Homelessness, the 'housing first' approach and the creation of 'home'

Homelessness is a severe and persistent feature of Australian society. Historically, homelessness was understood to be the result of personal failings and policy responses were largely focused on managing homelessness, including the provision of welfare services and temporary accommodation. However, since the 1980s there has been greater recognition of the structural aspects of homelessness and acknowledgement of the diversity of how homelessness was conceptualised and approached in the policy arena, the Australian Government (2008) released the first White Paper on Homelessness: The Road Home. Optimistically, the Rudd Government undertook to 'halve homelessness by 2020' (Australian Government 2008: viii). However, in the years that have followed the announcement of this ambitious target, homelessness grew by 17 per cent between 2006 and 2011(ABS 2012b). Currently there are more than 105,000 people experiencing homelessness in Australia (ABS 2012b).