Government-funded specialist homelessness services
SAAP National Data Collection
annual report
2008–09

Australia
April 2010

The Australian Institute of Health and Welfare is Australia’s national
health and welfare statistics and information agency. The Institute’s mission is
 better information and statistics for better health and wellbeing.
© Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 2010

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A complete list of the Institute’s publications is available from the Institute’s website <www.aihw.gov.au>. 

ISSN 	1445-498X
ISBN	978-1-74249-017-5
Suggested citation 
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW) 2010. Government-funded specialist homelessness services: SAAP National Data Collection annual report 2008–09. Cat. no. HOU 219. Canberra: AIHW.
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare 
Board Chair
Hon. Peter Collins, AM, QC

Director 
Penny Allbon

Any enquiries about or comments on this publication should be directed to:
Manager
SAAP National Data Collection Agency
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
GPO Box 570
Canberra ACT 2601
Phone: 1800 627 191
Email: ndca@aihw.gov.au

Published by the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
Please note that there is the potential for minor revisions of data in this report.
Please check the online version at <www.aihw.gov.au> for any amendments.

Contents
Preface
Acknowledgments
Abbreviations and symbols
Summary
1	Introduction
1.1	SAAP
1.2	NAHA and NPAH
1.3	The SAAP National Data Collection
2	Funding
2.1	Funding to agencies
2.2	Distribution of support and funding
2.3	Tables
3	Level of support
3.1	Adults and unaccompanied children (clients)
3.2	Accompanying children
3.3	Tables
4	Age, sex, country of birth and cultural and linguistic diversity
4.1	Characteristics of clients
4.2	Characteristics of accompanying children
4.3	Tables
5	Client groups and reasons for seeking assistance
5.1	Client groups
5.2	Support periods for clients with accompanying children
5.3	Main reason for seeking assistance
5.4	Tables
6	Support provided
6.1	Length of support
6.2	Length of accommodation
6.3	Support provided to clients
6.4	Support provided to accompanying children
6.5	Tables
7	Meeting the needs of clients and accompanying children
7.1	Meeting the needs of clients
7.2	Meeting the needs of accompanying children
7.3	Tables
8	Circumstances of clients before and after support
8.1	Main source of income
8.2	Employment status
8.3	Student status
8.4	Housing
8.5	Living situation
8.6	Case management plan
8.7	Tables
9	Key changes from 1996–97 to 2008–09
9.1	Agencies
9.2	Factors affecting support periods
9.3	Factors affecting clients
9.4	Factors affecting accompanying child support periods
9.5	Factors affecting accompanying children
9.6	Tables
Appendix 1	The data
A1.1	The SAAP National Data Collection
A1.2	The Client Collection
A1.3	Interpretation of tables
A1.4	Counting rules and glossary
Appendix 2	Client Collection form
References
List of tables
List of figures

Preface
The 2008–09 Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) National Data Collection annual report on support provided by government-funded specialist homelessness agencies is the fourteenth report in what was previously known as the SAAP National Data Collection report series.
Some significant developments have occurred in the area of homelessness data collection since the publication of the previous report (AIHW 2009). On 1 January 2009, the SAAP V Agreement between the Australian Government and the states and territories was replaced by the National Affordable Housing Agreement (NAHA) and the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness (NPAH).
These agreements continue to emphasise the importance of a sound evidence base for policy development and program management. The data collection from the specialist homelessness agencies previously funded through the SAAP program will continue until the 2010–11 data is reported. For future years, the data collection from specialist homelessness services is being revamped to provide a stronger evidence base for understanding both those who use the services and the services provided.
Reporting of the new collection will be available for the 2011–12 year.

Penny Allbon
Australian Institute of Health and Welfare
Acknowledgments
This report was prepared by staff of the SAAP National Data Collection Agency (NDCA) at the Australian Institute of Health and Welfare (AIHW). The Information Services and Publishing Unit of the AIHW provided assistance in preparing the report for publication.
This report draws together a large amount of statistical material and could not have been produced without the efforts and cooperation of service providers and clients, who provided service and client information, and state and territory funding departments, which provided administrative data.

Abbreviations and symbols
Abbreviations
ABS	Australian Bureau of Statistics	
ACT	Australian Capital Territory	
AIHW	Australian Institute of Health and Welfare	
CAP	Crisis Accommodation Program	
I & I	Innovation and Investment	
NAHA	National Affordable Housing Agreement	
NDC	National Data Collection	
NDCA	National Data Collection Agency	
No.	number	
NPAH	National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness	
NSW	New South Wales	
NT	Northern Territory	
Qld	Queensland	
SA	South Australia	
SAAP	Supported Accommodation Assistance Program	
SLK	statistical linkage key	
Tas	Tasmania	
THM	Transitional Housing Management program	
VHDC	Victorian Homelessness Data Collection	
Vic	Victoria	
WA	Western Australia	

Symbols in tables
. .	not applicable	
—	nil or rounded to zero (including null cells)	
n.a.	not available	
n.e.s.	not elsewhere specified	

Summary
This national report provides an overview of assistance given to clients and their accompanying children by in-scope government-funded specialist homelessness agencies during the 2008–09 financial year. This national report is complemented by state and territory supplementary reports.
The funding to the specialist homelessness agencies covered by this report was provided under the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (SAAP) from 1 July 2008 to 
31 December 2008 and then under the National Affordable Housing Agreement (NAHA) from 1 January 2009 to 30 June 2009. Funding for the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness (NPAH), which supports the NAHA, did not commence until 1 July 2009. As such, no services funded under NPAH are included in this report.
Data for this report are sourced from the SAAP National Data Collection. Readers should recognise that the changed arrangements implemented midway through the 2008–09 reporting year may affect comparisons with previous years (see Chapter 1). The development and implementation of new services under the revised arrangements has been ongoing. It is not possible to quantify the extent to which services changed or new services were added in the first 6 months of operation of the NAHA, although it is known that these were not extensive. That is, the majority of existing services under SAAP continued.
Changes over time
Figure 1 presents the number of support periods and clients over the 13 years of the SAAP National Data Collection. The number of support periods provided that were in scope of the collection decreased from 220,300 in 2007–08 to 212,400 in 2008–09. The number of clients has remained relatively steady over the same period (125,600 to 125,800).
Midway through the 2008–09 financial year, SAAP was discontinued and replaced by the NAHA. This resulted in some changes in the way the jurisdictions administer the agencies. The impact that the changed arrangements had in the first 6 months of operation is not known, but the number of funded agencies and the number of agencies that were required to participate in the collection decreased (funded agencies from 1,562 in 2007–08 to 1,532 in 2008–09 and participating agencies from 1,444 to 1,433). This was a contributing factor in the decrease in the number of support periods in 2008–09.
As a result of the changes, the number of support periods and the estimated number of clients in 2008–09 cannot be directly compared with the number of support periods and clients in 2007–08. This break in the series makes understanding the trends challenging without further analysis.
A future report by the AIHW, planned for July 2010, will present more detailed analysis, providing information on changing trends in the SAAP National Data Collection.
More details on breaks in the time series, including a description of changes to the collection definitions and reporting practices, can be found in Chapter 9.
Figure 1: Number of support periods and clients, by reporting period, Australia, 1996–97 to 2008–09
Stacked line charts showing, for support periods and clients, number on y-axis and reporting period on x-axis.
Notes
In 2005–06, refined definitions and a new statistical linkage key were introduced, resulting in a break in the data series.
In 2008–09, SAAP was discontinued and replaced by the NAHA on 1 January 2009, resulting in a break in the data series.
Source: Table 9.2.
How much did it cost?
In 2008–09, in-scope specialist homelessness agencies received $405.9 million in funding from the Australian and state and territory governments. The mean level of funding per agency was $264,900.
Who was supported?
One in every 105 Australians, or 204,900 people (125,800 clients and 79,100 accompanying children) received support.
Females, particularly young females, and children were significant users of specialist homelessness services. In 2008–09, 1 in every 122 females aged 10 years and over became a client of a specialist homelessness agency, with young females aged 15–19 years the most likely group to become a client (1 in every 50 females in this age bracket accessed support). Children also had a high rate of use, with 1 in 63 children overall and 1 in every 39 children aged 0–4 years accompanying a parent or guardian to an agency.
Male clients, particularly in the older age groups, were slightly more likely than female clients to have repeat periods of homelessness; that is, to require more than one period of support within the year.
The majority of clients and accompanying children were born in Australia and did not identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people were, however, over-represented when compared with the general population (18% of clients and 25% of accompanying children were Indigenous, compared with 2% of the general Australian population aged 10 years and over and 5% of children aged 0–17 years, respectively).
Why was support sought?
The reasons clients gave for seeking assistance from a government-funded specialist homelessness agency varied, depending on their age and sex. Overall, interpersonal relationship issues were the most common broad reason clients gave for seeking assistance and, of these, domestic or family violence and relationship or family breakdown were frequently cited. Other common reasons were related to accommodation.
Young males and females aged under 25 years who presented alone most commonly sought support because of issues in their interpersonal relationships, particularly the breakdown of a relationship with a family member or with a spouse or partner.
Females with children and females aged 25 years and over who presented alone also often sought support because of issues in their interpersonal relationships: in this case, particularly domestic or family violence.
Males aged 25 years and over most commonly sought support because of health-related concerns: namely issues around problematic drug, alcohol and substance use.
For couples, both with and without children, and males with children, accommodation issues were commonly reported as their main reason for seeking assistance: in particular, eviction or being asked to leave.
What type of support?
The focus of specialist homelessness agencies was largely on the provision of non-accommodation-related support services only. A third of all support periods included a period of supported accommodation.
Advice or information was required more often than any other type of support, followed by emotional support, and advocacy or liaison on behalf of the client. Specialist services were the least likely types of services to be required.
Were support needs met?
Overall, agencies were able to directly meet the needs of clients and accompanying children in the majority of cases. Basic support—such as meals and shower facilities—were the most likely type of support to be provided directly by the agency. Specialist services—such as physical or intellectual disability services—were the least likely type of support to be provided directly and the most likely to be referred on.
In over half of their support periods, clients had a case management plan in place before the end of their support. In most cases, at least some of the goals specified in the plan were achieved.
What were the circumstances of clients on exit?
Immediately following support, clients were most commonly not employed—with a government pension or benefit as their main source of income—and living in a house or flat with some form of tenure.
Generally, client circumstances improved immediately following support, particularly for those who specifically required assistance with income, employment and housing, and for those supported for longer periods.
How long were clients supported for?
The median length of support was 14 days. The median length of accommodation was 
13 days.
Family groups with children generally had the longest periods of support and accommodation. Older males and females who presented alone had the shortest periods.

