Clients leaving care
Key findings: Clients exiting care, 2021–22
People leaving care arrangements, including people transitioning from health care settings (hospitals, psychiatric hospitals, rehabilitation and aged care facilities) and young people transitioning from out-of-home care (foster care and residential care facilities), can find themselves particularly vulnerable to homelessness. This can be due to inadequate transition planning, undertaking discharge assessments in time or resource-pressured environments and limited options for exit into suitable and secure housing (Brackertz et al. 2018). One study of care leavers in Victoria found that more than half of the participants accessed specialised homelessness services in the 4 years following their transition from care (Martin et al. 2021).
In 2020–21, around 3,900 young people aged 15–17 were discharged from out-of-home care in Australia (AIHW 2022), corresponding with the end of formal support in the child protection system. Around 1 in 3 (30%) young people leaving out-of-home care experience homelessness at some stage within their first year after leaving care (37% of these for 6 months or more) (McDowall 2020).
Young people transitioning from out-of-home care face barriers to accessing the same opportunities as their non-care peers who increasingly rely on parental resources in young adulthood (Wilkins et al. 2019). During this accelerated transition to independence, young people leaving care need adequate support to access safe and stable housing, education, employment, financial security, supportive relationships and networks, and life skills (FaHCSIA 2011).
People transitioning from health care settings are also at risk of being discharged into homelessness. In a study of people who have experienced homelessness, 17% had been admitted to hospital for a mental health diagnosis in the previous 2 years (Wood et al. 2016). Discharge from a psychiatric hospital in particular has been identified as a key pathway into homelessness among people with mental health issues (Nielssen et al. 2018).
People exiting institutions and care into homelessness are a national priority homelessness cohort identified in the National Housing and Homelessness Agreement which came into effect on 1 July 2018 (CRRF 2018) (See Policy section for more information).
Reporting clients leaving care in the Specialist Homelessness Services Collection (SHSC)
In the SHSC, a client is identified as transitioning from care arrangements if, in their first support period during the reporting period, either in the week before or at presentation:
- their dwelling type was hospital (excluding psychiatric), psychiatric hospital or unit, disability support, rehabilitation or aged care facility, or
- they identified transition from foster care/child safety residential placements or transition from other care arrangements as a reason for seeking assistance.
Note that these dwelling types are part of the broad housing situation ‘Institutional settings’, which also includes categories relating to custodial arrangements. See the associated section for information specifically relating to Clients exiting custodial arrangements.
For more information see Technical notes.
In 2021–22 (Supplementary table LCARE.1 and Historical data table HIST.LCARE):
- SHS agencies assisted around 6,000 clients leaving care, equating to 2.2% of all SHS clients in 2021–22.
- There were around 315 fewer SHS clients leaving care compared with 2020–21; the number of SHS clients leaving care has steadily decreased since the peak of around 7,100 clients in 2016–17.
- The rate of SHS clients leaving care was 2.3 per 10,000 population, a decrease from 2.9 in 2016–17
Client characteristics
Figure LCARE.1: Key Demographics, SHS Clients leaving care, 2021–22
This interactive image describes the characteristics of around 6,000 clients leaving care who received support in 2021–22. Most clients were male, aged 18–44. Just over a quarter were Indigenous. Victoria had the greatest number of clients and the Northern Territory had the highest rate of clients per 10,000 population. The majority of clients had previously been assisted by a SHS agency since July 2011. Most were at risk of experiencing homelessness at the start of support. Most were in major cities.
The interactive bar graph shows the number of SHS clients leaving care also experiencing additional vulnerabilities, including family and domestic violence, having a current mental health issue and problematic drug and/or alcohol use. The graph shows both the number of clients experiencing a single vulnerability only, as well combinations of vulnerabilities, and presents data for each state and territory.
This interactive stacked horizontal bar graph shows the services needed by clients leaving care and their provision status. Advice/information was the most needed service and provided to the most clients. Long term housing was the least provided service.
This interactive Sankey diagram shows the housing situation (including rough sleeping, couch surfing, short-term accommodation, public/community housing, private housing and institutional settings) of clients leaving care with closed support periods at first presentation and at the end of support. The diagram shows clients’ housing situation journey from start to end of support. Most started support in institutional settings. Most ended support in either institutional settings or private housing.
