By Mikayla van Loon
It’s the topic on everyone’s lips at the moment as the cost of living and rising rental prices continue to increase but it may just be the trigger in causing someone to become homeless.
Homelessness organisations in the Yarra Ranges, like Holy Fools, are concerned the cost of food, heating and petrol are pushing people to the brink this winter.
“We’re starting to hear that there’s more people at risk of homelessness now than ever due to mortgage stress or mental stress,” Holy Fools CEO Neal Taylor said.
“The cost of living is so high at the moment, it’s affecting a lot of people and there’s a real danger that we’re going to start to see more and more people, particularly families, hitting homelessness.”
Already starting to receive calls about where people can find food relief centres, Mr Taylor said people are now turning to food handouts and other meal services to survive.
“There’s a real need at the moment for additional help, especially where food is concerned for families.”
Mr Taylor said not only are free meal services available in the Yarra Ranges, projects like the community cupboard in Montrose and other Food is Free pantries have provided relief when people have needed essential items.
A return to seeing rough sleepers particularly in Lilydale but certainly elsewhere around the shire, has also become prevalent after the pandemic hotel accommodation ceased.
“We’ve seen more and more people and we were hearing of more and more people who are sleeping in the area,” Mr Taylor said.
“The idea that when the motels closed, that people found homes is not quite true because there does seem to be a bit more of an influx of people who are sleeping rough not only in the suburban areas but also the rural areas around the Yarra Ranges.”
Often, however, Mr Taylor said those who are sleeping rough choose locations off the beaten track to stay fairly hidden.
Lilydale Police station commander Mel Woods said police haven’t seen much of a spike in people sleeping rough and generally know who might be homeless in the area.
“With the cooler months, they also tend to come to our attention more quickly because they choose locations that may be warmer or closer to the city centre,” she said.
Victoria Police has a number of resources and organisations that officers can refer people to should they be needing help, whether that be for mental health, family violence or any other health and wellbeing concern.
Wanting to build a community friendly and approachable support system within the police, Ms Woods said she hopes people will engage with members and should anyone have concerns about someone’s safety or wellbeing, to contact Lilydale Police Station.
“Then we can send a unit out and it might take a couple of times of us checking on someone for them to trust us but we want to build that rapport with people,” she said.
“From there we can link people in with the right services to get them the support they need and essentially get them off the streets because we don’t want to see anyone sleeping rough.”
Mr Taylor said sometimes the simplest action of saying ‘hello’ to someone who may be going through a challenging time or sleeping rough can change everything.
“One of the biggest issues with being homeless is that you become forgotten and maybe society starts to ignore you. So anyone that can say ‘hello’, that’s a huge step forward,” he said.
While remaining cautious is always best, Mr Taylor said a hello may turn into a conversation, which may turn into buying someone a coffee and eventually that could lead to this person receiving some help.
“What we’re coming across now is there are a lot of people who aren’t aware of the help that is available and I guess that’s what we need to do, is start educating people that there is help available not only for the homeless but also if you’re struggling.”
Services available in the Lilydale include:
Holy Fools: 1300 133 889, info@holyfools.org.au
Anchor: 8761 9040, info@anchor.org.au
CIS Yarra Ranges: 9735 1311, info@cisyarraranges.org.au
The Mustard Tree: 9735 3500
Lilydale Police Station: 9739 2300