1	Introduction
This national report provides an overview of assistance given to clients and their accompanying children during the 2008–09 financial year by in-scope government-funded specialist homelessness agencies. It is accompanied by state and territory supplements. A further report on the changing trends in the Supported Accommodation Assistance Program National Data Collection (SAAP NDC) is planned for July 2010.
Accurate interpretation of the analyses presented here requires an understanding of the concepts and terms used in the SAAP NDC. Readers are therefore encouraged to consult Appendix 1 of this report and the SAAP NDC collectors manual (AIHW 2005b).
Midway through the 2008–09 financial year, SAAP was discontinued and replaced by the National Affordable Housing Agreement (NAHA) (see below). For this reason, caution is recommended when comparing the data with previous years. Although data collection has continued under the new arrangements, the adoption of the NAHA affects the scope and interpretation of data in the collection. In particular, the inclusion of agencies in the SAAP NDC is determined by the state and territory departments responsible for administering the government response to homelessness. The jurisdictions are continuing to include existing ‘SAAP-like’ agencies, as well as progressively introducing new agencies funded under the revised arrangements. The rate of inclusion of these agencies in the collection is not uniform across the states and territories. Information on the coverage of the collection and any adjustments made can be found in Appendix 1.
The SAAP NDC is focused on services provided by ‘specialist homelessness agencies’—those that specifically target and provide services to people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness—and mainstream service providers are not included. As such, the collection will not reflect the entirety of the response to people experiencing or at risk of homelessness. Caution is therefore recommended when interpreting the data.
This report is presented in a format that aligns with the reporting required under the previous SAAP V arrangements and no attempt has been made to explain the data in terms of the new reporting environment. As has been the practice under the SAAP Agreement, commentary on the data is descriptive rather than analytical. It is not aimed at measuring the performance of the states and territories in delivering homelessness services under the new agreements.
1.1	SAAP
From 1985 to 31 December 2008, SAAP was the largest of the many government programs to support people experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness in Australia. SAAP was jointly funded by the Australian Government and the state and territory governments.
Support services were provided by SAAP agencies. These agencies were administered by the states and territories and consisted of non-government, community or local government agencies, ranging from small stand-alone agencies with single outlets to agencies with multiple outlets. Each agency was set up to primarily focus on supporting and accommodating a particular client group—single men, single women, young people, families, and women and children escaping domestic violence—or as generalist agencies that catered for a combination of client groups.
The last iteration of the program (SAAP V) was governed by the Supported Accommodation Assistance Act 1994, which specified that the overall aim of SAAP was to ‘provide transitional supported accommodation and related support services, in order to help people who are homeless achieve the maximum possible degree of self-reliance and independence’. Within this broad aim, the Act further defined the goals of SAAP as being to ‘resolve crises; to re-establish family links where appropriate; and to re-establish a capacity to live independently of SAAP’.
1.2	NAHA and NPAH
From 1 January 2009, the government response to homelessness is administered under the National Affordable Housing Agreement (NAHA) and the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness (NPAH).
The NAHA is designed to provide a framework for governments to work together to reduce homelessness, improve housing affordability and reduce Indigenous housing disadvantage. Funding for the NAHA commenced on 1 January 2009.
The NAHA is supported by the NPAH, which outlines the roles and responsibilities of the Australian Government and the state and territory governments specifically in relation to reducing homelessness. The NPAH is complemented by other partnership agreements, including the National Partnership Agreement on Social Housing and the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing. The NPAH was signed in December 2008, with funding to commence from 1 July 2009. Services funded under NPAH are therefore not in scope for this report.
1.3	The SAAP National Data Collection
Data collection from government-funded specialist homelessness services has continued under the new arrangements as the SAAP NDC.
In 2008–09, the SAAP NDC consisted of three distinct components, each of which can be thought of as a separate collection—the Client Collection; the Administrative Data Collection; and the Demand for Accommodation Collection. Appendix 1 provides an overview of these collections.
This report mainly presents analysis of the Client Collection (see Box 1.1). Some analysis of funding using the Administrative Data Collection is also included to provide context. A further report will contain data from the Demand for Accommodation Collection on the demand for specialist homelessness accommodation, including those turned away.
Although the SAAP Agreement has ceased, for the purposes of continuity the SAAP National Data Collection continues to use the terminology and labels of data produced under that agreement. For example, ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ continues to be reported as a type of support.

Box 1.1: Number of support periods and number of clients
Data in the SAAP Client Collection are reported in terms of support periods: a discrete period of time in which a person receives ongoing support from a specialist homelessness agency. A person may have one or more periods of support within a year. To enable estimates of the actual number of people (termed clients and accompanying children) associated with these periods of support to be formed, a statistical linkage key is created for each person receiving a support period (where consent is provided). In this way, clients and accompanying children with multiple periods of support can be identified and estimates of the number of people can be made.
See Appendix 1 for more information.

2	Funding
This chapter contains information about the funding provided to the specialist homelessness agencies considered to be in scope for the 2008–09 SAAP NDC (see Chapter 1). The scope of the SAAP NDC is determined by the state and territory departments responsible for administering the government response to homelessness. Data is provided via the Administrative Data Collection (see Appendix 1).
In 2008–09, 1,532 agencies were funded for all or part of the year. Not all agencies were funded throughout the entire year: at 30 June 2009, 1,525 agencies were still funded. Further, not all funded agencies were required to participate in data collection. In 2008–09, 1,433 agencies were required to participate (see Table A1.1).
There seems to be an obvious relationship between funds available to agencies and the amount of support they can provide for people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. Nevertheless, an increase or decrease in funding to agencies does not automatically translate into more or fewer clients being supported, or into how often they are supported. The actual funding outcome depends on a number of factors: among them, the demand for assistance, the types of services that clients need, the ability of agencies to meet those needs, the length of time a client is supported, and the costs agencies incur in providing services.
2.1	Funding to agencies
Table 2.1 shows the funding allocations that went directly to agencies and the mean (average) funding per agency by state and territory, primary target group of the agency and region (remoteness).
In 2008–09, funding for SAAP and the NAHA was provided jointly by the Australian Government and the state and territory governments. Of this, $405.9 million was provided directly to the 1,532 in-scope agencies. Of the funding to agencies, $397.8 million was determined in the agreements between those jurisdictions and the Australian Government, and an additional $8.1 million was provided by the states and territories.
The average level of funding per agency was $264,900. There was, however, a considerable range in the average funding level per agency across the states and territories and across target groups. Caution is advised when comparing average funding per agency, or using such figures to measure efficiency on their own, because agency size, delivery models and client needs are diverse across the agencies and different agencies provide different types of services at varying intensities.
State and territory
Overall, funding to agencies in each state and territory followed the general pattern of population size (Table 2.1). Average funding per agency, however, varied considerably across jurisdictions. Agencies in Tasmania received the highest average funding per agency, at $411,200, and agencies in Victoria received the lowest, at $188,400.
Primary target group of agency
According to the primary target group of the agency, the largest group of agencies were those that primarily provided support to young people (34% of agencies) (Table 2.1). Youth agencies also received the largest proportion of the funding allocation, at 32% (Figure 2.1 and Table 2.1). Agencies targeting women escaping domestic violence (23% of agencies) received the next largest allocation at 25%, followed by general agencies (those that supported multiple target groups, 25% of agencies) at 22%.
Figure 2.1: Funding allocations to agencies, by primary target group, Australia, 2008–09
Vertical bar chart showing per cent on y-axis and primary target group on x-axis.
Source: Table 2.1.

Agencies that primarily supported single men or single women accounted for the smallest number of agencies and were allocated some of the smallest amounts of overall funding. When examined in terms of the average funding per agency, however, these types of agencies received the highest level of funding. Agencies targeting single men had the highest average funding ($413,600), followed by agencies set up to support single women ($308,500). Agencies supporting families received the lowest average amount of funding per agency ($226,900).
Region
Over half (57%) of all agencies were located in Major cities and 24% were located in Inner regional areas (Table 2.1). This compares with 13% in Outer regional areas and 3% in both Remote areas and Very remote areas.
Agencies in Major cities received the highest average funding per agency ($302,200), followed by agencies in Remote areas ($257,200), agencies in Outer regional areas ($229,200), and agencies in Very remote areas ($225,200). Agencies in Inner regional areas had the lowest average funding per agency ($202,300).
2.2	Distribution of support and funding
Table 2.2 shows the distribution of the funding allocation to agencies by state and territory and compares this with the distribution of the Australian population and with the periods of support provided by agencies.
Caution is advised when interpreting this data because it does not factor in demographics, remoteness and the cost of service delivery. For example, the cost of service delivery in remote and very remote areas might be higher than that in capital cities, and this is not examined. Further, when analysing variations in the distribution of support and funding, it is important to recognise that the number of support periods and accompanying child support periods may not indicate the intensity of the support required, nor the effectiveness or efficiency of service provision.
The distribution of funds varied from the proportions of the general population and total support in the states and territories. For example, Tasmania, the Australian Capital Territory and the Northern Territory together had around 10% of the agency funding but comprised 5% of the population at 30 June 2008; and the Australian Capital Territory received 4% of the total funding and provided 2% of the total support.

2.3	Tables
Table 2.1:	Agencies: number of funded agencies, funding allocations to agencies, and mean funding per agency, by state and territory, region and primary target group of agency, Australia, 2008–09
	Agencies	Funding allocation(a)(b)(c)	Mean funding per agency(a)(b)(c)	
	No.	%	$,000	%	$,000	
State/territory						
NSW	359	23.4	118,734	29.3	330.7	
Vic	535	34.9	100,769	24.8	188.4	
Qld	236	15.4	72,369	17.8	306.6	
WA	156	10.2	39,083	9.6	250.5	
SA	121	7.9	34,782	8.6	287.5	
Tas	37	2.4	15,214	3.7	411.2	
ACT	42	2.7	14,750	3.6	351.2	
NT	46	3.0	10,192	2.5	221.6	
Total	1,532	100.0	405,892	100.0	264.9	
Region(d)						
Major city	871	56.9	263,253	64.9	302.2	
Inner regional	371	24.2	74,955	18.5	202.3	
Outer regional	196	12.8	44,988	11.1	229.2	
Remote	47	3.1	12,049	3.0	257.2	
Very remote	47	3.1	10,647	2.6	225.2	
Total	1,532	100.0	405,892	100.0	264.9	
Primary target group						
Young people	526	34.3	130,361	32.1	247.8	
Single men only	95	6.2	39,288	9.7	413.6	
Single women only	43	2.8	13,265	3.3	308.5	
Families	131	8.6	29,728	7.3	226.9	
Women escaping domestic violence	351	22.9	102,527	25.3	292.1	
Cross-target/multiple/general	386	25.2	90,722	22.4	235.0	
Total	1,532	100.0	405,892	100.0	264.9	
Agreed funding allocations to agencies	. .	. .	397,823	98.0	. .	
Additional state/territory funding allocations to agencies	. .	. .	8,070	2.0	. .	
Total	1,532	100.0	405,892	100.0	264.9	
(a)	Funding refers to funding provided to SAAP agencies under SAAP V from 1 July 2008 to 31 December 2009 and then under the NAHA from 
1 January 2009 to 30 June 2009. Agencies may receive funding from other sources. This is not included.
(b)	Funding to agencies include state/territory-only allocations to agencies in addition to the funding agreement between that state or territory and the Australian Government. In Victoria, this includes THM and Housing Establishment Fund funding allocations to SAAP agencies.
(c)	Funding to agencies excludes funds not allocated directly to agencies, such as funds allocated for administration, training, research and evaluation.
(d)	For the definition of region, refer to Appendix 1: Section A1.4. Note that the postcode of an agency may fall into one or more Remoteness Areas and has been proportionally assigned. The location of the agency is based on the postal address of the agency. This may differ from the location services are delivered from.
Notes
1.	At 30 June 2009, 1,525 agencies were funded.
2.	Not all funded agencies are required to participate in the Client Collection (refer to Appendix 1).
3.	Table includes Innovation and Investment Fund (I&I) agencies and funding created under SAAP V (refer to AIHW 2009 for further details).
Sources: Administrative Data Collection; AIHW 2008a.

