❓ Details WA government's response to homelessness during the COVID-19 pandemic, including funding allocations, pilot projects like Hotels with Heart, and accommodation provisions for rough sleepers. Data limitations prevent precise figures on accommodation immediately following the pandemic.
AnsweredQoN 6179Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
In the context of COVID-19, can you please advise: (a) What additional strategies have been put in place to house rough sleepers during the pandemic; (b) How much additional funding has been provided to address homelessness, during the pandemic (including a breakdown of who received the funding and what project/s were funded); (c) How many rough sleepers have been provided with accommodation immediately following the pandemic (to date) and please provide a breakdown by accommodation type; and (d) Why the Hotels with Heart project was not expanded?
AnswerView source ↗
Answered
11 August 2020
Responded by
Minister for Community Services
Response time
9 days
(a) The Department of Communities (Communities) implemented the following pilot projects to accommodate rough sleepers during the pandemic:
(b) The total cost of the Hotels with Heart pilot at 30 June 2020 is $408,475.
An additional $227,109 was allocated to provide emergency accommodation at Woodman Point Recreation Camp. The funding was provided to Wungening Aboriginal Corporation, Rooforce Facility Services, EON Protection and Accolade Catering.
The State Government, through Lotterywest, has committed $159 million to a COVID-19 Relief Fund, of which up to $20 million is available for non-for-profit community sector organisations and local government authorities to provide crisis and emergency relief services to people experiencing hardship, including homelessness support.
A list of grant recipients, including the name of the organisation funded and the amount of money received, is available on the Lotterywest website.
On 15 July 2020, the State Government announced a total of $6.8 million in additional funding for homelessness services to support people experiencing or at risk of homelessness throughout COVID-19 and recovery. The funding details are as follows:
(c) At the conclusion of the Hotels with Heart pilot, Ruah Community Services advise that:
Ruah Community Services and Uniting West continue to work with clients who left the Hotels with Heart pilot early to help them secure safe and appropriate accommodation.
At the conclusion of the pilot project run at the Woodman Point Recreation Camp, a total of 47 people had been provided with emergency accommodation. A number of individuals ceased accessing the emergency accommodation while the Camp was in operation for a range of reasons, including health needs, non-adherence with the rules of the Camp, or self-selecting alternative accommodation arrangements.
At the closure of the Camp on 15 May 2020, a total of 11 people were still residing at the Camp and were assisted to transition into social housing across nine properties within the North Metropolitan, South Metropolitan and South East Metropolitan regions. Noongar Mia Mia is providing property and tenancy management services to these properties, with 12 months of support services being provided by Ruah Community Services.
Communities also funds community sector organisations to provide crisis and transitional accommodation and housing support services that help find longer term accommodation for people experiencing homelessness. These services have continued to operate and provide assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The total number of rough sleepers supported with accommodation immediately following the pandemic to date cannot be determined due to the delay in data accessibility of the relevant time period in question. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare provides quarterly data of the number of people accessing specialist homelessness services with the most current data available covering the period January to March 2020.
(d) Hotels with Heart was a four-week pilot project to test an emergency health response to protect vulnerable rough sleepers with underlying health issues from COVID-19. The pilot was a short-term emergency health response and not a long-term housing strategy. As the situation in Western Australia changed significantly during the pilot and widespread community transmission of COVID-19 did not eventuate, the pilot was discontinued at the end of the four weeks.
(b) The total cost of the Hotels with Heart pilot at 30 June 2020 is $408,475.
An additional $227,109 was allocated to provide emergency accommodation at Woodman Point Recreation Camp. The funding was provided to Wungening Aboriginal Corporation, Rooforce Facility Services, EON Protection and Accolade Catering.
The State Government, through Lotterywest, has committed $159 million to a COVID-19 Relief Fund, of which up to $20 million is available for non-for-profit community sector organisations and local government authorities to provide crisis and emergency relief services to people experiencing hardship, including homelessness support.
A list of grant recipients, including the name of the organisation funded and the amount of money received, is available on the Lotterywest website.
On 15 July 2020, the State Government announced a total of $6.8 million in additional funding for homelessness services to support people experiencing or at risk of homelessness throughout COVID-19 and recovery. The funding details are as follows:
(c) At the conclusion of the Hotels with Heart pilot, Ruah Community Services advise that:
Ruah Community Services and Uniting West continue to work with clients who left the Hotels with Heart pilot early to help them secure safe and appropriate accommodation.
At the conclusion of the pilot project run at the Woodman Point Recreation Camp, a total of 47 people had been provided with emergency accommodation. A number of individuals ceased accessing the emergency accommodation while the Camp was in operation for a range of reasons, including health needs, non-adherence with the rules of the Camp, or self-selecting alternative accommodation arrangements.
At the closure of the Camp on 15 May 2020, a total of 11 people were still residing at the Camp and were assisted to transition into social housing across nine properties within the North Metropolitan, South Metropolitan and South East Metropolitan regions. Noongar Mia Mia is providing property and tenancy management services to these properties, with 12 months of support services being provided by Ruah Community Services.
Communities also funds community sector organisations to provide crisis and transitional accommodation and housing support services that help find longer term accommodation for people experiencing homelessness. These services have continued to operate and provide assistance during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The total number of rough sleepers supported with accommodation immediately following the pandemic to date cannot be determined due to the delay in data accessibility of the relevant time period in question. The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare provides quarterly data of the number of people accessing specialist homelessness services with the most current data available covering the period January to March 2020.
(d) Hotels with Heart was a four-week pilot project to test an emergency health response to protect vulnerable rough sleepers with underlying health issues from COVID-19. The pilot was a short-term emergency health response and not a long-term housing strategy. As the situation in Western Australia changed significantly during the pilot and widespread community transmission of COVID-19 did not eventuate, the pilot was discontinued at the end of the four weeks.
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