Homelessness
The homeless population, whom Anchor supports, includes three key groups:
People without conventional accommodation (primary homelessness) including:
- people living on the streets
- sleeping in parks
- squatting in derelict buildings
- or using cars or railway carriages for example, for temporary shelter.
People who move frequently from one form of temporary shelter to another (secondary homelessness) including:
- people using emergency accommodation (such as hostels for the homeless or night shelters
-
teenagers staying in youth refuges
-
women and children escaping domestic violence (staying in women's refuges)
-
people residing temporarily with other families (because they have no accommodation on their own)
-
those using boarding houses on an occasional or intermittent basis.
People who live in boarding houses on a medium to long-term basis (tertiary homelessness)
- Residents of private boarding houses do not have a separate bedroom and living room. They do not have their own kitchen and bathroom facilities; their accommodation is not self-contained and they do not have security of tenure provided by a lease.
Developed by Chamberlain and Mackenzie (1992), as used by the
Australian Bureau of Statistics
Anchor Community Care has several support teams for different client groups including:
Crisis Response Team
As part of the Homelessness Front Door initiative in the Eastern Region, Anchor provides crisis response to individuals and families experiencing an episode of housing crisis.
Initially, the Intake Team offer assistance to meet the immediate needs of clients who are either homeless or at risk of homelessness including assessment, advocacy, resources, information and referral services. The Crisis Response Team also provides limited support to individuals and families being assisted financially in emergency accommodation with material aid.
Youth Support Team
The Youth Support Team assists young people aged 15-25 who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, to obtain safe affordable housing.
The program offers supported accommodation and outreach support to young people through the provision of information, resources and practical assistance that empowers them towards greater self-sufficiency and independence.
The team also participates in several community development projects aimed at educating and equipping young people with information, resources and skills.
A primary example is the Realities of Living Out of Home project run in schools in the City of Knox and the Shire of Yarra Ranges to years 9-12 students to give them realistic information about the difficulties of living away from home.
The Youth Team also co-ordinates a Lead Tenant Program. The aim of the Lead Tenant Program is to provide a safe, stable, caring and supportive living environment where young people are able to practise independent living in a shared household and assist the young person in transition to an independent living arrangement.
A Lead Tenant is a live-in volunteer, whose primary role is to enable a supportive environment for a household of young people. Lead Tenant programs assist young people to move towards adult independent living.
The volunteer Lead Tenant(s) live rent-free. They are not paid workers. Their role is primarily to provide general direction, encouragement and support within the household, predominantly by example.
The Family Reconciliation Program
The Family Reconciliation Program supports individuals and families who are experiencing family breakdown in any number of forms. Anchor has a Family Therapist who works with individuals and families experiencing breakdown or conflict, especially where their housing is at risk. The therapist also refers individuals and families to private therapists through a brokerage model to cover the cost of private counseling.
Our Family Therapist is also closely involved in the local community through schools, community groups and community development work.
The Adult & Front Door Team
This Team works with single adults and families who are homeless or at risk of experiencing homelessness to secure safe and affordable accommodation.
The program offers support to transitional accommodation. The program also offers outreach support to individuals and families through the provision of information, resources and practical assistance that empowers them towards more self-sufficiency and independence. The aim of this program is to assist people to access and maintain safe, stable and affordable housing.
The team also participates in several community development projects aimed at educating and equipping individuals and families with information, resources and skills.
A key example of this work is the Launching Recreation in the Outer East initiative, which brings subsidised recreational opportunities to our client base in the outer eastern region of the Melbourne. Support for this initiative is provided primarily by RecLink Australia.
Outreach Support for Families and Single Adults
A member of the Family / Front Door Team provides housing information and referral services into Healesville and the Yarra Valley - more remote areas of the outer eastern region of Melbourne. The team member is also located at these sites three days per week.
This worker also provides access to housing establishment funds to assist eligible clients with rent in advance, rental arrears, removal costs and the purchase of a refrigerator.
Anchor is also encouraging the development of network groups in the Shire of Yarra Ranges to be better able to support and assist people facing housing crisis in this part of the EMR.
For more information about Anchor Community Care and ways to help and volunteer, please telephone 61-3-9760-6400 or email admin@anchor.org.au
