Teen homelessness more than doubles
Stephen Lunn; 8/4/08
Teengage homelessness has doubled in the past two decades despite Australia’s record run of prosperity. Household wealth has trebled since 1996, but there are now 22,000 12- to 18-year-olds among the 100,000 homeless across the nation, up from an estimated 8500-10,800 in 1991. Young people cite a breakdown in their relationship with their parents or step-parents as the main reason for their homelessness, a new report reveals. Each night, one in two will secure an emergency accomodation bed; the others are left to the streets or “couch surfing” at a friend or acquaintance’s home.
See: http://www.news.com.au/story/0,23599,23504536-421,00.html?from=public_rss
A roof over every head
David Mackenzie and David Eldridge; 8/4/08
Nearly two decades after the landmark Our Homeless Children report, youth homelessness is worse than it was when commissioner Brian Burdekin conducted his inquiry. On the best statistical evidence, youth homelessness in Australia has doubled. Yet, over the same period Australia has experienced strong economic growth, falling unemployment and a generally stronger economic position. How can this be explained? Youth homelessness is the fallout from three decades of social and economic change. Major changes in family and social life include no-fault divorce and women entering the workforce. Single parenting is more common, casual and part-time work has grown at the expense of full-time permanent employment, and few young people move into the workforce as teenagers, remaining in the education system for longer.
See: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23502479-7583,00.html
Hope finds a home
8/4/08
The problems of child abuse, domestic violence, drug and alcohol dependency, unemployment, sub-standard education and housing are acute in many remote Aboriginal communities. But few non-Aboriginal Australians witness our great national shame first-hand. Homelessness, however, can literally appear on our doorstep. As the report of the National Youth Commission Inquiry into Youth Homeless being released today reveals, the number of homeless teenagers has doubled to 22,000 during the past 20 years, despite a record-breaking run of economic growth. More than 20 years after Bob Hawke’s reckless promise that no child would live in poverty by 1990, 27,000 children are living in state care. And despite the recommendations of the landmark 1989 Burdekin report on youth homelessness, at least 36,000 young people under 25 are homeless on any given night. At a time when the cost of rental accommodation is skyrocketing, the problem can only get worse.
See: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23502516-16382,00.html
Tags: Australia