Media release – Shelter Tas and the Hobart Women’s Shelter, 15 March 2024
Safety of Tasmanian women and children at risk due to housing crisis
ShterShelter Tas and the Hobart Women’s Shelter are calling on all parties and candidates in the state election to take a strong stance on addressing the housing and homelessness crisis in Tasmania, particularly for women and children who have experienced trauma and are most vulnerable to housing shortage.
The number of homeless Tasmanian women has grown by more than 50% since 2016. On average, across Tasmania 27 women per day are unable to access the emergency accommodation they need to feel safe.
“It is alarming that most of the women seeking crisis support (67%) have children in their care,” Shelter Tas CEO, Pattie Chugg said.
Domestic and family violence is the leading cause of homelessness for women, with 45% of all women and girls seeking crisis accommodation identifying family and domestic violence as a major cause.
Each year an estimated 933 Tasmanian women are returning to a violent partner or are becoming homeless after experiencing family violence.
“Housing insecurity and homelessness prevent women from achieving safety for themselves and their children. Lack of access to safe housing is an enormous hurdle that prevents many women from escaping violence,” Hobart Women’s Shelter CEO, Janet Saunders said.
Ms Saunders also said that “Of the 1,182 individual women and children seeking accommodation from Hobart Women’s Shelter last year, 943 were turned away due to a lack of space – this is 8 out of 10. 60% of women and children sought help from the Hobart Women’s Shelter for family violence reasons, a 13% increase since 2021.”
A recent report – Somewhere to go: meeting the housing needs of women and children in Tasmania – commissioned by Shelter Tas and the Hobart Women’s Shelter and funded by Homes Tasmania, found that Tasmania has the highest rate in Australia of women with children seeking homelessness support. Tasmania had over 6 times the national rate of women being turned away from crisis accommodation in 2021-2022. It is estimated that Tasmania needs an additional 4,000 homes to meet women’s needs, two-thirds of which need to be multiple-bedroom homes to support women with children.
Increasing hardship for women and children is of real concern in a state such as Tasmania, with lower household income levels and so many people relying on the private rental market for a roof over their heads. Lack of safe and secure accommodation creates long term trauma, especially for children, which necessitates increased government investment in education and health services, particularly mental health supports.
“Many low-income earners must make impossible choices between essentials, such as food and heating, or having a home. The commitment by the Tasmanian Government in recent years to increase investment in social and community housing is welcome, but more is needed to arrest and reverse Tasmania’s housing crisis,” Ms Chugg said.
“Increasing the supply of social and affordable housing is an investment in the future health and wellbeing of all Tasmanians. We must make sure we give everyone, especially women and children, the best possible chance to participate successfully in our society,” Ms Chugg said.
Shelter Tas and the Hobart Women’s Shelter urge all parties and candidates to place housing at the centre of their policymaking and to support building more homes for women and children escaping family violence. The homes recently completed by Hobart Women’s Shelter have set a benchmark for innovative design based on trauma-informed design principles. This project incorporated consultation with women with lived experience of violence and homelessness to create homes that are uniquely designed to ensure safety, respect and connection to community.
Both organisations are seeking a commitment for social and affordable rental homes to become at least 10% of all dwellings in Tasmania (currently 6.4%), as well as increasing safe and secure housing options for women and children by creating an additional 4,000 homes, with around two thirds of these being multiple-bedroom dwellings.
Supporting documents can be found on the Shelter Tas website – www.sheltertas.org.au:
