Review of 2021 Census Topics - Australian Bureau of Statistics

Response 1026336027

Contact details

Who you are representing

Please select one item

(Required)

Commonwealth government department

State/territory government department

Local government

Business

Industry body/association

Community group

Educational institution

An individual

Other

Name of your organisation (if applicable)

Darebin City Council

What is your submission about?

Please provide a brief summary of your submission

That the ABS partner with social welfare organisations specialised in homelessness and follow their advice and guidance on how to improve Census data collection rates for homeless people and people living in housing stress.

Choose your area of interest

Please select one item

(Required)

Population

Sex and gender

Households and families

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples

Income and work

Unpaid work and care

Education and training

Disability and carers

Housing

Location

Transport

Cultural diversity

Religion

Topics on Housing

Choose one or more of the following topics that relates to your submission

Please select all that apply

Type of tenure (nature of occupancy)

Structure and types of dwellings

Homelessness

Housing costs

Number of bedrooms

Internet access

Other/unknown

Assessment Criteria 1

1. This topic is of current national importance.

We estimate that 500 people a night in our city are homeless but we have no concrete, or time-series data. Many people are in dire circumstances where they are unable to access the most basic of needs - shelter - and we need more data to understand how we can support this group of people.

Assessment Criteria 2

2. There is a need for data from a Census of the whole population.

All levels of government would benefit from better understanding the circumstances of homeless people and those in housing stress.

Assessment Criteria 3

3. The topic can be accurately collected in a form which the household completes themselves.

It will be challenging to collect data on people who do not have a household or fixed address to mail the Census form out too, but it is not impossible - our recommendation is that the ABS partner with social welfare organisations specialised in homelessness and follow their advice and guidance on how to improve Census data collection rates for homeless people and people living in housing stress.

Assessment Criteria 4

4. The topic would be acceptable to Census respondents.

The topic is unlikely to be offensive - the main challenge is in data collection

Assessment Criteria 5

5. The topic can be collected efficiently.

While it might be impractical to field homeless people directly, there are many advocacy organisations that work with homeless people and those in housing stress. Consultation with these agencies should shed some light on how best to capture numbers on these vulnerable groups of people.

Assessment Criteria 6

6. There is likely to be a continuing need for data on this topic in the following Census.

A rich country such as ours should not have any homeless people but unless we know how many there are, accurately, we cannot measure our efforts to understand and act on this issue. Hypothetically, a time series of data could help us measure success in our programs.

Assessment Criteria 7

7. There are no other alternative data sources or solutions that could meet the topic need.

Data on homelessness is extremely difficult to verify using current methods. Only the ABS, as the main body on statistical information in this country will have the resources to provide accurate data on this subject at a local level that can be used by local governments and other agencies.