Hutt St Centre sees record annual demand as it marks World Homeless Day

Hutt St Centre recorded its highest number of people accessing its services last financial year, as the cost of living and housing crises continues to grow.

Releasing its annual data report for the 2023-24 financial year, Hutt St Centre welcomed its second consecutive record number of new clients presenting - with 1,009 people - an increase of 8 per cent on the 2022-23 financial year, and averaging 84 new people visiting each month.

Of the new clients presenting at Hutt St Centre, 35 per cent accessed a homeless service for the first time. New clients born overseas increased by 20 per cent.

There were an extra 78 new women accessing services – increasing by 26 per cent compared to the previous year, and 43 more new clients had a disability, a 40 per cent increase.

Hutt St Centre Chief Executive Officer Chris Burns said the record number of people seeking support on any one day has been broken several times throughout the year, the most recent in mid-September on a day when the sun was shining and there were no adverse weather conditions.

“More and more people need our help, whether it be for wholesome meals or a hot shower and a change of underwear – which they always had ready access to in the past when they were housed,” Mr Burns said.

“On World Homeless Day, we need to raise awareness that the cost of living and housing crises are not going away any time soon and demand will only increase as conditions persist. There’s less public and community housing available for us to house people in, and we’re battling to provide them with the essential services and support they need while waiting for housing to become available.”

Mr Burns welcomed recent State Government initiatives to address the housing crisis, and said Hutt St Centre was grateful for the government’s proactive approach to finding homes – despite there being very few available for people experiencing homelessness.

“For close to 50 per cent of the people who walk through Hutt St Centre’s doors, the immediate primary care support we provide is all they need to get back on track and reconnect with their community, family and friends and exit homelessness. This group of people are not counted in official Government data which starts counting at the point of referral to a case manager.”

Hutt St Centre’s Wellbeing Centre, which provides essential primary care services for people experiencing homelessness through to when they are eventually housed, is solely funded by the generosity of donors.

Other significant increases last financial year included:

• There were 40,504 visits to the Wellbeing Centre in 2023-24, increasing by 15 per cent compared to 2022-23, or 5,302 visits

• 2,125 clients accessed services at the Wellbeing Centre, increasing by 143 clients

• The Wellbeing Centre provided 24,203 instances of material aid (including clothing, sleeping bags, shoes), increasing by 86 per cent, or 11,189

• Hutt St Centre supported 2,077 nurse visits, a 26 per cent increase, or 480 additional visits compared to 2022-23

• Laundry use rose to 3,382, increasing by 24 per cent, or 665 uses

• Shower use increased by 16 per cent to 12,938, up 1,783 from 2022-23

• Hutt St Centre served 45,111 meals, a 16 per cent increase (or 6,190 more meals compared to 22-23)

• 777 new clients received a meal, averaging 65 new clients each month

• Hutt St Centre served 17,565 (14 per cent increase) breakfasts and 27,546 lunches (17 per cent increase)

Key declining stats:

• 21 fewer new clients had a criminal history, 37 per cent fewer than 2022-23

• 14 fewer new clients had a history of alcohol or other drug misuse, a 25 per cent decline

“We welcome every person who walks through our doors and we walk beside them on their journey to homefulness. On World Homeless Day, we ask the community to consider how they can also do their bit to support people who are struggling,” Mr Burns said.

“We’re all human and we all need to belong, so say hello and have a chat with the person you normally pass in the street, think about what more you could do to help the most vulnerable members of our community and please consider digging deep to donate to Hutt St Centre.”

For further inquiries, please contact Hughes PR: Verity Edwards on 0412 678 942.