Insights from our passionate people at Haven Home Safe.
As an organisation tackling one of the wicked problems of our time, we have gathered a wealth of experience and insights into the complexity that is housing crisis and homelessness. We share our insights here with you.
The recent violent attack on a man experiencing homelessness in Bendigo's CBD is a stark reminder of the dangers people sleeping rough face every day.
This attack is abhorrent, and we want to make it clear that there is no place for violence in our communities. Attacking the most vulnerable people in our community is particularly cowardly and deeply disturbing.
Our thoughts are with the victim, and the many people in our community who have been affected by this incident.
This week’s Federal Budget signals a willingness to make housing a policy priority. But as an organisation that supports a growing number of people experiencing homelessness and housing stress because rents are unaffordable and appropriate rental options are increasingly out of reach, we need to keep asking the hard questions. Australia needs a housing system that works across the full housing and people continuum - from crisis and social housing through to affordable rental and ownership. From lone person households to life-long renters through to families living and working in regional and remote areas.
The 2026/27 Victorian State Budget fails to meet the scale and urgency of Victoria’s housing and homelessness crisis. While Haven Home Safe welcomes the commitment to deliver 7,000 social homes, this investment falls far short of what is required to meet current demand and does not provide a sustained pipeline of funding.
More than 56,000 Victorian households are waiting for secure housing, yet this budget still treats housing as a short-term election issue rather than essential infrastructure. Cost-of-living relief means little if people still cannot afford a safe place to live.
At Haven Home Safe, our long-term strategy is grounded in a simple but powerful shift: from counting outputs to growing impact for people. That means understanding housing not as a static asset class, but as a dynamic foundation central to people’s lives—their transitions, vulnerabilities, aspirations, and resilience.
This is where the idea of the people continuum becomes critical.
Drawing on their recent experiences, Haven Home Safe explores how different funding and partnership approaches to modular housing can deliver regional success.
This means our staff will continue to support people experiencing homelessness and in housing crisis but with minimal certainly that as the crisis deepens we will be able to help people to access affordable housing to move out of crisis.