Services provided and unmet need
Key findings and insights
In 2024–25:
- Around 3 in 5 SHS clients needed an accommodation service. Of these, half were provided with accommodation by the SHS agency, 1 in 7 (15%) were referred to another agency for support, while around 1 in 3 clients had their need unmet – that is, they were neither provided accommodation nor referred elsewhere for assistance.
- The need for short-term or emergency accommodation was unmet for around 1 in 3 (31%) SHS clients.
- The ability of agencies to provide specialist services was similar to previous years. Some types of specialised services, such as psychiatric services and drug/alcohol counselling were less commonly met, which may be because of the specialist skills required to provide these services or the limited availability of these services within the SHS agencies.
Throughout 2024–25, some people who sought assistance from SHS agencies did not receive all the services they needed – referred to as unmet need for services. There are many reasons for an agency not fully meeting a client’s needs. These can include limited resources, such as insufficient staff or available beds, or that the client needed a specialist service, such as counselling or legal support, that the agency was not set up to provide. Services are either provided to the client directly by the agency or the client is referred to another agency for support.
Clients receiving support from Specialist Homelessness Services (SHS) agencies often require a broad range of services. A client is recorded as having an unmet need for a specific service or assistance type when they are neither provided with that service nor referred to another agency for it during their support period.
Unmet need is distinct from unassisted requests, which refer to situations where a person seeks help from an SHS agency but does not become a client and therefore receives no assistance at the time of the request. See Unassisted requests for services.
Several data limitations may affect the accuracy and interpretation of unmet need for services data:
- Recurring needs and potential underestimation: Clients may experience the same need for a particular service multiple times within a support period or across multiple support periods during the financial year. However, if the service is provided (or a referral is made) at least once in that year, the SHSC records the need for that service as met. This approach may understate the true level of unmet need, as it does not account for other instances where the same service was required but neither provided or referred.
- Comparability issues: Caution should be used when comparing unmet need over time or across jurisdictions. Variance in service delivery models, data collection practices, and reporting requirements may influence results. See Technical notes about central intake services for more information.
Client need for accommodation and housing assistance services
In 2024–25, the need for short-term or emergency accommodation was unmet for almost 1 in 3 (31%) SHS clients.
Housing and accommodation services provided by agencies include support to:
- access short-term or emergency accommodation, medium-term/transitional accommodation and/or long-term housing
- sustain tenancy or prevent tenancy failure or eviction
- prevent foreclosures or for mortgage arrears.
Accommodation provision
In 2024–25, the most commonly needed support among SHS clients was accommodation, with 169,000 (59%) needing some form of accommodation assistance. Of those, 87,100 clients (52%) were provided accommodation directly by an SHS agency, while a further 25,900 (15%) were referred to another service provider for accommodation support.
Among clients needing accommodation services, most needed either short-term or emergency accommodation (116,000 clients) or long-term housing (113,000). However, the proportion of clients who had these needs met differed (Figure UNMET.1, Supplementary table CLIENTS.24):
- Short-term or emergency accommodation was provided to around 3 in 5 (59% or 68,800 clients) of those needing it; a further 1 in 10 (9.6% or 11,100 clients) were referred to another agency; and the need was unmet for almost 1 in 3 (31% or 36,200 clients)
- Long-term housing was provided to around 1 in 26 (3.9% or 4,400 clients) of those needing it; around 1 in 4 (24% or 27,000 clients) were referred to another agency for this service type; and the need was unmet for almost 3 in 4 (72% or 81,900 clients).
These differences highlight the complexity agencies face in assisting clients to find suitable long-term housing. In some instances, this may be because the agency’s service offering may not include long-term housing options. However, it may also reflect a lack of affordable housing available in the local area. In many cases, clients with unmet need for long-term housing may still have received other forms of accommodation assistance, such as short-term or medium-term support.
Assistance to sustain housing tenure
In 2024–25, assistance to sustain housing tenure was needed by around 3 in 10 clients (30% or 85,700). Clients requiring this type of service most commonly needed assistance to sustain tenancy or prevent tenancy failure or eviction (84,900 clients), while a smaller number of clients (2,800) needed assistance to prevent foreclosures or for mortgage arrears.
Most clients (71,200 or 84% of those who needed it) needing assistance to sustain housing tenure were provided with this service directly (that is, not referred to another agency).
Figure UNMET.1: Client need for accommodation and housing assistance services, 2024–25
Stacked bar graph shows short-term or emergency accomodation was the most needed service and long-term housing was the least provided service.
Client need for general and specialised services
Some types of assistance provided by SHS agencies can be described as general support and assistance. These services include advice and information, material aid, meals and living skills. In 2024–25, almost all SHS clients (96%) needed general services, and agencies were able to meet these needs in most cases (Figure UNMET.2, Supplementary table CLIENTS.24):
- Around 230,000 clients needed advice/information; 99% were provided with assistance.
- Almost 154,000 clients requested advocacy/liaison; 97% were provided with assistance.
Specialised services refer to services that require specific knowledge or skills and are usually undertaken by someone with qualifications. The need for specialised services is generally lower than for general services. In 2024–25, the most common specialised services needed by SHS clients were (Figure UNMET.2, Supplementary table CLIENTS.24):
- Mental health services (other than psychiatric or psychological care), needed by around 22,200 clients (7.7%); around half (48%) were provided with assistance and the need was unmet for around 3 in 10 (31%).
- Health/medical services, needed by around 21,600 clients (7.5%); almost 3 in 5 (57%) were provided with assistance and the need was unmet for around 1 in 5 (21%).
- Immigration/cultural services, needed by around 19,700 clients (6.8%); most (85%) were provided with assistance.
Some other specialised services were less commonly met, such as psychiatric services (unmet for almost half or 45% of clients) and drug/alcohol counselling (unmet for 1 in 3 or 33% of clients). This may be because of the limited availability of the specialised skills required to provide these services within SHS agencies and other referral services offered to clients.
Figure UNMET.2: Clients’ need for general and specialised services and service provision status, 2024–25
Stacked bar chart shows Mental health services were one of the most common specialised services needed and were also one of the most frequently unmet.
