The PILCH Homeless Persons’ Legal Clinic provides free targeted legal, education and advocacy services to over 700 homeless Victorians each year.  Legal services are provided by pro bono lawyers at 13 crisis shelters, food programs and welfare agencies around Victoria on a weekly basis.  The PILCH Homeless Persons’ Legal Clinic also plays a leading role in national and state- based law reform and public policy activities, which are primarily focussed on promoting and protecting the right to housing and other fundamental human rights of people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.  In 2005 the Clinic was conferred with the National Human Rights Award in recognition of its work in promoting and protecting the rights of those that are marginalised and disadvantaged.

 The Homelessness and Human Rights Bulletin seeks to provide updates on programs and events, campaigns and advocacy, publications, research and international news in the area of homelessness and human rights. The Homelessness & Human Rights Bulletin is a must-read for people around Australia who are interested in:

• approaching homelessness in Australia as a human rights issue;
• using human rights and other rights/legal strategies to support people experiencing homelessness; and
• sharing information and collaborating in local, regional, state and territory-wide, and national initiatives that promote a rights-based approach to homelessness.

The Bulletin is intended to be a national publication. If you would like to contribute please email  hplc@pilch.org.au.

The HPLC extends its sympathies to those who have been affected by the Victorian Bushfires, which have wiped out towns and local communities. An estimated 5000 people have been left homeless by the fires, having lost their homes belongings and in some cases, loved ones, adding to the 105,000 Australians who experience homelessness on any given night. HPLC staff and volunteer lawyers have been working to assist those who have been displaced by the fires to resolve any legal issues they may have.

The response from Victorian community to the Bushfires has been rapid and overwhelming.  Individuals, community organizations, businesses and government have all pitched in to do what they can to assist the people who have been affected and displaced by the bushfires.  In particular, the Department of Human Services announced very shortly after the fires that it would be make immediately available 600 public housing units to those who had lost their homes in the fires.  This rapid response by the Department should be commended.  Of course it is absolutely crucial that people who have lost everything in the bushfires are given all the assistance they need to rebuild their lives.  In the process, however, we must not forget the over 20,000 people who were already experiencing homelessness before the devastating fires hit.  Many of these people have been homeless or in marginal housing for years, waiting for public housing to come up. The Government should be encouraged to extend a hand up to those affected by the bushfires, without leaving those who are already in need out in the cold.

PILCH is currently working with Victoria Legal Aid, the Federation of Community Legal Centres, the Law Institute of Victoria, The Victorian Bar and the Victoria Law Foundation to ensure an effective legal response to the crisis. People can call the bushfire legal help line on 1800 113 432, which currently operates between 8.45 am and 5.15 pm Monday to Friday.

Caroline Adler/Helen Arblaster, PILCH Homeless Persons' Legal Clinic

On Friday 13 February 2025 the $42 billion economic stimulus package passed the Senate after reservations by Independent Senator Nick Xenophon were resolved.

The Commonwealth Government’s $6.4 billion Social Housing Fund was announced as part of the stimulus package titled Nation Building and Jobs Plan. It is estimated that more than 20,000 dwellings may be constructed with these funds and, all going to plan, this infrastructure will begin to make a dint on homelessness in Australia.

Of $6.4 billion announced, Victoria will receive approximately $1.5 billion dollars for the creation of social housing. The Commonwealth has indicated that the State Government will have the ability to draw on these funds in responding to social housing needs in bushfire affected areas. It is thought that almost 2000 houses were destroyed in the recent Victorian bushfires and that as many as 7000 people have been displaced as a result. Reports in the media indicate the rebuild will not come cheap with new stringent building regulations challenging, in particular, homeowners who have been caught under insured or with no insurance at all. 

In these circumstances, it may be that for people experiencing long-term homelessness in Victoria, the announcement of $1.5 billion extra funding is less exciting than first thought. Arguably, funding provided by the current stimulus package should address pre-existing Australian homelessness, while the terrible toll ofthe Victorian bushfires warrants separate and substantial financial support. 

Chris Povey, Lawyer/Policy Officer, PILCH Homeless Persons' Legal Clinic

The City of Sydney “Street Count” – February 2009

On 17 February 2009, the City of Sydney conducted its bi-annual Street Count. One hundred and seventy volunteers counted the number of people sleeping rough between 1am and 3am on that night. There were 332 people found to be sleeping rough in the preliminary count. This count will be supplemented by an audit of homelessness hostel beds and a count undertaken by State Rail of homeless persons in stations and on trains. A full report including the final count will be released in March 2009 by the City of Sydney.

This was the second such count to be undertaken by the City of Sydney’s Homelessness Unit, with the first having taken place in August 2008. In the August 2008 count 354 people were found to be sleeping rough. 