Table 2.2:	Support periods, accompanying child support periods, total support, funding allocations to agencies(a), and estimated resident population, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
	Support periods(a)	Accompanying child support periods(a)	Total support(a)	Funding allocation to agencies(b)(c)(d)(e)	Total Australian population(f)	
State/
territory	Number	Per cent	Number	Per cent	Number	Per cent	$	Per cent	Number	Per cent	
NSW	62,000	29.2	24,900	22.4	86,800	26.8	118,734,000	29.3	6,984,200	32.6	
Vic	67,000	31.6	34,900	31.4	101,900	31.5	100,769,000	24.8	5,313,800	24.8	
Qld	30,400	14.3	16,800	15.1	47,100	14.6	72,369,000	17.8	4,293,900	20.0	
WA	17,200	8.1	11,300	10.2	28,600	8.8	39,083,000	9.6	2,171,200	10.1	
SA	21,200	10.0	15,200	13.7	36,400	11.2	34,782,000	8.6	1,603,400	7.5	
Tas	7,000	3.3	3,100	2.8	10,100	3.1	15,214,000	3.7	497,500	2.3	
ACT	2,700	1.3	2,000	1.8	4,700	1.5	14,750,000	3.6	345,600	1.6	
NT	4,900	2.3	3,000	2.7	7,900	2.4	10,192,000	2.5	219,800	1.0	
Total	212,400	100.0	111,200	100.0	323,600	100.0	405,892,000	100.0	21,431,800	100.0	
(a)	Total support refers to support periods plus accompanying child support periods. Support period and accompanying child support period figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
(b)	Not all funding is allocated directly to agencies. Funding allocations to agencies excludes funds not allocated directly to agencies, such as funds allocated for administration, training, research and evaluation.
(c)	Funding allocations to agencies include additional state/territory funding allocations to agencies in addition to the funding agreement between that state or territory and the Australian Government.
(d)	Table includes Innovation and Investment Fund (I&I) agencies and funding under SAAP V (refer to AIHW 2009 for further details).
(e)	Agencies may receive funding from other sources. This is not included.
(f)	‘Total Australian population’ refers to the estimated resident population at 30 June 2008 (preliminary estimates). Residents of external territories are included in the total.
Sources: NDC Administrative Data and Client Collections; ABS 2008.

3	Level of support
During 2008–09, it is estimated that 1 in every 105 Australians received support from a government-funded specialist homelessness agency. More specifically, these agencies supported an estimated 204,900 people (tables 3.1 and 3.2). Of these, 125,800 were adults or unaccompanied children (clients) and 79,100 were accompanying children (see Appendix 1 for definitions).
The total number of support periods (212,400) exceeded the number of clients, because each client can receive support or supported accommodation on more than one occasion. Similarly, the total number of accompanying child support periods (111,200) exceeded the number of accompanying children.
The data show that:
•	the focus of specialist homelessness agencies was largely on the provision of non-accommodation related support services
•	proportionally, service use was highest in the Northern Territory, with the people in this jurisdiction far more likely to access support than those in other jurisdictions
•	repeat use of services was highest in Victoria.
3.1	Adults and unaccompanied children (clients)
In 2008–09, there were 125,800 clients who were provided with 212,400 periods of support (Table 3.1). Nationally, 1 in every 152 (or 66 per 10,000) people aged 10 years and over in the general Australian population became a client (derived from Table 3.1).
The majority of clients (73%) had only one occasion of support, with the average number of support periods being 1.7.
A third of all support periods included a period of ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ (33%), with the majority being for support only (67%).  The provision of support versus accommodation is largely dependent on the model of homelessness service delivery in each state and territory, for example, the types of agencies funded to deliver services.
State and territory
Of the states and territories, Victoria reported the highest number of support periods (67,000), followed by New South Wales (62,000) (Table 3.1). New South Wales, however, reported the highest number of clients (37,400), followed by Victoria (35,500).
The average number of support periods per client across the jurisdictions indicates that clients in Victoria were the most likely to have multiple periods of support. Victorian clients had an average of 1.9 support periods per client, compared with between 1.3 in the Australian Capital Territory and 1.7 in New South Wales.
The majority of support periods in most of the states and territories did not include a period of accommodation (derived from Table 3.1). The exceptions to this were the Northern Territory—where the majority of support periods did involve a period of accommodation (63%)—and Queensland—where the split between accommodated support periods and non-accommodated support periods was roughly equal.
Victoria had the lowest proportion of support periods that included a period of accommodation (13%, compared with between 26% and 62% in the other states and territories). The main reasons for this were the model of homelessness service delivery used in Victoria, in which much of the supported accommodation was provided via the complementary Transitional Housing Management (THM) program, combined with a change in agency reporting practice resulting from the introduction of a new data collection in Victoria: the Victorian Homelessness Data Collection (VHDC). The VHDC commenced on 1 July 2008.
A component of the VHDC is a separate collection of data from the THM program. In Victoria, a large proportion of properties in the THM program accommodate tenants provided with specialist homelessness support. Under the guidelines for the THM collection, if such support was provided to a THM tenant, then the THM accommodation should also be recorded in the SAAP Client Collection as ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’. The decrease in the overall number and proportion of accommodated support periods in Victoria relative to that reported in 2007–08, combined with the decrease in the daily average nights of accommodation reported in Table 3.4, suggests that accommodation for these supported THM tenants is not always being reported.
Rate of use
Adults and unaccompanied children in the Northern Territory were more likely to be supported by a specialist homelessness agency than those in other jurisdictions (Table 3.1). One in every 58 people (or 173 per 10,000) in the general population aged 10 years and over accessed support in the Northern Territory, compared with a low of 1 in every 182 (or 55 per 10,000) in Queensland. Tasmania also had a relatively high rate of use, with 1 in every 91 people (or 110 per 10,000) aged 10 years and over accessing support from a specialist homelessness agency. These differences largely reflect the varying use of services by clients of different cultural backgrounds (see Chapter 4) in combination with the different population profiles in the states and territories. It may also reflect the availability and types of agencies across the states and territories.
Daily support and accommodation
Figure 3.1 shows the average number of support periods that were active each day and the average number of accommodation periods that were active each night during each month of 2008–09. ,  Note that the length of time a client is supported or accommodated can affect the counts by month because some periods span more than one month. For example, the average length of support was 63 days and the average length of accommodation was 57 days (tables 6.1 and 6.3).
Support periods
In 2008–09, a total of 13,313,900 days of support were provided, with an average of 36,500 support periods being provided each day (tables 3.3 and 9.2). The average days of support generally increased as the year progressed (from 33,900 in July 2008 to 38,300 in June 2009) but there were some fluctuations, depending on the month.
Figure 3.1: Support periods active each day, average by month, Australia, 2008–09
Vertical bar chart showing number on y-axis and month on x-axis.
Source: Table 3.3.

State and territory
While Victoria recorded more support periods overall than New South Wales (Table 3.1), when looked at in terms of total days of support, agencies in New South Wales provided the most—4,459,500 days, compared with 3,228,200 in Victoria (Table 3.3). This can largely be explained by clients in New South Wales generally being supported for longer periods than those in Victoria (an average of 71 days, compared with 49 days) (Table 6.1).
Some states showed an increase in the average days of support as the year progressed 
(Table 3.3). In particular, Western Australia generally increased from 3,000 in July 2008 to 3,800 (an increase of 26%) and New South Wales generally increased from 11,300 in July 2008 to 13,400 in June 2009 (an increase of 18%).
Accommodation periods
A total of 3,043,000 nights of accommodation were provided by agencies in Australia during 2008–09, with an average of 8,400 accommodation periods being provided each night (tables 3.4 and 9.2). The average nightly number of accommodation periods did not replicate the pattern of support: generally decreasing as the year progressed from 9,000 in July 2008 to 8,100 in June 2009.
Much of the national decrease reflected the decrease in the number of accommodated support periods reported in Victoria.
Figure 3.2: Accommodation periods active each night, average by month, Australia, 2008–09
Vertical bar chart showing number on y-axis and month on x-axis.
Source: Table 3.4.
State and territory
In most states and territories, there was little variation over the 12 months in the number of accommodation periods active each night (Table 3.4). The main exception to this was Victoria, where the reported number generally decreased over the year from 1,200 in July 2008 to 500 in June 2009, a decrease of 58%. Queensland and Western Australia also reported decreases over the year (of 18% and 13%, respectively).
3.2	Accompanying children
This section focuses on children who accompanied their parent(s) or guardian(s) to agencies, and/or who required or received assistance from an agency as a result of their parent or guardian being a client of the same agency. The estimates presented here relate to accompanying children and accompanying child support periods (refer to Appendix 1, Section A1.4).
In 2008–09, 79,100 children accompanied clients (Table 3.2). This equates to 1 in every 63 children in the general Australian population aged 17 years and under (or 158 children per 10,000).
These accompanying children had 111,200 periods of support (accompanying child support periods). Most accompanying children had only one period of support during the year (80%), with an average number of accompanying child support periods per accompanying child of 1.4.
Around a third of accompanying child support periods involved a period of accommodation (31%).
State and territory
Victoria recorded the highest number of both accompanying children and accompanying child support periods (29,000 and 34,900, respectively), followed by New South Wales (15,600 and 24,900) (Table 3.2). The Australian Capital Territory had the smallest number (1,200 accompanying children and 2,000 accompanying child support periods).
In almost all jurisdictions, most accompanying child support periods did not include a period of accommodation. The exception to this was the Northern Territory.
Children accompanying Victorian clients were the most likely to have multiple periods of support. Victoria had the highest repeat use of the jurisdictions at 1.5 accompanying child support periods per accompanying child, compared with a low of 1.3 in the Australian Capital Territory.
Rate of use
Children in the Northern Territory were far more likely to accompany a client who accessed specialist homelessness support than children in other jurisdictions (Table 3.2). The Northern Territory reported far higher proportions of accompanying children per 10,000 population aged 17 years and under (370 or 1 in every 27), followed by South Australia (302 or 1 in 33). New South Wales reported the lowest (115 or 1 in 87).
3.3	
Tables
Table 3.1:	Support periods and clients, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
	Support periods	Clients(a)	
State/
territory	Support periods (number)	With accomm-odation
(number)	Without accomm-odation
(number)	Clients (number)	Clients with only one support period 
(per cent)	Mean number of support periods per client	Per 10,000 population 
aged 10+ years(b)
(number)	
							Actual	Age standardised	
NSW	62,000	25,800	36,200	37,400	73.8	1.66	60	61	
Vic	67,000	8,400	58,600	35,500	69.1	1.88	75	75	
Qld	30,400	15,200	15,200	20,800	76.7	1.46	55	55	
WA	17,200	7,600	9,700	11,100	75.3	1.56	58	57	
SA	21,200	5,600	15,600	13,600	73.4	1.56	94	99	
Tas	7,000	2,700	4,300	4,800	77.4	1.45	110	119	
ACT	2,700	1,200	1,600	2,000	81.2	1.34	66	61	
NT	4,900	3,000	1,800	3,300	77.3	1.51	173	153	
Australia	212,400	69,400	143,000	125,800	72.6	1.69	66	66	
(a)	The number of clients within a state or territory relates to the first visit for that client in that state or territory. Because a client may have support periods in more than one state or territory, the figures do not sum to the national figure.
(b)	‘Per 10,000 population aged 10+ years’ shows how many people out of every 10,000 aged 10 years and over in the population became a client. The rate is estimated by comparing the number of clients aged 10 years and over with the estimated resident population aged 10 years and over at 30 June 2008 (preliminary estimates). Age-standardised estimates have been derived to allow for different age distributions in the various jurisdictions.
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 0.
2.	Support period figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
3.	Client figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Sources: Client Collection; ABS 2008.

