Clients accessing services in 1 year only
Of the 86,400 older clients accessing services from SHS agencies between 2013–14 and 2017–18, the majority (68% or around 59,000 clients) received services in a single year only (Figure 13). More females (34,400 or 58% clients) accessed services in 1 year than males (24,600 or 42%), however, male service intensity was higher than females. Males received a median of 14 days of support and an average of 8 nights of accommodation per client compared with females (9 days and 4 nights) (Supplementary table 11).
Figures for this client group can be found in the section 'All clients between 2013–14 to 2017–18'.
Age profile
Of older SHS clients receiving services in a single year between 2013–14 and 2017–18:
- Most were aged 55–64 (61%); with 27% of the clients aged 65–74 and 12% aged 75 and over.
- For each of the 3 age groups (55–64, 65–74 and 75 and over), around 3 in 5 were female.
State/territory
Of the 59,000 clients accessing services in a single year between 2013–14 and 2017–18, the largest number of clients accessed services in Victoria (29,500) followed by New South Wales (12,200) and Queensland (7,000) (Figure 14). Males accessed a higher average number of nights of accommodation than females across all states and territories with the exception of the Australian Capital Territory where males received 8 nights compared with females who received 11 nights of accommodation per client.
Of older SHS clients receiving services in a single year between 2013–14 and 2017–18, clients in:
- The Australian Capital Territory received the highest median number of days of support per client (50 days) compared with Western Australia, which had the lowest (3).
- The Northern Territory had the highest average number of nights of accommodation (19 nights) per client followed by Queensland (11).
Vulnerability
For the 59,000 older clients who assessed services in 1 year only between 2013–14 and 2017–18, over half did not report experiencing a vulnerability (52% or 30,800). The most common vulnerability experienced was family and domestic violence only, reported by 1 in 5 clients (22% or around 13,000) (Figure 15). Considering differences between male and female clients in this group:
- More males (68% or 16,600 clients) than females (41% or 14,200) reported no vulnerability.
- Females (35%) were more likely to report family and domestic violence only than males (3%). Their service use was less than others experiencing vulnerabilities, with an average of 1 support period and an average of 2 nights of accommodation.
- Around 1 in 5 (19% of males) males reported mental health issues only, compared with 13% of females.
Males who reported experiencing 3 vulnerabilities were more intense users of services than females with all 3 vulnerabilities. Males received a median of 52 days of support and an average of 23 nights of accommodation per client compared with females (42 days and 20 nights) (Supplementary table 13).
Disability
Of the 6,500 total older clients who reported that they always or sometimes needed assistance with self–care, mobility and communication, around half (49%) accessed services in 1 year only between 2013–14 and 2017–18 (Figure 16). The proportion of people with disability in this group, was higher than for the other groups. There were similar proportions of male (49%) and female (51%) clients with disability, and they mostly received similar levels of support (Supplementary table 14).