I read this article to find out where the statistic of 105,000 homeless youths came from. In fact it does not refer to what we home owners would consider to be homeless - that is, those living on park benches and under bridges - but those sleeping on sofas at friends' places. The author has taken a statistic in the last census and arbitrarily doubled it then added a little, on the grounds that economic conditions are now worse. Perhaps, but double? What did the original stat refer to? Were those caught by the census question genuinely in distress or were they crashing at a mate's temporarily because they had shifted cities or had been thrown out by their girl/boyfriends, and had not moved into a new place, or whatever? I'm sure youth homelessness is a serious problem, but if the author wants to chuck around statistics then we should pick them up and examine them.

Great article George, youth homelessness is a growing problem and schools probably are one of the best places to address it. At a school I used to teach at we had quite a high rate of dropping out, we tried to follow up as much as possible and the reasons almost always revolved around a family crisis and the student being kicked out of home. Once they left school we didnt see them again. They may have found work but I doubt it if they werent able to maintain school attendance.

I don't know the %age of real homeless youths but I'm inclined to think that many are by choice simply because they don't like home discipline.
12 months national service would certainly go a long way towards reducing the incidence of homelessness.

Thanks for the comment Curmedgeon,
First of all its not 105,000 homeless young people - it was 44,547 out of a total homeless population of about 105,000. I tried to make this clear in the article and the references certainly do.

You have identified two of the major issues in homeless research/policy - defining "homelessness" and counting it.

The census might undercount homelessness but it is clearly the most effective survey of the Australian populace.

In terms of defining the term, I understand that many people only consider rough sleepers to be homeless, the ABS would define this as primary homelessness, but they also count secondary and tertiary homelessness. In my view people living in cars and moving from couch to couch are also in need - however we define their circumstances.

I refer in the article to "couch surfing" not a term I particularily like, but one that has gained some traction in the sector. Its pretty hard to stay in school or apply for jobs when you dont know where you will be sleeping that night.

Anyway, thanks again for the comment, much appreciated.

George Seymour

George - I take your point but, no, the article doesn't make the stats clear. You mention a figure of 105,000 and then another of 44,000 but without saying how they are related - except, now that I think of it, by implication in the article, but this still needs to be said explicitly. And the 105,000 figure remains unsourced.. ABS? If so what's the bureau's split of the stats?.. I think we also need to be careful about the split between those who society would consider to be in need - and thus requiring some sort of intervention - as opposed to those going through a bad patch. Sleeping away from home while still at school is never good, but I think we need to go through a few more steps to get a handle on the size of the problem.

I was actually thinking along the same lines as Curmudgeon.
I didn't think the number was explained the way George has now made clear. (Interestingly IIRC social welfare agencies tend to state that homelessness is both difficult to quantify and underreported - surprise)
I do, however, think that youth homelessness (however it is defined) is a significant problem, but I do also agree that, as Individual mentioned, SOME of it may be by choice through such factors as not wanting to succumb to parental discipline.
So, how do we address real need without making the prospect so 'attractive' as to encourage those who simply don't want to live by Mum and Dad's rules?

Curmudgeon,
44,576 is about 42% of 105,000 – that is what is being referred to in the subtitle and again in the second sentence “On any given night in Australia there are about 105,000 people homeless, almost half of whom are under the age of 25.”
The figures referred to are from Counting The Homeless 2006 by David MacKenzie and Chris Chamberlin. They use the data from the census and other sources. I would encourage anyone with an interest in the subject to read the report: http://www.aihw.gov.au/publications/index.cfm/title/10832
A media release form the ABS regarding the report is here: http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs%40.nsf/mediareleasesbyCatalogue/2B580BB732AD4B49CA2574B9001F81F3?OpenDocument
They go into significant detail about the definitions of homelessness used and the method of data collected. I am not aware of any similar report seeking to quantify the homeless population.
I agree it is important how we define homelessness – but I am sure we disagree on the scope of the term. Part of the theme of Youth Homelessness Matters Day is to highlight the less visible homelessness including people in homeless shelters, in derelict buildings and those couch surfing.
As with poverty, and even unemployment, there is never going to be a definition of homelessness that is agreed to by everyone.
Regarding the 44,576 homeless people under 25 years of age, the majority are not rough sleepers as I say in the article:
“When youth homelessness does break into the public consciousness it is often conceptualised in the form of sleeping on park benches and under bridges - but in reality the great majority are invisible; “couch surfing”. This is the more common form of homelessness in our communities - sleeping on the floor or a couch at a friend’s house, moving on when the relationship gets strained. While not sleeping rough, these young people also suffer from issues that flow from a lack of stable accommodation, and are themselves only an argument away from living on the streets.”