On 3 June 2008, the City of Melbourne undertook its first count of people sleeping rough in that city. Between 5.30am and 8.30am, 127 volunteers walked through 20% of the suburbs comprising the City of Melbourne and counted a total of 112 people, including 18 people who had attended a number of key service centres on the same day. Of the 55 people surveyed, 63% reported that they had been moving around for more than twelve months, leading the City of Melbourne to conclude that there was a serious problem of chronic homelessness within its municipality. The Age reported that the City of Melbourne have more counts planned in order to take into account the differences in the number of people sleeping rough in winter and summer.

For more information:
 The Sydney Morning Herald, 'Midnight census tallies city's rough sleepers', 17 February 2025
 
 The Age, 'Doing it tough: Sleeping out by night in the the city', 14 October 2024

 City of Sydney Street Count 2009

 City of Melbourne Street Count 2008

Rental premises: Time for minimum standards
In 2008 the Homeless Persons Legal Clinic (HPLC), the Tenants Union of Victoria (TUV) and the Council to Homeless Persons (CHP) applied for, and were granted, standing in relation to the coronial inquest into the deaths of Leigh Sinclair and Christopher Giorgi.

Leigh Sinclair and Christopher Giorgi died when the Brunswick rooming house in which they were staying caught fire in the early hours of the morning on 1 October 2006. During the inquest the HPLC, TUV and CHP have sought to highlight sub-standard fire-safety and the need for regulatory improvement and accountability in rooming house regulation.

This issue was raised again recently when the ABC reported that welfare groups are demanding the Victorian Government set minimum standards for rented housing. David Imber of the Victorian Council of Social Service (VCOSS) told the ABC that ‘We’re not talking about 5-star amenities or appliances, we think it’s time the Government helped people at the lower end of the market by legislating for minimal rental standards.’

When we contacted Mr Imber, he stated that there has recently been media interest in this issue and that VCOSS intends to prepare a paper on minimum renting standards. Given the current interest in building standards following Victorian bushfires and the reports of large numbers of tenants being packed into ever-smaller premises, it seemsnow is the time for change.

  ABC News, 'Minimum rental standards urged', 23 February 2025

 HPLC Media Release, Coalition to be heard at inquest into rooming house fire, 20 October 2024

 The Age, '$155-a-week Lalor 'shack' highlights rental crisis'by Jason Dowling 25 June 2024

 Move On Powers: HPLC Submission

'Bad move' is a submission by the the PILCH Homeless Persons’ Legal Clinic lodged in response to Frankston City’s proposed General (Amendment) Local Law 2008 No 15 which sought to expand the move on powers of authorised officers. The proposed amendments grant authorised officers the power to direct persons to leave public places and not return for 24 hours in circumstances where the authorised officer considers the person is behaving in a manner as to:

1. Interfere with another person’s reasonable use and enjoyment of that public place or road;
2. endanger or be likely to endanger health, life or property; or
3. destroy, damage or interfere with any building, fence, property improvements, sign, structure, chattel, tree, shrub or plants, garden bed, bird or animal or bird/animal habitat thereon. 

The Frankston City Council has invited the Clinic to make further oral submissions in March.

Mental Health Act 1986 (Vic) Review Submission

In December 2008 a review of the Mental Health Act 1986 (Vic) was announced. On 27 February 2025 the Homeless Persons’ Legal Clinic (HPLC) provided its response to the consultation with the generous assistance of the Allens Arthur Robinson. The HPLC submission seeks to draw attention to the comprehensive linkages between homelessness and mental health disorders and is informed by several detailed case studies drawn from clients of the clinic. The response draws particular attention to the ways in which homeless people are disadvantaged by their circumstances in relation to involuntary treatment. For a homeless person or someone marginally housed in a rooming house the absence of appropriate and secure housing may mean the least restrictive treatment option is as an involuntary inpatient. While acknowledging the consultation explicitly relates to the Mental Health Act,our analysis of international human rights obligations and the undeniable between homelessness and mental disorder leads to the incontrovertible conclusion that homeless people with a mental disorder must be housed.

Bushfire Housing website

The Bushfire Housing website seeks to address accommodation issues for those made homeless by the bushfires. The website connects ‘Hosts’ – those able to offer accommodation, with ‘Guests’ – those seeking accommodation. Hosts are required to register with the site and will receive an email when someone expresses interest in their premises.

