"One step away": Youth homelessness soars in Melbourne's east

“I left my home because of fighting... it felt safer for me to be away from there at the time,” 20-year-old Ommy told the Eastern Melburnian.

“I was homeless in the city.

“Most of the time I wouldn’t have somewhere to go. I spent nights in the toilets at Crown and places like that.”

For 20-year-old Ommy, the choice between staying at home and living on the streets in the Melbourne CBD was not an easy one. But it was her last option.

Ommy has been among the number of eastern suburbs locals who have had to access services via Anchor Community Care, a not-for-profit organisation operating a range of foster care, homelessness support and youth support services from sites in Knox, Lilydale and Gippsland.

Anchor has put the call out for more support to help young people either sleeping rough or at risk of homelessness ahead of the Christmas period.

According to the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare’s 2022 to 2023 annual report into specialist homelessness services, of the 273,000 people who accessed homelessness services across Australia, 76,000 or nearly 30 per cent were under the age of 18.

Unfortunately, the highest rate of support requests came from those aged 15 to 17, with young women representing a rate 58.8 per cent higher than young men.

The number of Victorians at risk of homelessness has jumped by 67 per cent over six years to almost one million people, the biggest increase anywhere in Australia, according to a new Impact Economics and Policy report.

Anchor CEO Heidi Tucker told the Eastern Melburnian that demand has well surpassed their capacity to support everyone, but with the current state of the rental and housing market, a significant number of families and individuals were only “one step away from homelessness”.

The Impact Economics report recommended early intervention programs, significant additional funding to improve access to homelessness support services, expanding housing programs, and effective data collection as positive reforms.

Via support from the Lilydale Youth Foyer, Ommy was able to find safe and stable accommodation and be supported by workers who help build her independence, living skills and connections to community.

“I have amazing support,” she said.

“I’m proud of how far I’ve come.

“Anchor has changed my life and helped me achieve my goals and dreams.”