Table 3.2:	Accompanying child support periods and accompanying children, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
	Accompanying child support periods	Accompanying children(a)	
State/
territory	Accompanying child support periods
(number)	With accomm-odation(a)
(number)	Without accomm-odation(a)
(number)	Accompanying children(b) 
(number)	Accompanying children with only one accompanying child support period 
(per cent)	Mean 
number of accompanying child support periods per accompanying child 	Per 10,000 population aged 0–17 years(c)
(number)	
NSW	24,900	9,300	15,600	18,600	84.6	1.33	115	
Vic	34,900	5,900	29,000	23,100	74.5	1.51	191	
Qld	16,800	7,900	8,900	13,000	86.7	1.29	124	
WA	11,300	5,100	6,200	8,200	83.0	1.38	158	
SA	15,200	2,900	12,300	10,700	75.6	1.42	302	
Tas	3,100	1,200	1,900	2,400	82.3	1.31	201	
ACT	2,000	800	1,200	1,500	83.6	1.25	196	
NT	3,000	1,800	1,300	2,300	82.7	1.39	370	
Australia	111,200	34,900	76,300	79,100	80.0	1.40	158	
(a)	Dates of support and accommodation are not collected for accompanying children. For the purposes of calculating the number of accompanying child support periods with and without a period of accommodation, accompanying children are assumed to be accommodated if their parent or guardian was accommodated.
(b)	The number of accompanying children within a state or territory relates to the first visit for that child in that state or territory. Because a client with accompanying children may have support periods in more than one state or territory, the figures do not sum to the national figure.
(c)	‘Per 10,000 population aged 0–17 years’ shows how many people out of every 10,000 aged 17 years and under in the population accompanied a client. The rate is estimated by comparing the number of accompanying children aged 17 years and under with the estimated resident population aged 17 years and under at 30 June 2008 (preliminary estimates).
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 0.
2.	Accompanying child support period figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
3.	Accompanying children figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent. 
Sources: Client Collection; ABS 2008.

Table 3.3:	Support periods: number of support periods active each day, average by month and state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Date	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
July 2008	11,300	8,200	4,200	3,000	4,100	1,400	1,000	700	33,900	
August 2008	11,700	8,500	4,400	3,100	4,200	1,400	1,000	800	35,100	
September 2008	12,100	8,700	4,400	3,200	4,300	1,400	1,000	900	36,000	
October 2008	11,900	8,700	4,400	3,300	4,300	1,400	900	900	35,800	
November 2008	12,200	8,900	4,500	3,500	4,400	1,400	900	900	36,700	
December 2008	12,100	9,000	4,400	3,500	4,300	1,300	900	900	36,400	
January 2009	11,500	9,000	4,300	3,400	4,200	1,300	900	800	35,400	
February 2009	12,400	9,300	4,600	3,600	4,400	1,400	900	800	37,500	
March 2009	13,100	9,200	4,700	3,700	4,500	1,500	900	800	38,400	
April 2009	12,300	8,900	4,500	3,600	4,400	1,500	900	800	36,800	
May 2009	12,800	9,000	4,600	3,700	4,500	1,600	900	800	37,800	
June 2009	13,400	8,800	4,600	3,800	4,500	1,500	900	800	38,300	
Support periods: total number of days	4,459,500	3,228,200	1,625,700	1,258,800	1,583,500	516,900	340,900	300,500	13,313,900	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 0.
2.	Please refer to Appendix 1, Section A1.4 for the method used to calculate the monthly average.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection. 

Table 3.4:	Support periods with accommodation: number of accommodation periods active each night, average by month and state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Date	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
July 2008	3,600	1,200	1,700	800	800	300	300	200	9,000	
August 2008	3,700	1,100	1,700	800	800	300	300	200	9,000	
September 2008	3,700	1,100	1,700	700	800	300	300	200	8,900	
October 2008	3,700	1,000	1,700	800	800	300	300	200	8,800	
November 2008	3,700	900	1,600	700	900	300	300	200	8,700	
December 2008	3,700	800	1,600	700	800	300	300	200	8,500	
January 2009	3,800	800	1,600	700	800	300	300	200	8,600	
February 2009	4,000	800	1,700	800	800	300	300	200	8,700	
March 2009	4,000	700	1,600	700	800	300	300	200	8,600	
April 2009	3,900	600	1,500	700	800	300	300	200	8,300	
May 2009	4,000	600	1,500	700	800	300	300	200	8,300	
June 2009	3,900	500	1,400	700	800	300	300	200	8,100	
Accommodation periods: total number of nights	1,347,700	300,100	571,800	254,300	292,000	103,400	109,400	64,300	3,043,000	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 3,773.
2.	Please refer to Appendix 1, Section A1.4 for the method used to calculate the monthly average.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

4	Age, sex, country of birth and cultural and linguistic diversity
Data reported in the SAAP NDC clearly show that people experiencing or at risk of homelessness comprise diverse sections of the community. This chapter discusses the demographic characteristics of, and patterns of service use by, clients and accompanying children.
The data show that young women and children are significant users of specialist homelessness services and that Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander people use services at much higher rates than other cultural groups.
4.1	Characteristics of clients
Age and sex
In 2008–09, there were more female clients (62%) than male clients (38%) (Table 4.1).
The average age of clients overall was 32 years. The average age of female clients was 31 years and the average of male clients was 33 years.
Figure 4.1 shows the age and sex distribution of clients in Australia during 2008–09. It can be seen that in all age groups of clients under 50 years there were more female than male clients, particularly in the younger age groups.
The largest group of clients by age were 15–19 year-olds (18%), with female clients accounting for well over half of this group (62%) (derived from Table 4.1). The next largest group were 20–24 year-olds (15%).
Rate of use
Females were more likely to become a client than males: there were 82 female clients for every 10,000 females aged 10 years and over in the general population (or 1 in 122) and 
51 male clients per 10,000 males aged 10 years and over (or 1 in 196) (Table 4.3). For the age brackets up to 65 years, there were more female than male clients per 10,000 of the Australian population of each age group, while for the oldest bracket (65 years and over) males were slightly more likely to become clients than females.
Young people, especially young females, were generally the most likely group to access support. The highest rate of access by any age group was by 15–19 year olds (155 per 10,000 people in Australia aged 15–19 years or 1 in every 65). The highest rate of use by any one age and sex group was by female clients aged 15–19 years (199 per 10,000 or 1 in 50).
People aged 65 years and over were the least likely to become a client: for every 10,000 people in Australia in this age group, there were 8 clients (or 1 in every 1,250).

Figure 4.1: Clients, by age and sex, Australia, 2008–09 (percentage of all clients)
Horizontal bar chart showing, for male and female, age group on y-axis and per cent on x-axis.
Source: Table 4.1.

