Indigenous homelessness 003-06010070

In line with a zero tolerance approach to harm of children, if a staff member in the course of their duties observes behaviour, which raises concerns about a child or young person's safety, Services Australia sets out specific steps that must be taken. Follow the agency’s Risk Identification and Reporting model when identifying and responding to child safety concerns. See, Risk identification and management of threats to the safety or welfare of a child for more details of this model and the agency’s commitment to the safety of children and young people.

Homelessness in the Indigenous context is complex and multidimensional. Most definitions of homelessness are based on the non-Indigenous concept of house and home as a physical entity.

However, Indigenous concepts of home include a spiritual aspect. An Indigenous person may apply the concept of ‘home’ to a place or set of places, none of which involves conventional accommodation.

This includes a sense of belonging or acceptance in an area. Indigenous people may not see themselves as homeless, as long as their connections to their home place and community are still intact. Many traditional and older Indigenous people prefer, as a lifestyle choice, to live in accommodation, which is considered in the mainstream context to be substandard.

There are five distinct categories of Indigenous Homelessness outlined in this procedure:

• Lack of access to stable shelter
• Spiritual forms of homelessness
• Over-crowding
• Relocation and transient homelessness
• Leaving an unsafe or unstable home

While Indigenous Australians may have similar contributing factors to homelessness as other Australians, it is important to be aware of the extent to which the above factors affect Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Indigenous Australians in remote, rural and urban areas have varied levels of social and economic disadvantage, which will impact upon the extent and nature of their homelessness.