Record Homelessness Levels Should "Shock Australia Into Action", Salvos Say, As Peninsula Pressure Continues

A Salvation Army officer in uniform crouches to speak with a young woman sitting against a concrete wall, during Homelessness Week. — A Salvation Army officer speaks with a young woman experiencing homelessness. Picture: The Salvation Army

More than 122,000 Australians now experience homelessness, and the Salvation Army says the nation’s housing crisis has become a national emergency as Homelessness Week begins on 3 August. The warning lands in a region STPL News has repeatedly covered as among the worst affected in Victoria for rough sleeping: the Mornington Peninsula and Frankston.

Homelessness Week runs from 3 to 9 August. The Salvos say record homelessness levels should be unacceptable in a country like Australia, and that the crisis no longer only affects people sleeping rough. It increasingly touches families, children, workers and older Australians.

Almost 289,000 people sought help from the Salvation Army’s homelessness services in the past year. Nearly 169,000 households sit on public housing waitlists nationwide, a sign of a housing system under real strain.

Local Context: Peninsula Among The Worst Affected

Mornington Peninsula Shire says it has the highest number of rough sleepers of any council in Victoria. STPL News reported in May that the shire recorded 138 people actively homeless in February 2026, including 105 sleeping rough in tents, cars and foreshore reserves.

Shire-commissioned research, which STPL News reported in August 2025, put the number experiencing homelessness across the region at up to 689, including about 100 sleeping rough. The same research found more than 3,800 people on the public housing waitlist, nearly half needing priority access, and 35 per cent of local renters facing rental stress.

Emergency relief requests have climbed sharply too. STPL News figures show requests rose from 274 to 413 in Mornington, and from 199 to 608 in Hastings, between July 2019 and July 2024. In 2023–24, records show nearly 480 children and teenagers experienced homelessness across Frankston and the Peninsula, with more than 880 at risk.

The toll has turned fatal. STPL News reported in January that police found a man dead at Rosebud Foreshore Camping Grounds, where he had apparently been living in a makeshift camp. A second man has since died sleeping rough in Rosebud, reportedly days before he was due to view a housing option.

Red Shield Report Findings

The Salvation Army’s 2026 Red Shield Report surveyed more than 4,400 people who accessed its emergency relief services nationally. It found:

75 per cent experienced housing stress, rising to 86 per cent among private renters
60 per cent missed a rent or mortgage payment in the previous year
37 per cent feared losing their home altogether
16 per cent couch surfed or lived in their car during the previous 12 months
64 per cent of households with children could not afford winter clothing or shoes for their children

These findings echo a Salvation Army survey STPL News covered in May, which found 91 per cent of people seeking emergency relief nationally had skipped meals in the past year, and 35 per cent of parents said their children had gone to school hungry.

“Rising rents, limited housing and ongoing cost-of-living pressures are pushing more Australians to breaking point. We’re seeing working people, families, older women and young people seeking homelessness support because they simply can’t afford a safe place to live.”

“Homelessness is about much more than sleeping rough. People are living in cars, couch surfing or staying in overcrowded homes because they have nowhere else to go.”

— Dr Jed Donoghue, The Salvation Army’s Head of Homelessness

A woman from New South Wales told the Salvation Army she struggles to cook properly while living in her car, and worries about affording her next meal or enough fuel to reach a toilet.

Overcrowded Housing The Most Common Form

Rough sleeping accounts for only 6.2 per cent of homelessness in Australia. Severely overcrowded housing is the most common form, affecting 39 per cent of people experiencing homelessness nationally.

Women and children make up almost three-quarters of people seeking the Salvation Army’s homelessness services, and more than 50,000 young people needed support last year. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples remain disproportionately represented among Australians experiencing homelessness.

Support Provided Over The Past Year

The Salvation Army’s homelessness services delivered significant support nationally over the past year:

Almost 339,000 sessions of care
More than 653,000 crisis accommodation bed nights
More than 1.3 million meals through residential services
Support for nearly 35,000 people at risk of or experiencing homelessness

Calls For Action

Throughout Homelessness Week, Salvos teams and communities across the country, including on the Peninsula and in Frankston, will hold sleep outs, community forums, fundraising activities and awareness events.

“This Homelessness Week we’re calling on governments, communities and Australians to work together to increase the supply of safe, affordable housing and ensure people have the support they need before they reach crisis point.”

— Dr Jed Donoghue, The Salvation Army’s Head of Homelessness

The Salvation Army is calling for:

Early intervention and homelessness prevention programs
Housing First approaches that prioritise permanent housing solutions
Greater investment in wraparound support services to help people sustain long-term housing
Increased investment in social and affordable housing

These calls mirror the intervention Cr Max Patton sought through Council in September 2025, including recognition of the Peninsula as a priority region and a ministerial visit to assess conditions firsthand.

The Salvation Army warns that without urgent action, more Australians will fall into homelessness and housing insecurity.

For more information on Homelessness Week, or if you need support, visit the Salvation Army’s website or call 13 SALVOS.