Repeat use of services also varied according to the age and sex of the client (Table 4.3). Overall, and in all age groups, males averaged slightly more support periods per client than females (1.8, compared with 1.6 overall). The highest repeat use was by males aged 25–44 and 45–64 years (both an average of 1.9 support periods per client, compared with 1.6 for female clients in these age groups).
Country of birth
Eight-four per cent of clients were born in Australia, and the proportion of male clients was slightly higher than for female clients (86% of males were Australian-born, compared with 83% of females) (Table 4.5). The next most common places of birth were ‘Oceania and Antarctica’ and ‘North Africa and the Middle East’ (both around 3%).
Australian-born people made up a greater proportion of clients (84%) than they did of the general Australian population (73% aged 10 years and over at 30 June 2006). In contrast, clients born overseas were under-represented (16% of clients were born overseas, compared with 27% of the general Australian population aged 10 years and over at 30 June 2006). In particular, people born in Europe and Asia made up smaller proportions of clients than they did of the Australian population.
Cultural and linguistic diversity
The majority (66%) of clients were born in Australia and did not identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander (‘other Australian-born people’) (Table 4.7). This proportion was higher for males, with 71% of males, compared with 62% of females, identifying as Australian-born non-Indigenous.
Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples were over-represented as clients relative to their population size: 18% of clients aged 10 years and over were estimated to be Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander, compared with 2% of the Australian population. A greater proportion of female clients identified as being an Indigenous Australian (21% of female clients, compared with 14% of male clients). The Northern Territory (62%) and Western Australia (31%) had the highest proportion of clients who identified as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander (Table 4.9). The lowest proportion was recorded in Victoria (7%).
Smaller proportions of clients were born overseas and both those born in mainly English-speaking countries and those born in mainly non-English-speaking countries were under-represented when compared with the general Australian population (Table 4.7).
Rate of use
There was little variation in the average number of support periods per client according to cultural and linguistic diversity (Table 4.7). ‘Other Australian-born’ clients, those born overseas in predominantly English-speaking countries (English proficiency group 1 countries) and Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander clients had the highest number of support periods per client, all averaging 1.7. In comparison, clients from predominantly non-English-speaking countries (English proficiency groups 2–4) had slightly fewer support periods per client, averaging 1.6.
Within most cultural and linguistic diversity groups, males had a higher average number of support periods per client, with the largest difference between the sexes seen for ‘other Australian-born’ people and clients born overseas in predominantly English-speaking countries. Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander clients were the exception to this: females averaged 1.7 support periods per client and males averaged 1.6.
4.2	Characteristics of accompanying children
There was little difference reported in the sex of accompanying children: just over 50% were boys and just under 50% were girls (Table 4.2). The proportions of boys and girls were roughly equal for all age groups. The average (mean) age of accompanying children was 
6 years.
Figure 4.2 shows the age and sex distribution of accompanying children. Close to half (44%) of all accompanying children were aged 4 years and under and over a quarter (28%) were aged 5–9 years.
The vast majority of accompanying children (93%) were born in Australia (Table 4.6).
In terms of the cultural and linguistic diversity of accompanying children, most (68%) were ‘other Australian-born’, 25% were Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander peoples and the remaining 7% were born overseas (Table 4.8). Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander children were highly over-represented when compared with the general Australian population: 25%, compared with around 5% of the Australian population being aged 17 years and under.
Figure 4.2: Accompanying children, by age and sex, Australia, 2008–09 (percentage of all accompanying children)
Horizontal bar chart showing, for male and female, age group on y-axis and per cent on x-axis.
Source: Table 4.2.
Rate of use
Eighty per cent of accompanying children had one period of support, overall accompanying children averaged 1.4 periods of support each (Table 3.2).
Older children were less likely to be supported multiple times, with the proportion with only one period of support increasing and the number of periods of support per accompanying child decreasing as age increased (Table 4.4).
The highest rate of use was for accompanying children aged 0–4 years, with 1 in every 39 
(or 255 per 10,000) children in this age bracket accompanying a client. The next highest rate was for 5–9-year-olds, with 1 in every 61 (or 163 per 10,000) children. One in every 86 (or 116 per 10,000) children aged 10–14 years and 1 in 149 (or 67 per 10,000) children aged 15–17 years accompanied a client to an agency.
4.3	
Tables
Table 4.1:	Clients: age, by sex, Australia, 2008–09
Age	Percentage of all clients	Percentage of sex group	Total	
	Male	Female	Male	Female	Per cent	Number	
Under 15 years	1.2	2.0	3.1	3.2	3.2	4,000	
15–19 years	6.8	11.3	18.0	18.2	18.1	22,800	
20–24 years	5.0	10.0	13.2	16.1	15.0	18,800	
25–29 years	3.9	8.3	10.2	13.4	12.2	15,300	
30–34 years	4.1	7.8	10.8	12.6	12.0	15,000	
35–39 years	4.6	7.8	12.2	12.6	12.4	15,600	
40–44 years	4.0	5.9	10.6	9.5	9.9	12,500	
45–49 years	3.1	3.8	8.2	6.1	6.9	8,700	
50–54 years	2.1	2.3	5.5	3.7	4.4	5,500	
55–59 years	1.3	1.3	3.4	2.0	2.5	3,200	
60–64 years	0.9	0.8	2.4	1.2	1.7	2,100	
65 years and over	0.9	0.8	2.5	1.4	1.8	2,200	
Total	37.9	62.1	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	47,600	78,200	47,600	78,200	. .	125,800	
Mean age (years)	. .	. .	33.2	30.8	. .	31.7	
Median age (years)	. .	. .	32	29	. .	30	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 0.
2.	Clients aged 0–17 years: 16,800 (6,400 males, 10,400 females).
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 4.2:	Accompanying children: age, by sex, Australia, 2008–09
Age	Percentage of 
all accompanying children	Percentage of 
sex group	Total	
	Male	Female	Male	Female	Per cent	Number	
0–4 years	22.6	21.7	45.1	43.6	44.4	35,100	
5–9 years	13.9	13.9	27.7	27.9	27.8	22,000	
10–14 years	10.2	10.3	20.3	20.7	20.5	16,200	
15–17 years	3.4	3.9	6.9	7.8	7.3	5,800	
Total	50.2	49.8	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	39,700	39,400	39,700	39,400	. .	79,100	
Mean age (years)	. .	. .	6.2	6.4	. .	6.3	
Median age (years)	. .	. .	5	6	. .	5	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 0.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 4.3:	Clients: number of support periods per client, by age and sex, Australia, 2008–09 
(per cent)
Number of support periods	Under 15 years	15–19 years	20–24 years	25–44 years	45–64 years	65+ 
years	Total	
							%	Number	
	Male clients	
1	84.9	71.2	75.1	69.6	71.0	79.7	71.6	34,100	
2	9.3	16.1	13.7	15.5	14.6	11.1	14.9	7,100	
3	2.2	5.6	5.2	6.2	6.1	3.6	5.8	2,700	
4	1.8	2.8	2.2	3.0	2.8	1.8	2.8	1,300	
5	0.6	1.6	1.4	1.8	1.5	1.0	1.6	800	
6+	1.2	2.8	2.3	3.9	4.1	2.7	3.4	1,600	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	3.1	18.0	13.2	43.8	19.4	2.5	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	1,500	8,600	6,300	20,900	9,200	1,200	. .	47,600	
Mean number of support periods 	1.39	1.72	1.65	1.90	1.94	1.69	. .	1.82	
Per 10,000 population 10+(a)	12	113	80	68	35	9	. .	51	
	Female clients	
1	81.1	70.7	71.9	72.8	77.2	83.4	73.3	57,300	
2	11.5	17.3	16.4	15.8	13.3	11.4	15.7	12,200	
3	4.4	6.3	5.6	5.5	4.7	2.8	5.5	4,300	
4	1.4	2.5	2.8	2.7	2.2	1.4	2.5	2,000	
5	0.8	1.3	1.5	1.3	1.0	0.5	1.2	1,000	
6+	0.9	1.9	1.8	1.9	1.6	0.4	1.8	1,400	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	3.2	18.2	16.1	48.1	13.1	1.4	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	2,500	14,200	12,600	37,600	10,200	1,100	. .	78,200	
Mean number of support periods 	1.44	1.65	1.62	1.63	1.55	1.36	. .	1.61	
Per 10,000 population 10+(a)	21	199	168	123	38	7	. .	82	
	All clients	
1	82.5	70.9	73.0	71.6	74.3	81.5	72.6	91,400	
2	10.7	16.9	15.5	15.7	13.9	11.2	15.4	19,300	
3	3.6	6.0	5.5	5.8	5.4	3.3	5.6	7,100	
4	1.5	2.6	2.6	2.8	2.5	1.6	2.6	3,300	
5	0.7	1.4	1.5	1.5	1.2	0.8	1.4	1,700	
6+	1.0	2.2	1.9	2.6	2.8	1.6	2.4	3,000	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	3.2	18.1	15.0	46.5	15.5	1.8	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	4,000	22,800	18,800	58,500	19,500	2,200	. .	125,800	
Mean number of support periods 	1.42	1.67	1.63	1.72	1.74	1.53	. .	1.69	
Per 10,000 population 10+(a)	16	155	123	96	36	8	. .	66	
(a)	‘Per 10,000 population 10+’ shows how many people out of every 10,000 aged 10 years and over in the population of that sex and age group became a client. The rate is estimated by comparing the number of clients with the estimated resident population in the designated sex and age group as at 30 June 2008 (preliminary estimates). For the age group ‘Under 15 years’, only those aged 10–14 are included.
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 0.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Sources: Client Collection; ABS 2008.
Table 4.4:	Accompanying children: number of accompanying child support periods per accompanying child, by age, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Number of accompanying child support periods	0–4
years	5–9
years	10–14
years	15–17
years	Total	
					Per cent	Number	
1	78.9	79.5	81.5	84.2	80.0	63,200	
2	14.5	14.5	13.2	12.1	14.0	11,100	
3	3.8	3.7	3.2	2.5	3.6	2,800	
4	1.6	1.3	1.4	0.9	1.4	1,100	
5	0.6	0.5	0.4	0	0.5	400	
6+	0.6	0.5	0.4	0.3	0.5	400	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	44.4	27.8	20.5	7.3	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	35,100	22,000	16,200	5,800	. .	79,100	
Mean number of accompanying child support periods	1.43	1.41	1.37	1.32	. .	1.40	
Per 10,000 population 
of applicable age group(a)	255	163	116	67	. .	158	
(a)	‘Per 10,000 population of applicable age group’ shows how many children out of every 10,000 children in the relevant age group in the general population accompanied a client. The rate is estimated by comparing the number of accompanying children with the estimated resident population in the designated age group as at 30 June 2008 (preliminary estimates).
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 0.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Sources: Client Collection; ABS 2008.

Table 4.5:	Clients: country of birth, by sex, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Country of birth	Male	Female	Total	Australian population 10+ years(a)	
			%	Number	%	Number	
Australia (including external territories)	85.9	83.4	84.4	102,100	72.6	13,106,400	
Oceania and Antarctica (excluding Australia)	3.2	3.0	3.0	3,700	3.0	540,700	
North-West Europe	2.5	1.6	1.9	2,300	8.2	1,481,800	
Southern and Eastern Europe	1.4	1.6	1.5	1,800	4.7	848,500	
North Africa and the Middle East	2.2	3.0	2.7	3,300	1.6	280,200	
South-East Asia	1.2	2.7	2.2	2,600	3.5	623,000	
North-East Asia	0.4	1.0	0.8	900	2.5	456,400	
Southern and Central Asia	0.7	1.1	1.0	1,200	1.7	304,000	
Americas	0.7	0.6	0.6	800	1.1	199,400	
Sub-Saharan Africa	1.9	2.0	2.0	2,400	1.1	207,100	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	45,600	75,500	. .	121,100	. .	18,047,600	
(a)	‘Australian population 10+ years’ refers to the estimated resident population aged 10 years and over at 30 June 2006 (final rebased estimates) and includes people resident in the external territories.
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 4,752.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Sources: Client Collection; ABS 2009.

Table 4.6:	Accompanying children: country of birth, Australia, 2008–09
	Accompanying children	Australian population 
0–17 years(a)	
Country of birth	Per cent	Number	Per cent	Number	
Australia (including external territories)	93.1	70,500	93.5	4,515,100	
Oceania and Antarctica (excluding Australia)	1.6	1,200	1.3	63,500	
North-West Europe	0.2	100	1.2	57,700	
Southern and Eastern Europe	0.2	200	0.4	17,100	
North Africa and the Middle East	2.0	1,500	0.6	28,000	
South-East Asia	0.7	500	0.9	42,800	
North-East Asia	0.2	100	0.6	29,700	
Southern and Central Asia	0.4	300	0.6	29,700	
Americas	0.1	100	0.3	15,500	
Sub-Saharan Africa	1.7	1,300	0.6	31,000	
Total	100.0	75,700	100.0	4,830,000	
(a)	‘Australian population 0–17 years’ refers to the estimated resident population aged 17 years and under at 30 June 2006 (preliminary estimates) and includes people resident in the external territories.
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 3,318.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Sources: Client Collection; ABS 2007a.

Table 4.7:	Clients and support periods per client: cultural and linguistic diversity, by sex, Australia, 2008–09
	Male	Female	Total	Australian population 10+ years(a)	
Cultural and linguistic diversity	Per cent	Per cent	Per cent	Number	Per cent	Number	
Clients							
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people	13.8	20.6	18.0	21,400	2.2	388,200	
Other Australian-born people	71.4	62.4	65.8	78,300	70.9	12,767,700	
People born overseas, 
English proficiency group 1	4.9	3.6	4.1	4,900	10.4	1,880,000	
People born overseas, 
English proficiency groups 2–4	9.9	13.4	12.1	14,400	16.5	2,975,200	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	37.8	62.2	100.0	. .	. .	. .	
Total (number)	44,900	74,000	. .	118,900	. .	18,011,100	
Support periods	Mean number per client	Total number			
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people	1.59	1.69	1.66	35,800	. .	. .	
Other Australian-born people	1.87	1.60	1.71	133,900	. .	. .	
People born overseas, 
English proficiency group 1	1.85	1.56	1.69	8,200	. .	. .	
People born overseas, 
English proficiency groups 2–4	1.65	1.56	1.59	22,500	. .	. .	
Total	1.81	1.61	1.69	. .	. .	. .	
Total support periods (row %)	40.6	59.4	100.0	. .	. .	. .	
Total support periods (number)	81,300	119,100	. .	200,400	. .	. .	
(a)	‘Australian population 10+ years’ refers to the estimated resident population aged 10 years and over at 30 June 2006 (preliminary estimates) and includes people resident in the external territories. The figures for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are from experimental estimates based on preliminary figures from the 2006 Census produced by the ABS. The number of ‘Other Australian-born people’ is derived from the Australian-born population minus the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 6,874 clients; 11,958 support periods.
2.	For derivation of cultural and linguistic diversity, refer to Appendix 1, Section A1.4.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Sources: Client Collection; ABS 2007a, 2007c.

