News

12^th February 2013     PRIORITISE WELFARE FOR SINGLES: ACOSS
by Australian Associated Press

THE federal government can afford to increase welfare payments to singles, the Australian Council of Social Services says. more

12^th February 2013     ANUHD APPLAUDS COMENCMENT OF WORK ON WESTERN SYDNEY HOMES
by Australian Network for Universal Housing Design

The Australian Network for Universal Housing Design (ANUHD) applauds Senator Jan Mc Lucas Parliamentary Secretary for Disability on the beginning of work on the construction of homes in western Sydney that provide high level accessibility standard unit accommodation for people with a disability. more

12^th February 2013     STREAT UPDATE: CLASS 7 AND MELBOURNE CENTRAL IS BACK
by STREAT

This update includes information in regards to the commencement of Class 7; their new Melbourne Central site re-opening; a cooking master class at Chadstone on Feb 15th, 16th or 17th and Barefoot Bowling is back by popular demand on Thurs 21st Feb. more

12^th February 2013     HALF-MEASURES KEEP HOMELESS ON OUTER
by Stephanie Zevenbergen - Hume Weekly

THERE is no end in sight for Hume's homeless population following a damning Auditor-General report that says measures to addresses homelessness across the state have not been effective. more

12^th February 2013     HOMELESS FIND A PLACE TO CALL HOME, ON TWITTER
by Vince Chadwick - The Age

IT'S the home that Twitter built. Joe Brown, 29, and his partner Ben Stevens, 23, were homeless when they came to Melbourne in January from Castlemaine. But after one month tweeting from the Homeless In Melbourne Twitter account the men, with their two cats in tow, had navigated crisis centres, raised the bond money for a two-bedroom unit in Reservoir, and furnished it with contributions from strangers. more

12^th February 2013     FLEXIBLE WORK FOR VIOLENCE VICTIMS HAILED
by Ben Schneiders and Daniel Hurst - The Sydney Morning Herald

Campaigners against domestic violence have hailed as a ''fantastic breakthrough'' a Gillard government move to give victims of domestic violence the right to request changes to their hours. more

11^th February 2013     PUBLIC HOUSING TOWERS TO STAY, MINISTER AFIRMS
by ALANA SCHETZER - Melbourne Times Weekly

HOUSING Minister Wendy Lovell has confirmed the Fitzroy and North Richmond public housing estate towers will not be demolished as she blamed a campaign of misinformation being spread about the redevelopments. more

11^th February 2013     KEEPING FAMILIES SAFE FROM VIOLENCE IN AUSTRALIAN FIRST
by The Victorian Minister for Community Services

An innovative program to address adolescent violence in the home has been announced today by Minister for Community Services Mary Wooldridge. more

10^th February 2013     WAVERLEY'S HOLMESGLEN TAFE TO HELP HOMELESS AND DISADVANTAGED YOUNG PEOPLE
by Angus Livingston - Waverley Leader

The State Government's Youth Foyer will open at Holmesglen TAFE in April with space for 40 homeless or disadvantaged young people, who will live there while studying. more

8^th February 2013     DVRCV TRAINING CALENDAR - JANUARY TO JUNE 2013
by Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria (DVRCV)

The Domestic Violence Resource Centre Victoria (DVRCV) January to June Calendar of training events, and the Registration Form for training are available now online. more

7^th February 2013     MEETING AUSTRALIA'S HOUSING CHALLENGES: NATIONAL SHELTER POLICY PLATFORM 2012
by National Shelter

We need a fairer housing system — and we want this in the spotlight in the lead-up to the federal election on September 14. In our policy platform, ‘Meeting housing challenges’, we’ve identified a range of solutions to tackle the four key housing challenges facing low-income Australians more

7^th February 2013     HAVEN SAYS HOMELESSNESS EFFORTS HARD TO QUANTIFY
by ABC News

A housing services leader is defending government efforts to reduce homelessness, despite criticisms being made in a new report. more

7^th February 2013     HOMELESSNESS AUDIT CRITICISES GOVT DEPARTMENTS
by Pro Bono Australia

A new report by Victoria’s Auditor-General into recent initiatives to tackle homelessness has criticised a number of government departments over their administration of the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness (NPAH) but praised Not for Profits delivering the programs. more

7^th February 2013     STUDY PROVIDES CLEARER PICTURE OF HOMELESSNESS
by THE HON MARK BUTLER MP - Minister for Housing and Homelessness

A ground-breaking study demonstrates the Gillard Government’s homelessness policies are working, showing a drop in homelessness among survey participants in an internationally recognised study conducted in Australia.  more

7^th February 2013     RECONNECTING YOUNG PEOPLE TO BREAK THE CYCLE OF HOMELESSNESS
by THE HON MARK BUTLER MP and THE HON MELISSA PARKE MP

The Gillard Government will invest $73 million over three years to help vulnerable young people break the cycle of homelessness. Minister for Housing and Homelessness Mark Butler said the funding will support more than 100 Reconnect services across Australia until June 2016.  more

6^th February 2013     ADDRESSING HOMELESSNESS: PARTNERSHIPS AND PLANS
by Victorian Auditor-General's Office

This Victorian Auditor-Genreal's report examined whether Victoria’s implementation of the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness (NPAH) and the Victorian Homelessness Action Plan 2011–2015 (VHAP) is effective in addressing homelessness. more

6^th February 2013     GAP IN VIC HOMELESS DATA: AUDITOR
by AAP - Courier Mail

ADVOCATES fear funding aimed at reducing homelessness is being jeopardised by the Victorian government's failure to evaluate its programs. more

6^th February 2013     HOMELESS WAIT 'YEARS' FOR PUBLIC HOUSING
by David Schout and Tara McGrath - Knox Weekly

General manager of homelessness services at UnitingCare Harrison, Mark Dixon, said public housing waiting lists had always been an issue that was now only intensifying. more

6^th February 2013     AUDITOR GENERAL’S REPORT TELLS TALE OF TWO GOVERNMENTS
by Victorian Government Minister for Housing Wendy Lovell

Minister for Housing Wendy Lovell has welcomed a new report by Victoria’s Auditor-General into recent initiatives to tackle homelessness. more

6^th February 2013     TERM 1, 2013: CALENDAR OF SUPPORT GROUPS IN THE NORTHERN METROPOLITAN REGION ADDRESSING FAMILY VIOLENCE, TRAUMA & DIFFICULT RELATIONSHIPS
by NIFVS

This calendar has been collated with information provided by community group work service providers. The aim of the calendar is to assist service providers to support women, children and men to access appropriate family violence support groups. A new calendar is produced to coincide with the school term and will include the most accurate information available. more