficult to afford a place to live. Women and their children are being forced to live with abusive partners because of a lack of housing options. Others are experiencing homelessness as they wait for their homes to be built.

"This is the first year we have seen people who are financially independent but experiencing homelessness because of lack of supply of affordable housing," ASWA CEO Ann Mills said. "Traditionally homelessness has been associated with mental health and dual diagnosis issues, family violence and relationship breakdown.

"While this is disturbing enough the number and diversity of people being caught in the housing squeeze has not been seen to this extent before."

About 1500 people in the Bunbury region needed some form of housing support last year but only 527 adults and 293 children received help. High levels of stress were experienced by a large portion of people with housing difficulties; in particular an unacceptably high number of children, some of whom had been placed in unsafe housing options due to the lack of choices.

Ms Mills said there had been examples of children having to sleep in cars and often found their normal schooling and social situations were disrupted.

"It creates a lot of uncertainty," Ms Mills said. Lengthy waiting lists for long term housing with little opportunity for people to move from crisis into long term housing was also part of the problem.

Ms Mills said it was important affordable housing options for Bunbury continued to be developed. She said policy and legislative changes were needed to ease the crisis, as well as a better planned approach between local councils, State Government and stakeholder groups.

The Greater Bunbury Affordable Housing Forum was established late last year in response to housing shortages and affordability issues in the Greater Bunbury Region

"I think it's absolutely critical," Ms Mills said, "and there doesn't seem to be any let up, there has to be a whole community approach."