Table 4.8:	Accompanying children: cultural and linguistic diversity, Australia, 2008–09
	Accompanying children	Australian population 
0–17 years(a)	
Cultural and linguistic diversity	Per cent	Number	Per cent	Number	
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children	25.3	18,700	4.7	228,500	
Other Australian-born children	67.6	49,900	88.7	4,286,600	
Children born overseas, English proficiency group 1	1.5	1,100	2.8	134,900	
Children born overseas, English proficiency groups 2–4	5.6	4,100	3.7	180,000	
Total	100.0	73,900	100.0	4,830,000	
(a)	‘Australian population 0–17 years’ refers to the estimated resident population aged 17 years and under at 30 June 2006 (preliminary estimates) and includes people resident in the external territories. The figures for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people are from experimental estimates based on preliminary figures from the 2006 Census produced by the ABS. The number of ‘Other Australian-born people’ is derived from the Australian-born population minus the number of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 5,205.
2.	For derivation of cultural and linguistic diversity, refer to Appendix 1, Section A1.4. 
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Sources: Client Collection; ABS 2007a; ABS unpublished data.

Table 4.9:	Clients: cultural and linguistic diversity and sex, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Cultural and linguistic diversity	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
									%	Number	
	Male clients	
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people	14.6	6.4	18.3	16.6	15.6	10.2	11.4	33.8	13.8	6,200	
Other Australian-born people	67.8	80.9	69.4	60.4	73.5	80.9	68.2	55.5	71.4	32,100	
People born overseas, English proficiency group 1	5.7	2.9	6.6	7.5	3.8	2.8	3.1	3.6	4.9	2,200	
People born overseas, English proficiency groups 2–4	11.9	9.8	5.7	15.5	7.0	6.1	17.3	7.1	9.9	4,500	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	14,400	11,700	8,700	3,500	4,400	2,000	600	1,000	. .	44,900	
Per 10,000 population 10+(a)	50	54	49	38	65	101	48	101	. .	51	
	Female clients	
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people	20.5	7.2	26.2	38.7	23.1	12.1	14.1	75.2	20.6	15,300	
Other Australian-born people	60.8	73.1	60.8	38.9	65.7	80.9	63.3	20.5	62.4	46,200	
People born overseas, English proficiency group 1	3.7	3.1	5.0	5.3	2.3	2.1	2.8	1.3	3.6	2,600	
People born overseas, English proficiency groups 2–4	15.0	16.6	8.0	17.1	8.9	5.0	19.8	2.9	13.4	9,900	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	20,700	21,700	11,300	7,000	8,500	2,500	1,200	2,200	. .	74,000	
Per 10,000 population 10+(a)	70	96	62	78	122	119	83	250	. .	82	
	All clients	
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people	18.1	6.9	22.8	31.3	20.6	11.2	13.2	62.4	18.0	21,400	
Other Australian-born people	63.6	75.8	64.5	46.1	68.4	80.9	65.0	31.3	65.8	78,300	
People born overseas, English proficiency group 1	4.5	3.0	5.7	6.1	2.8	2.4	2.9	2.0	4.1	4,900	
People born overseas, English proficiency groups 2–4	13.8	14.3	7.0	16.6	8.2	5.4	18.9	4.2	12.1	14,400	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	35,100	33,400	20,000	10,600	12,900	4,500	1,900	3,200	. .	118,900	
Per 10,000 population 10+(a)	60	75	55	58	94	110	66	173	. .	66	
(a)	‘Per 10,000 population 10+’ shows how many people out of every 10,000 aged 10 years and over in the population became a client. The rate is estimated by comparing the number of clients in the designated group with the estimated resident population in that group as at 30 June 2008 (preliminary estimates). It is calculated using client numbers with no data excluded due to errors or omissions.
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 6,874.
2.	Number of clients within a state or territory relates to the first visit for that client in that state or territory. Because a client may have support periods in more than one state or territory, the figures do not sum to the national figure.
3.	For derivation of cultural and linguistic diversity refer to Appendix 1, Section A1.4.
4.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Sources: Client Collection; ABS 2008.
5	Client groups and reasons for seeking assistance
This chapter contains information on the client groups, including the type of agency they attended and their main reason for seeking assistance. For client groups with accompanying children, the number of accompanying child support periods associated with each client group is also reported.
Client groups are classified according to the relationship the client has to the people with whom they are supported and should not be confused with their family type (see AIHW 2005b). For example, if a married woman with children is escaping a violent situation and is supported by an agency without her partner, she would be classified as a female with children, not as a couple, and a 17 year-old male presenting with a group of friends would be classified as a person presenting ‘alone or with an unrelated person’.
Clients may have more than one support period during a reporting year (see Chapter 3). Because a client may present with different people in each support period, and because the reasons they seek support may also vary, analyses in this chapter relate to support periods rather than to clients (refer to Appendix 1, Section A1.4).
The data show that, according to the number of support periods, older males who presented alone or with an unrelated person and women with children were the largest group of users of specialist homelessness agencies. It also shows that the reasons people seek assistance vary according to their age and sex. However, issues around interpersonal relationships, such as domestic or family violence, and accommodation related issues are significant reasons why people seek support.
5.1	Client groups
Figure 5.1 and Table 5.1 give a breakdown of the number of support periods provided according to the client group. Nationally, around one-quarter (24%) of support periods were provided to males aged 25 years and over who presented alone or with an unrelated person, and 23% were provided to female clients with children. Females aged 25 years and over who presented alone or with an unrelated person accounted for 17% of support periods, and females alone aged under 25 years accounted for 13%. This was followed by males aged under 25 years (11% of support periods), couples with children (5%) and couples without children (3%). Males with children and other family groups accounted for around 1% of support periods each.
State and territory
Client group profiles varied between the states and territories (Table 5.1). For example, in New South Wales (28%), Victoria (24%), Queensland (27%) and Tasmania (26%) the greatest proportion of support periods were for males aged 25 years and over presenting alone or with an unrelated person. However, females with children accounted for the highest proportion of support periods in Western Australia (28%), South Australia (32%), the Australian Capital Territory (28%) and the Northern Territory (30%).
Other differences included the higher proportion of support periods for female clients aged 
25 years and over in the Northern Territory (27%, compared with between 9% and 21% in the other jurisdictions) and the higher proportion of support periods for couples with children in the Australian Capital Territory (13%, compared with between 3% and 7%).
Figure 5.1: Support periods, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Horizontal bar chart showing client group on the y-axis and per cent on the x-axis. 
Source: Table 5.1.
Primary target group of agency
The type of agency attended by the client groups is shown in Table 5.2. As might be expected, agencies with specific target groups tended to provide support predominantly to that client group, although it is unlikely that agencies will turn away people in crisis outside their target group if they have the means to provide appropriate support.
Consequently, 76% of support periods at agencies targeting young people were for people aged under 25 years presenting on their own or with an unrelated person. Agencies targeting single men were overwhelmingly used by males aged 25 years or over presenting on their own or with an unrelated person (86% of support periods), followed by unaccompanied males aged under 25 years (10%). Similarly, agencies that targeted women escaping domestic violence were mainly used by females with children (52%) and unaccompanied females aged 25 years or over (35%). Agencies primarily targeting families provided a high proportion of their support periods to females with children (43%) or to couples with children (23%). Cross-target group agencies were mainly used by unaccompanied males and females aged 25 years and over (38% and 19% of support periods, respectively), followed by females with children (15%).
5.2	Support periods for clients with accompanying children
In around a quarter (26%) of their support periods, clients presented with accompanying children (derived from tables 5.3 and 3.1). In each of these, there was an average of two children. Couples with children had the highest average number of accompanying child support periods per client support period (2.3), followed by females with children (2.0), males with children (1.7) and ‘other’ groups with children (1.6).
In the vast majority of their support periods, children accompanied a female client (in 83% of accompanying child support periods), in 12% they accompanied a couple and in 4% a male client. Children accompanied ‘other’ family groups in less than 1% of accompanying child support periods.
State and territory
In all the states and territories, most accompanying children accompanied a female client (ranging from 70% of accompanying child support periods in the Australian Capital Territory to 89% in the Northern Territory) (Table 5.3).
There were, however, some differences: for example, the Australian Capital Territory had a higher proportion of children accompanying couples than the other states and territories, and a smaller proportion where they accompanied female clients.
5.3	Main reason for seeking assistance
In addition to recording client characteristics, the Client Collection collects information on the main reasons that clients seek assistance. Overall, the most common main reasons that clients gave for seeking assistance were domestic or family violence (in 22% of support periods), relationship or family breakdown (10%) and other financial difficulty (8%) (Figure 5.2).
When similar individual categories for seeking assistance are grouped together, issues around interpersonal relationships (including the category of domestic or family violence) were reported as the main reason for seeking assistance in close to half of all support periods (45%), followed by accommodation issues (20%) (Table 5.4).
State and territory
Although in general there were only small variations across the states and territories in the main reasons for seeking assistance, there were some exceptions (Table 5.4). For example, domestic or family violence ranged from a high of 34% of support periods in the Northern Territory through to a low of 9% in Tasmania; in New South Wales problematic drug, alcohol, or substance abuse was the main reason for seeking assistance in 12% of support periods, while for the other jurisdictions it was between 2% and 4%; other financial difficulty was recorded as the main reason in 10% of support periods in Victoria and between 3% and 7% in the other jurisdictions; and relationship or family breakdown ranged between 20% in Tasmania to 7% in the Northern Territory.
Figure 5.2: Main reason for seeking assistance, Australia, 2008–09 (percentage of support periods)
Horizontal bar chart showing, main reason for seeking assistance on y-axis and per cent on x-axis.
Source: Table 5.4.
Client group
The main reason given for seeking support varied considerably according to the client group (Table 5.5). Females with children most often cited domestic or family violence (in 49% of their support periods), followed by relationship or family breakdown (8%). For males with children, relationship or family breakdown was the most common main reason given (in 16% of their support periods), followed by eviction or being asked to leave (in 13%) and previous accommodation ended (12%).
Unaccompanied females aged 25 years and older most commonly cited domestic or family violence (in 40% of their support periods), followed by other financial difficulty (9%). In contrast, males aged 25 years and over most commonly reported drug, alcohol or substance use as their main reason for seeking assistance (in 15% of their support periods), followed by other financial difficulty (12%). For these older males, drug, alcohol or substance use was reported in a far higher proportion than for other client groups (between 1% and 4%).
Young females and males most commonly sought support because of issues in their interpersonal relationships, particularly the breakdown of relationships with a family member or with a spouse or partner. Females alone aged under 25 years most often cited relationship or family breakdown (in 22% of their support periods), with domestic or family violence as the second most frequently given reason (17%), followed by time out from family or other situation (14%). For males alone aged under 25 years, relationship or family breakdown (21%) followed by time out from family or other situation (11%) were the most commonly given reasons.
For couples, accommodation issues were the main reason for seeking assistance: in particular, eviction or being asked to leave (in 17% of support periods for couples with children and in 11% of those without children), followed by their previous accommodation ending (12% and 11%).
5.4	
Tables
Table 5.1:	Support periods: client group, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Client group	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
									%	Number	
Male alone, under 25	14.4	9.0	11.0	8.1	9.0	13.7	10.3	7.3	10.9	22,700	
Male alone, 25+	27.6	24.4	26.9	22.6	16.3	25.9	14.0	16.1	24.4	51,000	
Female alone, under 25	16.5	11.3	12.6	10.5	12.3	14.8	15.9	11.5	13.2	27,600	
Female alone, 25+	16.2	20.5	12.4	20.5	16.5	12.3	9.0	26.5	17.4	36,300	
Couple no children	2.3	3.5	4.5	3.0	3.6	4.4	4.0	2.7	3.3	6,800	
Couple with children	2.9	4.2	8.4	4.8	6.8	4.9	12.7	3.5	4.8	10,000	
Male with children	0.9	1.5	2.0	0.9	2.0	2.6	3.1	1.2	1.4	3,000	
Female with children	18.9	23.8	21.8	28.3	32.4	20.7	28.1	29.5	23.4	48,800	
Other	0.3	1.9	0.5	1.2	1.1	0.6	2.7	1.7	1.1	2,200	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	28.9	32.0	14.2	8.1	9.9	3.3	1.2	2.3	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	60,300	66,700	29,500	16,900	20,700	6,900	2,600	4,800	. .	208,500	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 3,877.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 5.2:	Support periods: client group, by primary target group of agency, Australia, 
2008–09 (per cent)
Client group	Young people	Single men 
only	Single women only	Families	Women escaping domestic violence	Cross-target/ multiple/ general	Total	
							%	Number	
Male alone, under 25	35.0	10.1	0.4	1.9	0.7	6.6	10.9	22,700	
Male alone, 25+	1.4	85.5	0.6	9.8	0.8	37.9	24.4	51,000	
Female alone, under 25	41.0	0.3	12.6	3.1	9.1	6.3	13.2	27,600	
Female alone, 25+	1.5	1.6	63.8	8.7	34.5	18.7	17.4	36,300	
Couple no children	4.0	0.6	1.1	3.1	0.6	5.5	3.3	6,800	
Couple with children	2.9	0.3	1.4	22.7	1.0	6.4	4.8	10,000	
Male with children	0.5	0.4	0.1	6.3	0.2	2.2	1.4	3,000	
Female with children	12.2	0.9	19.8	43.3	51.9	15.2	23.4	48,800	
Other	1.6	0.2	0.4	1.1	1.0	1.1	1.1	2,200	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	20.2	11.2	2.8	7.2	22.6	36.0	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	42,200	23,400	5,800	15,000	47,100	75,100	. .	208,500	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 3,877.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Sources: Client and Administrative Data Collections.

