Children and homelessness in Western Australia: As told by support workers and young people in WA

Abstract

In April, 2024, The Valuing Children Initiative launched the End Child Poverty campaign, calling on the Australian Government to legislate an end to child poverty.

To understand what was happening for children, the VCI held a unique workshop for people who work daily with children experiencing housing instability and homelessness in Western Australia. Held during Homelessness Week, 2024, with grant support from Shelter WA and Lotterywest, the workshop was an opportunity to understand child poverty in Western Australia from the very people who see it every day.

During the three-hour workshop, we spoke to 45 staff from 21 different organisations.

We asked the group; what happens for children and young people when housing is not in place? The following summaries were taken directly from the workshop activities and conversations between service workers and people with lived experience on the day, and then transcribed into the outputs in this document. This is what they see as the impacts of poverty and housing instability on children and young people.