'Claw that drags you down': Despair as homeless crisis escalates

Wagga Wagga's homeless say they have 'nowhere to go' despite emergency responseLBy Lauren Pezet Link copiedShareShare articleAs winter settles over the fog and frost-prone city of Wagga Wagga, there is a sense of despair among the growing number of people experiencing homelessness. "The stick's gone through the tent, so there's tape on that. Still gets wet in there, then you can't dry your bedding." Deanne said she alerted authorities in October that she had to leave an abusive relationship and needed somewhere to live. Unable to wait, she eventually made the difficult decision to leave the coastal town where her children from a previous relationship were living. "Every time I rang housing it was, 'It's getting assessed, getting assessed,'" she said. "I said, 'Look, I'm going to have nowhere to go' … I was trying to look around for somewhere safe." The rain and cold are key concerns for rough sleepers as winter sets in. (ABC News: Lauren Pezet) An emergency response to the homelessness crisis is underway in Wagga after a baby died and their twin was hospitalised shortly after their birth at a camp on the banks of the Murrumbidgee River in May. Dozens of camps are still visible in the city and surrounds, including at new locations along the river and in a central park. A Homes NSW spokesperson said there had been "a reduction in people camped along the river due to the engagement of Homes NSW", and that "there was more to do". The number of tents being set up along the Murrumbidgee River in Wagga Wagga continues to grow. (ABC News: Lauren Pezet) Born and bred in the area, Tim Collins found himself homeless for the first time after falling behind in his rent about three months ago. "There's not many [houses] around and a lot of people are applying," he said. "I have noticed too that there are people that offer more than what the rent is." Tim Collins says it has been really hard to find a new job while experiencing homelessness. (ABC News: Lauren Pezet) Mr Collins said being homeless made it a "struggle" to get his life back on track. The data on the number of people sleeping rough is sparse, with the Census only collecting figures every five years. The Australian Alliance to End Homelessness is working with community groups in some areas to try to help bridge that data gap and inform policy. "It's definitely a bad situation getting worse," chief executive David Pearson said. "There's ad hoc arrangements around the country … so it's a real challenge to pinpoint exactly what's going on in different places." David Pearson says we know "homelessness is a killer". (ABC News: Che Chorley) The latest street count conducted by NSW agencies showed numbers in Wagga had nearly doubled to 25, but it is clear to frontline services and anyone walking around the city the real number is many times that, and becoming increasingly visible. "I won't have four years. I'm not waiting four years," Deanne said. In the past two years, rents in Wagga have climbed from $370 a week to $420 for a two-bedroom unit, or $480 to $550 for three bedrooms. Meanwhile, rental vacancy rates are well below 2 per cent. Deanne said finding a private rental was not an option. "You could if you're not going to eat, maybe, because the prices are ridiculous," she said. "Then you've got to think of electricity, power, gas, water, bond. "And because I left with nothing, I didn't take no furniture, no nothing. Got no car. I got clothes." She said in the current housing environment, homelessness "could happen to anyone". Permanent camps remain set up at several different locations around Wagga Wagga. (ABC News: Lauren Pezet) While homelessness data paints an incomplete picture, on the ground, community groups are responding to a surge in demand for services. St Vincent de Paul runs a 16-bed shelter, which is full, and regular breakfast for anyone who wants to drop in. "The numbers [for breakfast] have grown from when I started 18 months ago from maybe five people turning up, now we're getting anywhere up to 50," service manager Damien Adams said. "There's a lot of strain on people with accommodation, cost of fuel, cost of groceries, just the cost of living in general." St Vincents de Paul has seen the number of people accessing its breakfast service increase tenfold in the last 18 months. (ABC News) Tash Eagle, executive pastor at the Generocity Church, said there had been a 50 per cent increase in the number of people accessing its pantry service since opening it at their op shop and cafe two years ago. "It is working families, it's not just people that are unemployed. Cost of living has hit on so many fronts for people." Generocity Church pastors Tash and Luke Eagle have seen a dramatic jump in demand for their pantry, op shop and cafe services. (ABC News: Lauren Pezet) Ms Eagle said without the service she believed "people would skipping meals" and children "sent to school without lunches". "We're trying to norma

'Claw that drags you down': Despair as homeless crisis escalates

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'Claw that drags you down': Despair as homeless crisis escalates

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