Table 5.3:	Support periods for clients with accompanying children and associated accompanying child support periods: client group, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Client group	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
									%	Number	
Support periods (%)											
Couple with children	8.0	10.2	17.6	10.1	11.3	11.1	22.0	6.9	11.0	6,000	
Male with children	3.7	5.2	6.4	2.8	5.3	10.6	8.2	3.4	5.0	2,700	
Female with children	88.2	84.4	75.9	87.0	83.3	78.2	69.8	89.7	83.9	45,900	
Other with children	0.1	0.2	0.1	—	0.1	0.1	—	—	0.1	100	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	22.7	32.1	14.0	9.6	14.1	3.0	1.8	2.8	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	12,400	17,600	7,700	5,200	7,700	1,600	1,000	1,500	. .	54,700	
Accompanying child 
support periods (%)											
Couple with children	8.3	11.3	19.3	12.6	12.9	13.3	22.0	8.0	12.3	13,700	
Male with children	3.2	4.6	5.2	2.4	4.5	8.3	7.8	2.9	4.2	4,700	
Female with children	88.4	84.0	75.4	85.0	82.5	78.3	70.2	89.1	83.3	92,200	
Other with children	0.1	0.1	0.1	—	0.1	0.1	—	—	0.1	100	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	22.3	31.4	15.1	10.2	13.7	2.8	1.8	2.7	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	24,700	34,800	16,700	11,300	15,100	3,100	2,000	3,000	. .	110,700	
Mean number of accompanying child 
support periods per 
support period											
Couple with children	2.07	2.18	2.38	2.67	2.26	2.28	2.01	2.31	. .	2.26	
Male with children	1.70	1.74	1.77	1.86	1.66	1.47	1.90	1.68	. .	1.72	
Female with children	1.99	1.97	2.16	2.11	1.95	1.89	2.02	1.99	. .	2.01	
Other with children	1.50	1.80	1.29	2.00	1.50	1.00	—	—	. .	1.60	
Total	1.99	1.98	2.18	2.16	1.97	1.89	2.01	2.00	. .	2.02	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 282 support periods.
2.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 505 accompanying child support periods.
3.	‘Support periods’ exclude records where there was not a corresponding accompanying child record attached—the client group of the client may indicate that they presented with accompanying children, but details of the accompanying children may not have been recorded. The table is therefore not directly comparable with other tables showing the number of support periods by client group.
4.	Accompanying children are recorded on only one client form if they present in a group consisting of more than one client. Although each member of a couple has an individual support period, in this table, a couple presenting with children contributes only one support period. This may also be the case for ‘other’ family groups if they comprise more than one client. The table is therefore not directly comparable with other tables showing the number of support periods by client group.
5.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 5.4:	Support periods: main reason for seeking assistance, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Main reason for 
seeking assistance	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
									%	Number	
Interpersonal relationships	45.3	44.0	36.4	47.1	51.3	44.3	46.1	56.1	44.6	91,300	
Time out from family/
other situation	8.9	6.7	9.2	6.2	4.6	6.3	5.1	10.1	7.5	15,400	
Relationship/
family breakdown	12.6	8.7	9.0	7.9	10.6	19.9	16.8	6.6	10.4	21,400	
Interpersonal conflict	3.0	2.4	2.2	2.2	2.9	4.6	4.7	2.7	2.7	5,500	
Sexual abuse	0.8	0.3	0.4	0.5	1.3	3.6	0.7	0.9	0.7	1,400	
Domestic/family violence	18.7	24.8	14.5	28.6	30.5	8.5	17.6	33.9	22.0	45,100	
Physical/emotional abuse	1.3	1.0	1.2	1.7	1.3	1.4	1.3	1.9	1.2	2,500	
Financial	11.0	17.4	17.1	11.0	5.8	9.9	8.4	10.8	13.3	27,300	
Gambling	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.1	0.2	0.3	—	0.2	0.2	400	
Budgeting problems	2.4	6.0	6.8	2.2	2.0	3.4	1.0	3.7	4.1	8,500	
Rent too high	1.0	1.2	2.8	1.6	0.6	1.4	3.1	2.7	1.4	2,800	
Other financial difficulty	7.3	10.1	7.2	7.1	3.0	4.8	4.3	4.3	7.6	15,500	
Accommodation	15.0	21.5	23.4	15.1	23.7	26.9	22.7	12.6	19.6	40,100	
Overcrowding issues	2.6	3.3	3.7	3.2	4.3	3.6	5.5	3.6	3.3	6,700	
Eviction/asked to leave	5.2	7.9	8.3	5.0	8.2	10.1	7.5	1.9	6.9	14,200	
Emergency
accommodation ended	2.0	2.5	2.6	1.5	1.1	2.1	4.4	0.8	2.1	4,400	
Previous 
accommodation ended	5.1	7.8	8.7	5.4	10.1	11.1	5.3	6.3	7.2	14,900	
Health	16.1	5.3	7.7	4.9	4.6	6.0	7.6	6.3	8.8	17,900	
Mental health issues	2.5	1.5	1.5	1.1	1.2	2.1	3.0	1.6	1.8	3,600	
Problematic drug/
alcohol/substance use	11.7	1.7	3.6	2.6	2.1	2.6	2.2	2.9	5.0	10,300	
Psychiatric illness	1.2	0.7	1.1	0.3	0.2	0.2	0.7	0.4	0.8	1,600	
Other health issues	0.8	1.4	1.6	0.9	1.0	1.1	1.7	1.3	1.2	2,400	
Other reasons	12.6	11.8	15.4	21.9	14.6	12.9	15.2	14.3	13.8	28,300	
Gay/lesbian/
transgender issues	0.9	—	—	—	—	—	0.1	0.1	0.3	600	
Recently left institution	1.9	1.0	1.3	0.8	1.5	2.6	2.7	0.7	1.4	2,900	
Recent arrival to area with no means of support	2.0	1.7	4.9	2.6	2.9	3.9	3.2	4.2	2.6	5,300	
Itinerant	2.9	2.3	4.0	2.0	3.1	3.6	2.3	2.9	2.8	5,800	
Other	4.9	6.8	5.2	16.5	7.1	2.8	6.9	6.4	6.7	13,800	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	29.0	31.8	14.2	8.2	9.9	3.3	1.3	2.2	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	59,400	65,100	29,200	16,900	20,400	6,900	2,600	4,600	. .	205,000	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 7,409.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.
Table 5.5:	Support periods: main reason for seeking assistance, by client group, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Main reason for 
seeking assistance	Male alone under 25	Male alone 25+	Female alone under 25	Female alone 25+	Couple no children	Couple with children	Male 
with children	Female with children	Other	
Interpersonal relationships	41.5	17.2	60.5	55.4	24.9	18.8	28.8	66.1	50.7	
Time out from family/
other situation	11.4	7.7	13.6	5.2	6.9	4.6	3.7	4.6	5.4	
Relationship/
family breakdown	20.8	5.4	22.3	5.2	9.9	6.3	16.2	8.3	14.2	
Interpersonal conflict	5.0	2.3	4.3	2.2	2.6	2.3	2.1	1.7	2.9	
Sexual abuse	0.5	0.1	1.9	1.0	0.3	0.2	0.7	0.7	0.8	
Domestic/family violence	3.1	1.1	16.7	39.9	4.5	4.7	5.6	49.1	25.7	
Physical/emotional abuse	0.8	0.5	1.6	1.9	0.7	0.7	0.6	1.7	1.7	
Financial	9.3	20.2	6.9	14.4	19.3	21.1	19.9	8.2	8.4	
Gambling	0.2	0.6	—	0.1	0.2	0.1	0.2	—	0.1	
Budgeting problems	2.7	6.0	2.1	4.1	7.0	6.9	7.9	2.8	2.2	
Rent too high	0.8	1.2	0.7	1.2	2.8	4.3	3.0	1.5	2.2	
Other financial difficulty	5.6	12.4	4.1	9.0	9.3	9.8	8.8	4.0	3.9	
Accommodation	24.0	18.7	18.4	11.9	31.3	43.7	34.9	17.6	20.0	
Overcrowding issues	2.8	1.2	3.3	1.3	7.0	11.8	7.9	4.6	4.9	
Eviction/asked to leave	9.0	5.5	6.6	4.3	11.3	17.3	12.8	6.6	7.5	
Emergency accommodation ended	3.2	2.8	2.1	1.5	2.3	2.4	2.0	1.3	1.5	
Previous 
accommodation ended	9.0	9.2	6.4	4.7	10.7	12.3	12.3	5.1	6.1	
Health	6.7	22.3	3.6	7.4	4.9	2.6	3.9	1.7	4.6	
Mental health issues	1.8	3.5	1.3	2.1	0.7	0.6	0.9	0.5	1.4	
Problematic drug/ alcohol/substance use	3.9	14.6	1.3	3.1	2.4	0.8	1.8	0.6	1.8	
Psychiatric illness	0.6	2.0	0.3	0.8	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.1	0.5	
Other health issues	0.4	2.2	0.7	1.2	1.5	1.0	0.9	0.6	0.9	
Other reasons	18.5	21.7	10.6	11.1	19.7	13.7	12.5	6.4	16.4	
Gay/lesbian/
transgender issues	1.0	—	0.9	0.2	—	—	—	—	—	
Recently left institution	3.2	2.9	0.6	0.8	0.7	0.4	1.5	0.2	0.4	
Recent arrival to area with no means of support	2.7	4.6	1.4	1.6	4.7	4.6	2.6	1.0	2.9	
Itinerant	4.0	5.1	2.5	1.7	4.9	2.1	1.8	1.0	1.8	
Other	7.6	9.1	5.2	6.7	9.4	6.7	6.6	4.1	11.3	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	
Total (row %)	10.8	24.4	13.2	17.5	3.3	4.8	1.4	23.6	0.9	
Total (number)	22,000	49,500	26,700	35,400	6,600	9,800	2,900	47,800	1,900	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 9,860.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.
6	Support provided
In this chapter, the lengths of support and accommodation for clients are examined for closed support periods; that is, support periods that finished on or before 30 June 2009. This chapter also presents an overview of the types of support provided by agencies to clients across all support periods and to accompanying children across all accompanying child support periods.
In 2008–09, 212,400 support periods were provided (Table 3.1). Of these, 176,800 were closed support periods and 58,300 of these included a period of accommodation (tables 6.1 and 6.3, including errors and omissions). It is important to note that, when accommodated, a client may be accommodated for all, or only some of, the total time they were supported.
As presented in chapters 4 and 5, those using government-funded specialist homelessness agencies comprise diverse sections of the community. Data presented in this chapter show that these clients have differing needs in relation to support and accommodation and that their patterns of use vary accordingly. For example, the length of time clients were supported and accommodated varied according to the client group, with family groups with children generally having the longest periods of support and accommodation.
6.1	Length of support
Nationally, 44% of all closed support periods lasted for 1 week or less, with around half of those lasting for less than 1 day (Table 6.1). Sixteen per cent lasted from 1 week to 1 month and 23% lasted from 1 month to 3 months. Relatively few lasted longer than 3 months.
The median length of support Australia-wide was 14 days. Because means are affected much more than medians by a small number of large values, the mean number of days of support (63 days) is considerably longer than the median.
State and territory
The lengths of support periods were not consistent across the states and territories (Table 6.1). In particular, in Victoria, 39% of closed support periods lasted less than 1 day, compared with between 1% and 20% for the other jurisdictions. In contrast, Tasmania reported a higher proportion of closed support periods lasting between 1 and 3 months (35%, compared with between 18% and 28% for the other states and territories), and the Australian Capital Territory had the highest proportion of support periods for clients who were supported for longer than 6 months (27%, compared with between 6% and 12% for the other states and territory).
These differences across the states and territories are also clearly shown in the mean and median lengths of support. Victoria had the shortest median length of support (4 days), followed by Western Australia (8 days) and the Northern Territory (13 days). The Australian Capital Territory had the longest median length of support (61 days), ahead of Tasmania 
(37 days). The mean length of support ranged from 49 days in Victoria to 163 days in the Australian Capital Territory.
Client group
Patterns of support length varied according to the client group (Table 6.2). As illustrated in Figure 6.1, family groups, especially those with accompanying children, tended to have longer periods of support than clients who presented alone or with unrelated people. For example, couples with children recorded the longest median length of support of all 
(42 days). In contrast, females and males aged 25 years and over who presented alone or with an unrelated person tended to be supported for short periods (medians of 5 and 7 days, respectively).
Figure 6.1: Median length of support, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Vertical bar chart showing days on y-axis and client group on x-axis.
Source: Table 6.2.
6.2	Length of accommodation
A third of closed support periods included one or more periods of accommodation (33% or 58,300) (tables 6.1 and 6.3, including errors and omissions).
Of closed support periods with accommodation, 55,200 had dates of accommodation reported, enabling the length of accommodated to be calculated. A small proportion (11% or 6,000) of these involved accommodation that started and ended on the same day and the remainder involved accommodation of 1 day or longer. For analysis purposes, accommodation starting and ending on the same day has been excluded from tables and figures in this section.
In 40% of the closed support periods with accommodation that lasted for 1 day or longer, the accommodation lasted for one week or less, in 24% for between 1 week and 1 month, in 21% from 1 to 3 months, and in 15% for longer than 3 months. In line with this, the median length of accommodation nationally was 13 days. The mean length of accommodation was 57 days.
State and territory
Accommodation period lengths were not consistent across the states and territories (Table 6.3). For example, clients in the Australian Capital Territory were generally accommodated for longer periods, with a median length of 38 days. In contrast, clients in the Northern Territory and Western Australia were generally accommodated for short periods, with median lengths of 5 and 6 days, respectively.
Client group
Family groups, especially couples with children, were generally accommodated for longer periods than clients who presented alone or with unrelated people (Figure 6.2).