In the ‘Moving forward’ section, the site explains that ‘Hosts and Guests should use their common sense and discretion when undertaking to negotiate suitable accommodation options with each other.’ The site contains an ‘Occupancy Agreement’ useful to parties in negotiation. It may be that many offers of accommodation made in response to the Bushfire crisis will not constitute a tenancy as no rent will be payable and Guests will be occupying premises with the landlord. Nonetheless, where rent is charged, an ‘Occupancy Agreement’ may provide a useful guide as to terms of any license granted by Host to the Guest.

 http://bushfirehousing.org/

Employment Opportunity
Principal Solicitor - Seniors Rights Victoria

Seniors Rights Victoria has been established as the Victorian Government's primary response to Elder Abuse in the community. Jointly funded by the Department of Planning and Community Development and Victorian Legal Aid, this multidisciplinary service provides information, advocacy, and education, as well as being a Community Legal Centre.  The position is located at the Council on the Ageing in Melbourne and works closely with partner agencies - PILCH, Eastern and Loddon-Campaspe CLCs.

The ideal candidate will

• provide leadership to the legal staff in a professional context, and in regard to legal and other issues affecting the client group,
• have knowledge or experience of working in the community sector, and an understanding of the issues affecting older clients,
• collaborate with the Centre Manager on all issues requiring legal input, particularly in addressing systemic issues affecting the client group, and
• have excellent communication skills and be able to communicate to all relevant stakeholders including community organisations, the private legal sector, the corporate sector and government.

This is a unique opportunity to join a committed team developing expertise in addressing elder abuse in particular and elder law in general. A Position Description can be found on  http://www.cotavic.org.au

Conferences

NIRWA Housing and Homelessness: Challenges for Immigrant and Refugee Women 28 March 2009, Sydney

ACOSS National Conference 2009 : Building a fair Australia in tough economic times 2-3 April 2009, Sydney NSW
This major annual event will examine the impact of the economic downturn on fairness in Australia. How will low income and disadvantaged Australians be affected and how should policymakers and the community and welfare sector respond? The annual ACOSS Conference brings together ACOSS members, community sector leaders, academics, non profit organisations and philanthropic organisations with an interest in social justice as well as federal and state government representatives. ACOSS is the peak council of the community services and welfare sector and the national voice for the needs of people affected by poverty and inequality.

Being homeless does not make you voteless

The Housing Legal Clinic has launched a campaign to encourage homeless people to enrol to vote AND A campaign to change the electoral law in South Australia, to enable homeless people to enrol to vote in state elections as itinerant electors.

Prior to the last federal election the enfranchisement of homeless people was a key challenge for organisations concerned with the alleviation and eradication of homelessness in South Australia. The importance of homeless people having a say is also, unsurprisingly, recognised by homeless people themselves.

Research undertaken by the PILCH Homeless Persons’ Legal Clinic in Victoria in March 2005 showed that at least 54 per cent of homeless people would like to enrol to vote at federal elections, notwithstanding many other significant issues and concerns regarding food, housing, health and so on.

In the lead up to the 2007 federal election HomelessnessSA, the Housing Legal Clinic and its volunteer lawyers from Minter Ellison produced an information kit for community organisations. Itinerant electors were able to enrol using a form enclosed in the information kit.

Changing the law in South Australia
In South Australia there is no provision in the Electoral Act for homeless people to enrol to vote as itinerant electors. All other Australian States have adopted the federal government model for state elections.

Homeless people in South Australia are excluded from what should be a democratic right of all South Australians to vote in state elections. Through the work of the Housing Legal Clinic homeless people have been given access to justice. Now, with assistance from volunteer lawyers at Minter Ellison, we plan to present a submission to the government of South Australia to provide homeless people with access to the right to vote.

Bill Manallack, Coordinator, Housing Legal Clinic SA

Forced eviction in Cambodia makes hundreds homeless
The Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions (COHRE) and the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Housing condemned the eviction of more than 400 families from the Dey Krahorm community in central Phnom Penh on 24 January 2009.  Over three hundred families have been rendered homeless as a result of the eviction. 

The 7NG company’s basis for the eviction is its claim to the land under a transaction it made with former community leaders which was concluded in 2005 without the knowledge of the community.  According to COHRE, this agreement was fraudulent and the eviction is illegal under Cambodian and international law.

COHRE’s Executive Director, Salih Booker, said that the eviction ‘is an attempt by 7NG to grab valuable land through fraud, threats and violence. The violence which accompanied the eviction is also of great concern, and contrary to human rights standards.’  The Special Rapporteur in her statement on the evictions considers that this is by no means an isolated case and describes the increase in forced evictions throughout Cambodia as ‘very alarming’.  

COHRE estimates that more than 150,000 Cambodian live under threat of forced eviction, including 70,000 in Phnom Penh.

