Crisis Support |
Crisis Support Service
HomeGround’s Crisis Support Service is based in Broadmeadows and works in the cities of Hume and Moreland. It offers outreach support to people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.
This service works with clients intensively for 6-8 weeks. This enables time to find housing and introduce people to longer-term support. Clients are referred by the St Vincent de Paul Transitional Housing Service, which initially assists people into short-term emergency housing before referral. HomeGround then helps people to access longer-term housing such as transitional housing, public housing or private rentals. HomeGround also refers people to other agencies according to the individual’s needs.
There is no specific target group for this service so clients come from diverse backgrounds and
have a range of ages and support needs. We work with people experiencing issues related to
substance use, mental illness, family violence, settling into a new country, trauma, unemployment, disability and physical illness.The common factor is that all clients are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
A typical day in the life of a HomeGround Crisis Support Service worker may involve visiting someone at their accommodation and helping them fill in an application for public housing, driving them to a doctor’s appointment or helping them locate increasingly elusive affordable private rental houses.
In the past year, HomeGround has been involved in the pilot Opening Doors project. This sector reform project aims to simplify access to homelessness services. Under Opening Doors, regions will have one agency operating as a local entry point to the full range of services available from all agencies.
Further collaboration between HomeGround and allied homelessness services will be possible when HomeGround’s Crisis Support Service moves to Glenroy. The service will be located in the same building
as St Vincent de Paul’s Transitional Housing Service (the Opening Doors entry point agency) and Crossroads Family Support Service.
Crisis Support Service case study
Andrew* walked into HomeGround’s Crisis Support Service in 2003. In 2004 Andrew lost contact with the service due to his poor mental health. That year he was diagnosed with schizophrenia.
In 2005 Andrew got married and again approached the Crisis Support Service because he and his wife were living at Andrew’s parent’s home in a volatile situation. Andrew and his father were frequently in conflict and Andrew would be evicted from time to time. On these occasions Andrew would either sleep rough, stay with friends or seek crisis accommodation.
HomeGround applied for public housing for Andrew and his wife. Unfortunately, the worker could not apply under the most urgent category because this requires the client to have a case plan and Andrew was unable to engage with the service to this extent.
The situation continued over a period of three years, with Andrew moving back to his parents’ home before again being evicted into homelessness. Andrew’s mental health fluctuated. He took his medication inconsistently and was also drinking alcohol. By this point Andrew and his partner had started a family and had two young sons.
* Name has been changed