Mission Australia has called on the NSW government to use the upcoming state Budget to address the housing and homelessness crisis.
The community housing and community services provider has called on the NSW government to deliver at least 5,000 new social homes annually over the next ten years to meet increased demand for safe housing.
Ben Carblis is Mission Australia Executive.
“With the waitlist for public and community housing continuing to grow and rents in the private sector increasing exponentially, there is a desperate need for new social and affordable homes,” Mr Carblis said.
Mission Australia has backed the call by Homelessness NSW and Shelter NSW to increase funding to specialist homelessness services by 20 percent.
“Our services across the state are seeing increased demand for emergency relief, including from people who are working fulltime,” Mr Carblis said.
“We know that people are struggling to find secure accommodation as rents continue to rise.”
Young people are especially vulnerable to homelessness and Mission Australia urges the government to invest in 10 Youth Foyers by 2030 to provide specialist housing to at-risk youth.
“The youth foyer model has been proven to help young people who are at risk of or experiencing homelessness by providing them with a stable base and support to purse education and employment opportunities on their path towards a brighter future,” Mr Carblis said.
