Homelessness

This research looks at public health responses to homelessness during the COVID emergency in Australia. It identifies barriers, adaptations and lessons learned from increased teamwork between public health and homelessness sectors. It investigates how these partnerships formed and how they can continue with ongoing adequate funding, staffing and logistical support.
This paper examines the relationship between housing assistance and youth offending in New Zealand (NZ). Using the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), we established three cohorts of youth aged 14–24 who were part of households that received the Emergency Housing Special Needs Grant (EHSNG), lived in public housing, or received the Accommodation Supplement (AS) between 2016 and 2022. We found that offending decreased significantly among young people living in public housing or receiving the AS compared with the general population. However, reductions were not significant among those receiving EHSNGs, highlighting the importance of stable housing assistance on reducing youth offending.
In a study on mothers’ experiences of a residential parenting and drug rehabilitation programme, housing was consistently discussed as crucial to recovery in terms of the ability of wāhine (women) to envision a secure future.
In State of the Housing System 2025, the National Housing Supply and Affordability Council (NHSAC or ‘the Council’) presents a sobering view of Australia’s housing system. The deterioration of housing affordability and low levels of new housing supply in 2024 are particularly stark reminders that Australia is still very much in a housing crisis that has been decades in the making.
In 2016, the Ministry of Social Development (MSD) of New Zealand introduced the Emergency Housing Special Needs Grant (EHSNG) to address urgent accommodation needs. This study utilised the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI) to analyse the demographics and government service utilisation of EHSNG recipients, including all household members, unlike previous reports that focused only on the main applicant.
Using baseline data from a study with suicidal youth experiencing homelessness, correlation and mediation analyses were completed to determine the associations between cognitive distortions, problem-solving, depressive symptoms, and suicidal ideation.
This qualitative study explores the perceptions of people experiencing chronic homelessness of mental health, mental health services, and any perceived barriers or facilitators to access.
Little research compares the financial costs of alternative and traditional shelter models. The research team analyzed cost data for 13 alternative shelters and nine traditional congregate shelters in Portland, Oregon.