Counting the homeless 2006: Australia

In September 2008, the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) published Chamberlain and MacKenzie's, Counting the Homeless 2006. This was a cooperative venture between Professor Chris Chamberlain (RMIT University), Associate Professor David MacKenzie (Swinburne University), the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) and the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). Funding for the research was provided by the Australian Government via the Community Services Ministerial Advisory Committee and the Housing Ministerial Advisory Committee. Chamberlain and Mackenzie undertook the analysis of the 2006 Census data. They also used information on people accessing the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) and data from the third National Census of Homeless School Students. The ABS and the AIHW provided extensive in kind support and technical assistance. Counting the Homeless 2006 found that the number of homeless people had increased from 99,900 in 2001 to 105,000 in 2006. These findings were quoted extensively in the Australian Government's white paper on homelessness, The Road Home (2008). The white paper set the target to halve homelessness by 2020. The Australian Government is spending $7.8 billion over five years to reduce homelessness. Chamberlain and MacKenzie's work has had a major impact on public policy in Australia. Chamberlain was invited to attend the 2020 Summit in Parliament House, Canberra because of his expertise on homelessness.