Homelessness
Media and commentary on our work protecting the rights of people experiencing or at risk of homelessness, and helping people avoid or exit homelessness.
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Man eating kebab on bench among 50 people fined in NSW and Victoria for violating coronavirus laws
From The Guardian: Jonathon Hunyor, the chief executive of the Public Interest Advocacy Centre in Sydney, said he was concerned about the potential for the laws to be used against vulnerable communities such as the homeless. While orders restricting public movement contain an exemption for homelessness, gatherings do not, something that could have negative consequences…
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HPLS on ABC Radio National’s The Law Report
On this week’s ABC Radio National Law Report hear PIAC’s Maddy Humphries, Roslyn Cook and Damo from StreetCare talking about the criminalisation of homelessness and the impact of COVID-19 on people sleeping rough.
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Early intervention makes a life-changing difference
Speaking at the Homelessness NSW Conference, PIAC’s Maddy Humphreys has emphasised the importance of intervening early to give young people facing homelessness the best chance of building a positive future. Introducing a panel discussion about young people and homelessness, Maddy, who is the StreetCare Project Officer at PIAC’s Homeless Persons’ Legal Service, reflected on her…
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Reducing homelessness: scheme helps 50,000 people out of debt
PIAC’s Homeless Persons’ Legal Service first recommended the Word Development Order Scheme in 2006, to reduce the impact of fines on people who are financially vulnerable.
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StreetCare endorses Homelessness NSW State Election Platform
PIAC’s consumer committee on homelessness, StreetCare, has welcomed Homelessness NSW’s State Election Platform 2018-2019. StreetCare Project Officer, Maddy Humphreys, said that the platform presented a clear set of priorities to prevent and address homelessness across the state. ‘StreetCare members, all of whom have lived experience of homelessness, overwhelmingly support the initiatives identified by Homelessness NSW,’…
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Welcome Maddy Humphreys
The Public Interest Advocacy Centre is very pleased to announce the appointment of Maddy Humphreys as our StreetCare Project Officer within the Homeless Persons’ Legal Service team. As someone with her own lived experience of homelessness, Maddy has been an active member of PIAC’s homelessness consumer advisory committee, StreetCare, for almost two years and represents StreetCare on the NSW Premier’s…
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Mental Health Matters Forum
Thanks to everyone who came along to our forum on mental health and mental illness on Tuesday evening. The Mental Health Matters event was the fourth in an annual series of public forums that PIAC organises with Sydney Grammar School to promote public discussion about public interest and social justice issues. Moderated by journalist and…
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Opinion: Public housing in NSW – a tragic game of musical chairs
By Dr Louis Schetzer, Senior Policy Officer in PIAC’s Homeless Persons’ Legal Service As a kid I intensely disliked the game musical chairs. There was something in the underlying premise of the game that offended my childhood sensibilities – a dozen or so excited children contesting a deliberately inadequate supply of chairs, with a backing…
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Homelessness in NSW up by 37% since 2011
Alarming new statistics on homelessness, released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics on Wednesday, reveal a sharp increase in homelessness in NSW in recent years, with a particularly worrying rise in the number of older women experiencing homelessness. PIAC’s Senior Policy Officer for Homelessness, Dr Louis Schetzer said that the figures, from the 2016 census,…
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Homeless women: #metoo and the need to look beyond rough sleepers
The recent City of Sydney Street Count found that the number of people sleeping rough in inner Sydney has decreased by 24 percent compared to the same time last year. That translates to 100 less people sleeping on the streets. In many respects, this is an extraordinary result – the largest reduction in rough sleeping…