Cambodia For Sale – Stop Evictions COHRE documentary film on evictions in Cambodia

Cambodia for Sale, filmed during 2008 by Nana Yuriko for COHRE, tells the story of some of these communities, through the eyes of the communities themselves, and the Cambodian and international activists working to support them. The documentary will be aired on SBS on Sunday 1 March at 8.30 pm. For a sneak preview, the trailer can be viewed online here: http://www.cohre.org/cambodiaforsale

Homelessness and the global financial crisis

A number of recently released reports reveal the extent of the impact of the global financial crisis on rates of homelessness in major developed countries. 

Shelter England (Shelter) reported earlier this month that the latest figures from the Council of Mortgage Lenders show that the number of homes repossessed in the U.K. last year rose by 54%.  More than 22 per cent of respondents (approximately 160,000 households) admit to struggling or falling behind with their monthly mortgage payments.  Five per cent of respondents (around 37,000 households) expect to be repossessed in the next six months.  Shelter chief executive Adam Sampson has described homeowners as being ‘stuck out on a limb with many facing unaffordable mortgages, negative equity and rising debt.’

The National Law Centre on Homelessness and Poverty (NLCHP) in the United States has created a new Wiki site to collect news stories and reports on increasing rates of homelessness in the US.  The NLCHP has begun compiling a database of statistics including rates of foreclosures and evictions, the increasing numbers of homeless students, the increasing use of shelter, and the increasing use of food stamps and soup kitchens.

Philip Mangano, the Executive Director of the United States Interagency Council on Homelessness, said he has received preliminary data from cities and organisations showing homelessness increases of as much as 20 percent. 

On 25 February 2009, the NLCHP also released a 110-page report entitled Without Just Cause: A 50-State Review of the (Lack of) Rights of Tenants in Foreclosure in collaboration with the National Low Income Housing Coalition which details the plight of renters who are evicted from houses as a result of foreclosures and are left without legal redress; according to the report, about 40% of families facing eviction due to foreclosure are renters and in the majority of states and landlords are not required to provide any notice to tenants. 

Settlement of long-running homelessness class action in New York City

A class-action lawsuit concerning homeless families’ access to shelter in New York City, which has been running for 25 years, was finally resolved in a settlement late last year. 

A settlement was reached between the Bloomberg mayoral administration and the Legal Aid Society counsel who has been representing the families. 

The original action was brought by Yvonne McCain in 1983 against the Department of Homeless Services alleging insufficient shelter provisions and a lack of standards governing shelter for homeless families with children.  The ongoing judicial review of the Department’s policies raised important issues about the justiciability of the content of the right to housing and the role of the judiciary in reviewing the executive’s policy decisions. 

For more information:

• Report of the settlement
• Press Release by Mayor Bloomberg, September 17 2008
• Peter Hellman’s account of the McCain action  

 Homelessness Law and Advocacy Resource Manual

The PILCH Homeless Persons’ Legal Clinic recently launched its Homelessness Law and Advocacy Resource Manual (Manual).  The Manual an online ‘one-stop shop’ that provides targeted and practical legal information and assistance to community lawyers and non-legal practitioners such as financial counsellors who work with people experiencing homelessness. 

It covers off on legal topics including:

• human rights and the Victorian Charter
• fines & infringements
• housing & tenancy
• social security
• discrimination
• credit & debt
• victims of crime

The Manual can be downloaded by single chapter and also contains a range of precedent letters and forms for the different areas of law. 

• PILCH Homeless Persons’ Legal Clinic, Victoria
• Australian Human Rights Commission: Housing, homelessness and human rights webpage
• Australian Lawyers for Human Rights
• Centre on Housing Rights and Evictions
• Council to Homeless Persons, Victoria 
• Homeless Persons’ Legal Service, NSW
• Homelessness Australia
• Homelessness Clearing House
• Housing Legal Clinic, South Australia
• Human Rights Law Resource Centre 
• National Coalition for the Homeless, USA
• National Homelessness Information Clearinghouse
• National Law Centre on Homelessness and Poverty
• National Policy and Advocacy Council on Homelessness, USA 
• NT Shelter
• QPILCH Homeless Persons’ Legal Clinic, Queensland
• Shelter Scotland, UK
• Shopfront Legal Service, NSW
• UN Special Rapporteur on the Right to Adequate Housing
• Urban Justice  Centre, USA
•  Youthlaw, Victoria

Who is on the List?
People on the list include Australian community workers, lawyers, journalists, academics, people who have experienced homelessness, and homelessness government and policy workers.

Who are the List Convenors?

The List Convenor is:

Caroline Adler

Manager/Principal Solicitor

PILCH Homeless Persons Legal Clinic



PO Box 16013

Melbourne 8007
hplc@pilch.org.au

Phone: (03) 8636 4408 
Fax: (03) 8636 4455

To JOIN the list visit www.pilch.org.au/subscribe

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Not without your express permission. Only the List Convenors have access to subscriber details.