Sucked dry as a prune, as poor wine from the vine.

Very good article George Seymour. Please keep up the Good Work.

Homelessness requires a "whole" government and "whole" community business approach. You explained the disconnectiveness well.

What disturbs me most is the increasing state of "indifference" Australian citizens are adopting to a range of issues including those as critical as homelessness. I do not blame the Federal Government alone. I do blame the States and people at all local levels, including Councils for their oversight. Their degrees of selective compassion.

Every house over-priced either to buy or rent belong to someone who alongside others, impacts the market as it accumulates a inflated "whole" value. [How can these people live with themselves?]

Every person who addresses their own needs yet treats others with indifference is not a person I want to be.

I believe it is wrong to use HOUSING as an INVESTMENT option and tool to accumulate more wealth. I believe housing is a human right and it is the key when you consider Maslow's hierarchy of needs. Australia will out price itself shortly. It is a nation lazy when you consider the condition of poor infrastructure and the pressure it places on it's most vulnerable "consumers". It allows multi-nationals to blackmail the roost, as co-dependence leads us all souless over time, to a space of ruin....

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maslow's_hierarchy_of_needs

Market captialism is abusing the issue most that it is meant to resolve. Rather than getting improvement it is getting worse and worse and the exploitation we each promote - living with it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Exploitation

Who can be suprised when you get reports like this one.

http://ibtimes.com.au/articles/20100408/rich-income-growth-economy-poor.htm

"According to a joint study conducted by Australian National University economist Andrew Leigh and Oxford University's Tony Atkinson, the rich have been getting richer - a lot richer - since 1980."

We need a see change!

http://www.miacat.com/

maybe more funding rather than more counting is needed. if only during the Howard decade public housing hadn't been so severely reduced.

this heartless society will one day see a rise in criminality as a direct result of those years of neglect.

this heartless society will one day see a rise in criminality as a direct result of those years of neglect.
SHRODE,
it's happening now. However, it's not due to the Howard housing policies, it's due to the sick state of mind of those who relentlessly expect others to provide. I haven't been able to afford my own home but I don't expect anyone to give me one. What I am cranky about is that developers can buy up cheap land ad hoc whilst the ordinary citizen only hears about the available properties after they had been sold cheaply & are now available at much inflated cost.

agree with your omments Individual in relation to young firls teenage homelessnes 15-17yrs. Various underlying factors one of which have observed being aversion to discipline. Some homeless kids [small percentage] that I have dealt with have had legitimate reasons for becoming homeless due to an abominable home environment.

As Leigh pointed out in another thread there are some parents who are irresponsible in their behaviour which I believe escalates homelessness. However there are those kids and some not spoiled rotten who simply display an aversion to discipline. Nothing has changed there in most generations.

agree with your comments Individual in relation to young girls teenage homelessness 15-17yrs. Various underlying factors one of which have observed being aversion to discipline. Some homeless kids [small percentage] that I have dealt with have had legitimate reasons for becoming homeless due to an abominable home environment.

As Leigh pointed out in another thread there are some parents who are irresponsible in their behaviour which I believe escalates homelessness. However there are those kids and some not spoiled rotten who simply display an aversion to discipline. Nothing has changed there in most generations.

Let us be careful. Never let any fact get too close to our comfort zone.

We know that homelessness is with us and it is a problem of ours.

However, we can see it as not ours. After all, it is the homeless’ problem. Is it not?

Well done on getting the message about Youth Homelessness out there.

Some of the comments here show exactly why it is needed. People repeating Tony Abbot's ludicrious statement that some people choose to be homeless!

There are tons of events being organised across the country for the day highlighting the level of the problem in australia http://www.youthhomelessnessmatters.net/How_to_Make_Youth_Homelessness_Matter/About_YHMD/YHM_2010_Countdown_-_Everyone_Counts/Events/2010_events.aspx

The "homeless" youth in my contact over past couple of years:

(a) are not prepared to pay for their own accomodation ;

(b) are not prepared to submit to [IMHO reasonable] terms and conditions for tenancy;

(c) believe someone, somewhere will provide them with close to cost free accommodation, with negligible terms and conditions ;

(d) are not prepared to move where they can afford accommodation ;

(e) frequently told their choice to be homeless is someone else's fault - more victim culture ;

(f) blame someone else when evicted from their acccommodation for the damage they did and refuse to pay for repairs ;

(g) move in with someone else until they also evicted from their acccommodation as result damage done by these squatting tenants, when the squatter-tenant and leasee-tenant both refuse to pay for the repairs ;

(h) they believe their Centrelink monies are for their nice things, not for payment of rent or board ;

Whilst eventually most learn they have to make agreements, keep agreements, concerning payments and behavior, do NOT understand why these youth (and not so youthful) are constantly treated as victims, when they are predators...

