Specialist homelessness services annual report 2024–25

In 2024–25, around 82,900 First Nations people received support from specialist homelessness services (SHS), making up almost one-third of all SHS clients (289,000). First Nations peoples have distinct cultural identities, histories and connections to Country that shape their experiences and the ways they engage with housing and homelessness services (Birdsall-Jones & Shaw 2008). First Nations clients were more likely to be living in social housing and often faced complex needs, including family and domestic violence, housing crisis and inadequate dwelling conditions.

Experiences of homelessness for First Nations clients cannot be separated from the enduring impacts of colonisation, including displacement from land, family separation, and the disruption of kinship and cultural practices (Birdsall-Jones & Shaw 2008; Habibis 2013), many of which contribute to difficulties in engaging with services (Memmott 2012). The evidence presented in this chapter should be read in the context of these historical and structural impacts, which remain integral to understanding current experiences of homelessness for First Nations people. 

See First Nations clients for more information on First Nations people, the policy landscape and government responses.

Client characteristics

To compare selected characteristics and experiences across the SHS client groups presented in this report, please refer to the Client group comparison visualisations.

Selected attributes

Of the 82,900 First Nations clients in 2024–25, most had experienced family and domestic violence (FDV) (41%), a current mental health issue (25%) and/or were a child or young person presenting alone to SHS agencies (16%) (Table CLIENTS.43). First Nations clients made up around one-third of SHS clients on care and protection orders (35% of the cohort of SHS clients), children and young people presenting alone (33%) and clients with problematic drug or alcohol use (34%).

Source: Specialist Homelessness Services Collection, Supplementary tables CLIENTS.43 and INDIGENOUS.1.

Notes:

1. Sum of client group types will not add to the total, as clients may be in more than one client group type.
2. For more information on children on care and protection orders, see the related chapter in this report.

Service use patterns

In 2024–25, First Nations SHS clients received a median of 61 days of support (an increase from 55 days in 2020–21), an average of 1.7 support periods per client, and a median of 21 nights of accommodation (Supplementary table CLIENTS.48).

New or returning clients

In 2024–25, around 71% of First Nations SHS clients were returning clients; higher than the proportion of returning non-Indigenous clients (60%) (Supplementary INDIGENOUS.7).

Client needs and main reason for assistance

Main reasons for seeking assistance

First Nations clients most commonly sought assistance from SHS agencies in 2024–25 for the following main reasons (Supplementary table INDIGENOUS.8):

• family and domestic violence (25% or 20,400 clients)
• housing crisis (17% or 13,600)
• inadequate or inappropriate dwelling conditions (14% or 11,500).

Services needed and provided

Services provided to clients range from the direct provision of accommodation, such as a bed in a shelter, to more specialised services such as counselling and legal support. These services are generally either provided to the client directly by the agency or the client is referred to another SHS agency or other specialised service. 

Services most commonly needed by First Nations clients during 2024–25 included (Figure INDIGENOUS.2, Supplementary table INDIGENOUS.3):

• short-term or emergency accommodation (50% or 41,500 clients), higher than the proportion of non-Indigenous clients (37%), with 27,100 clients provided this assistance
• long-term housing (38% or 31,800 clients), with 1,400 clients provided this assistance
• material aid/brokerage (36% or 30,000 clients), with 26,900 clients provided this assistance.

A higher proportion of First Nations clients needed general services compared with non-Indigenous clients, including meals (26% compared with 10%), laundry/shower facilities (19% compared with 6.2%), and transport (24% compared with 12%).

Housing situation and outcomes

This section highlights changes in clients’ housing situation between the start and end of support. That is, the place they were living before and after receiving assistance from a SHS agency. The data includes only clients who ceased receiving SHS support during the financial year and were no longer receiving ongoing support from a SHS agency. 

Specifically, it compares clients’ housing at the start of their first support period in 2024–25 with the end of their last support period in 2024–25. It does not capture changes that occurred during a support period, nor changes throughout the year between different support periods.

By the end of support, many First Nations clients had achieved or progressed towards a more stable housing situation. In particular, the number or proportion of clients ending support in public/community housing or private housing had increased compared with the start of support.

In 2024–25, among First Nations clients who were known to be experiencing homelessness at the start of support (around 28,600 clients) (Figure INDIGENOUS.3, Supplementary table INDIGENOUS.4):

• Around one-third (8,300 clients) were housed by the end of support; around one-sixth (4,800 clients) in public/community housing.
• Fewer were experiencing homelessness when support ended (18,000 clients), mostly either couch surfing (6,700 clients) or in short-term accommodation (7,200 clients). 
• Around 3,100 clients were in private housing at the end of support.

In 2024–25, among First Nations clients who were known to be at risk of homelessness at the start of support (26,900 clients):

• Most clients maintained their housing situation at the end of support; around 12,700 clients maintained public/community housing and around 7,800 clients maintained private housing.