Bridging the gap between homelessness and family violence services is a new report published by Council to Homeless Persons in partnership with Safe and Equal.
The Bridging The Gap project set out to understand the extent to which Victorian women, young people, and children who are experiencing family violence and homelessness are confronting barriers to crisis accommodation in the homelessness (SHS) and family violence (SFVS) service systems. Through a desk review, dual-sector survey, and consultations with practitioners and Lived Experience Experts, this project has established that the phenomenon is widespread.
One in four women, young people, and children who are experiencing family violence and homelessness who present to either the SHS or SFVS are ultimately referred out to the other sector before being referred back to their initial intake point without having received the crisis accommodation they seek.
This is the result of structural factors—including inadequate funding for services and chronic under-investment in social housing—and limited information sharing and understanding between the SHS and SFVS sectors of each other’s eligibility requirements and scope.
Bridging The Gap establishes an evidence base regarding the extent to which people experiencing homelessness and family violence are moving between these two sectors, explores existing guidelines and frameworks that affect the way the sectors intersect, provides an in-depth consultation report, and offers recommendations for change to enable improved outcomes for clients experiencing homelessness and family violence.