Skye Kakoschke-Moore (SA, Nick Xenophon Team) Share this | Hansard source

There is a new face of homelessness that I want to talk about tonight as Australia marks Homelessness Week. That face belongs to our mothers, daughters, sisters and aunties, to the six out of every 10 clients of homelessness services who are, in fact, women. According to data from the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare, females aged between 18 to 24 years continue to have the highest rate of service use at 244 women per 100,000—compared to 129 per 10,000 females in the Australian population receiving specialist homelessness services last financial year.

Imagine being 65 years or older and being homeless. That's the reality for 19 out of every 10,000 women who should instead be comfortable in their own home as they hit retirement age—not sleeping rough or in their car or in emergency accommodation each night. I could quote the statistics from every age bracket and continue to shock. The reality is shocking. It was important for me to see the faces and understand the stories behind what led to the situation for so many women.

In my home state of South Australia, we have a wonderful organisation called Catherine House which provides a range of services for women experiencing homelessness. Their programs and services are recovery oriented and include emergency accommodation, transitional housing, psychosocial support and supported accommodation for clients with mental health concerns. Key drivers of homelessness are well known and include domestic violence, poverty, poor relationships, drug and alcohol use, and mental health issues. As Mission Australia says:

Sometimes it affects people who have been managing well in life, but are thrown off course by a stressful episode like a relationship break-up, job loss or death or a loved one. This can set off a chain of events that leads to a person being without a place to live.

These experiences were certainly true of the women I met at Catherine House—women like Bianca. She came to Australia a couple of years ago because she thought she had found the love of her life. Her new husband promised to keep her safe and promised to protect her. Instead, he subjected her to abuse and neglect. Alone and in a foreign country, Bianca didn't know where to turn. She had no friends or family. She had no money. One day she collapsed at a train station. The mental and physical effects of what she had endured proved too much for her to bear alone. But thanks to the kindness of strangers, Bianca was put in touch with Catherine House, where she began to rebuild her life with the help of pro bono legal assistance and vocational education provided through this wonderful organisation.

Lisa was at the lowest point of her life when she walked through the door to Catherine House. She had enjoyed a successful career before a workplace injury ruled out any chances of her continuing on in her chosen field. When the WorkCover payments stopped, Lisa was forced to draw down on her savings. The money quickly ran out and she was put in the heart-wrenching position of having to sell her home. With nowhere to live, Lisa took house sitting jobs where she could. But when those jobs were not available, she slept in her car. Now that Lisa has found Catherine House, she is receiving support so that she can live independently once again.

Catherine House also saved Mary, a victim of domestic violence who only escaped from her abusive husband after she leapt from his moving vehicle and hid in a shop while he raged outside. For the first time in her adult life, Mary has a safe place to sleep each night. She is receiving counselling and support so she can piece her life back together. Sadly, stories like Bianca's, Lisa's and Mary's are not rare. In some respects, they're not even unusual. But, in every respect, they are heart breaking, and serve as a stark reminder that homelessness is a frightening prospect for thousands of women across Australia every single day.

The theme of this year's homelessness week is 'Action and Innovation'. It aims to highlight the many effective approaches specialist homelessness services have implemented to prevent and respond to homelessness. That's why I'm acknowledging the work of organisations like Catherine House, which is ensuring the stories of the women who walk through their doors do not end in sadness, loneliness or helplessness. These women are now empowered to write their own stories—stories based on support, hope and opportunity. It is the faces that belong to these stories that I ask you to remember this week.