What are reasonable rules before letting these predators stay in your home ?

.

Demand needs encourage supply so matches.

IF serious about reducing "Youth Homelessness" welfare professionals and their employers need take out covering leases, then sublet to their clients.

These welfare groups take on the risk, to recover costs back from their sub-tenant clients.

This way more landlords prepared agree to such header-leases.

IF government serious about resolving youth homelessness should provide such contracts, along with tax incentives to encourage construction of more single room units suited to these tenants.

Will you invest your retirement fund money towards such without secure contracts ?

These pseudo statistics conveniently ignore some of the "real" facts. When you do voluntary work on food vans & soup kitchens the clientele are invariably 90% middle aged men. Almost all of them after divorce & whose children are also, being neglected, abused by their, "alleged" single mothers.

Some of the older men i have met "sleeping rough" actually have a housing commission home. However some clever "social worker" moved a "homeless youth" into the unit, next door. So now they are being assaulted every other day for "drug money". Then, said "homeless youth's" mates get to squat in the empty unit next door & trash the place.

Some "deadbeat single mothers" who also have a housing commission home, go "on the run" from DOCS with their children.

100% of the few "homeless youth" you meet, at food vans, came from a "dysfunctional family", nearly always a deadbeat, single mother.

So you see the "Perpetual Motion Engine" HAS, in fact, already been invented by "Social Engineers" from the red/green/labour coalition, way back in the 1970's. You use taxpayers money in the "Anti Family" law court, to break homes, create poverty, neglect & abuse children. > this requires more "social workers" who train these broken children to fail at life, breed more broken children, > who need more "social workers" to spread more "fear & loathing" between the sexes, > who establish CSA formulas that encourage more "single mothers" to have one child only to 4 different fathers, > who need more "social workers" etc, etc, etc.

The "Perpetual Motion Engine" requires no energy or fuel at all as there is lots of "hot air" & taxpayers money, going into it, exponentially fuelling growth for 40 years now. Coming to a, "Murray Fields" or "Wadai" nearer to you every day now.

Criminologists say that crime stats across the modern western, English speaking, world were fairly consistent (per capita) throughout history until the 1970's. There has been a steady growth since then.

'On any given night in Australia there are about 105,000 people homeless, almost half of whom are under the age of 25.'

'n terms of defining the term, I understand that many people only consider rough sleepers to be homeless, the ABS would define this as primary homelessness, but they also count secondary and tertiary homelessness. In my view people living in cars and moving from couch to couch are also in need - however we define their circumstances.'

Oh, it's like the 'regretted sex' as rape stats. Take something terrible, expand the definition exponentially to increase the figures to make it a more 'impressive' problem.

I wonder why we aren't interested in how many men as opposed to women are on the streets, and why we aren't wearing cardboard boxes and having a cardboard box day...

To homeless Men; Australia says no!

I have been buying copies of the Big Issue from the same vendor for a number of months. Thinking of this article, I stopped to talk to him yesterday. He has been homeless on one level or other for a decade - in and out of shelters but until he was able to sell big issues he couldnt get work he said that even employment agencies werent able to help him without a permanent address. Its probably in other areas outside of housing that homeless people need help the most.

I'm not particularly bothered with any statistic that seeks to identify and weigh the degree of homelessness, or of any other social ill for that matter.
Neither do I blame those who lead a precarious life on the street for their own situation.
I notice some on this thread would do this.
I am heartily sick of this sanctimonious and self-righteous stuffing.

The reality is out there, just like the refugee "problem".

http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?article=10256#167987

The big issue is part of the problem, using, abusing homeless/disabled people to sell their sick communist propaganda.

http://forum.onlineopinion.com.au/thread.asp?article=10256#168277

The "some" people you complain about being "sanctimonious" are not blaming the homeless for their position but red/green/getup/labour coalition governments, whose loony, left policies have created the poverty they are immersed in, to justify an enormous welfare/social work industry.