Figure 6.2: Median length of accommodation for clients who were accommodated for at least 1 day, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Vertical bar chart showing days on y-axis and client group on x-axis.
Source: Table 6.4.
6.3	Support provided to clients
In 2008–09, data on 35 types of support were collected for clients (including an ‘other’ category of support). These individual types of support can be grouped into six broad types.
The three broad types of support most often provided were general support or advocacy (in 77% of support periods), personal support (57%) and housing or accommodation-related support (56%) (Table 6.5). Specifically, the main type of general support or advocacy provided was advice or information (in 71% of support periods); the most commonly provided personal support service was emotional support (51%); and the main type of housing or accommodation service provided was ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ (34%).
Of the six broad groups, specialist support was provided the least (in 22% of support periods). The most commonly provided specialist support types were health or medical services (in 9% of support periods), drug and alcohol support or intervention services (6%), culturally specific services (5%) and specialist counselling (4%).
No support was provided directly to the client by the agency in 3% of support periods in which information was recorded on the types of support that clients received. However, agencies may have arranged referrals for clients in these cases. How agencies meet the needs of clients is examined further in Chapter 7.
State and territory
The types of support provided to clients varied considerably by state and territory 
(Table 6.5). For example, housing or accommodation-related support was provided to clients in 79% of support periods in the Australian Capital Territory, compared with 39% in Victoria; financial or employment support was provided in 54% of support periods in the Northern Territory, compared with 28% in South Australia; personal support was provided in 69% of support periods in New South Wales, compared with 47% in Victoria and Western Australia; general support or advocacy was provided in 86% per cent of support periods in New South Wales and South Australia, compared with 58% in Western Australia; specialist support was provided in 30% of support periods in New South Wales, compared with 10% in Tasmania; and basic support was provided in 69% of support periods in the Northern Territory, compared with 30% in Victoria.
Client group
The types of support commonly provided to clients varied markedly according to the person or group being assisted (Table 6.6). For example, males alone aged under 25 years were provided with housing or accommodation support more often than the other client groups, with 65% of support periods for this group including the provision of at least one of these support types. In comparison, females alone aged 25 years and over were provided with housing or accommodation related support less often than the other client groups (in 45% of their support periods).
Females with children received some form of personal support in 74% of their support periods, which was the highest proportion recorded for any of the client groups. More specifically, females with children recorded relatively high levels of support for domestic or family violence and for emotional support.
Males and females aged 25 years and over who presented alone and females with children were provided with specialist support services more often than the other client groups (in at least 24% of their support periods). Specifically, males alone aged 25 years and over had a higher proportion of support periods than the other client groups in which they received health or medical services, drug or alcohol support or intervention, psychological services and psychiatric services; and females alone aged 25 years and over and those with children were provided with culturally appropriate support and specialist counselling more often than other client groups. Males with children and couples with children were provided with specialist support in fewer of their support periods than the other client groups (12% and 15%, respectively).
6.4	Support provided to accompanying children
In 58,900 of the 111,200 accompanying child support periods reported during 2008–09, some information was provided on support requirements or provision for accompanying children (Table 6.7). The large difference between these two numbers is primarily because children may or may not require direct support when they accompany a parent(s) or guardian(s) to an agency, though they may benefit indirectly as a result of their parent or guardian being supported.
In 2008–09, data on 18 types of support were collected for accompanying children (including an ‘other’ category of support). As for clients, these individual support types can be grouped into six broad types of support. At the broad level, ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ and basic support were the most commonly provided (provided in 54% and 50%, respectively, of support periods in which information was provided on support requirements or provision). Specialist support was the least often provided broad type of support (15%).
Agencies did not provide any support directly to children in 5% of the accompanying child support periods in which information was provided on support requirements or provision. However, agencies may have arranged referrals in these cases. How agencies meet the needs of accompanying children is examined further in Chapter 7.
State and territory
The types of support commonly provided to accompanying children varied according to the state or territory in which they were located (Table 6.7). For example, ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ was provided most often in the Northern Territory (88%) and least often in South Australia (26%). In South Australia, the most common broad type of support provided was general support or advocacy (73%), and this was provided in a higher proportion of accompanying child support periods than in the other jurisdictions (between 9% and 61%).
Other notable differences were: in the Northern Territory, basic support was provided in 73% of periods, compared with between 26% and 62% in the other states and territory; in New South Wales, the Australian Capital Territory and Tasmania, personal support was provided in 30%, 28% and 24% of periods, respectively, compared with between 5% and 16% in the other jurisdictions; and in New South Wales and Queensland, school liaison or child care was provided in 33% and 27% of periods, respectively, compared with between 7% and 22% in the other states and territories.
Client group
The types of support commonly provided to accompanying children varied according to who they were with (Table 6.8). For example, although the most common broad types of support provided to children accompanying their mother or a female guardian were ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ (55%) followed by basic support (53%), for children accompanying a father or a male guardian, it was general support or advocacy services (51%) followed by ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ (43%). Children accompanying ‘other’ family groups were far more often provided with personal support (40%), general support and advocacy (81%), specialist services (48%) and basic support (65%) than other children.
6.5	
Tables
Table 6.1:	Closed support periods: length of support, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09 
(per cent)
Length of support	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
									%	Number	
1 week or less	41.0	54.5	35.6	49.0	33.7	25.0	15.7	41.7	43.9	77,600	
Less than 1 day	16.6	39.1	12.6	19.7	12.3	7.2	0.8	4.7	22.7	40,100	
1 day	9.4	5.9	6.6	10.0	6.5	6.7	5.1	11.9	7.5	13,300	
2–3 days	5.7	4.2	6.9	10.0	6.2	4.7	3.9	11.2	5.8	10,300	
4–5 days	3.2	2.4	4.6	4.9	4.3	3.1	2.9	7.6	3.5	6,200	
6–7 days	6.1	2.9	4.8	4.4	4.4	3.3	3.1	6.2	4.4	7,800	
>1 week–1 month	15.9	12.2	20.6	19.4	19.6	16.7	20.0	22.3	16.2	28,600	
>1–2 weeks	7.8	5.0	9.0	8.4	8.3	7.2	7.8	10.4	7.2	12,700	
>2–3 weeks	4.3	3.6	6.1	6.1	6.4	4.8	6.0	6.2	4.8	8,400	
>3–4 weeks	3.7	3.6	5.6	5.0	4.9	4.6	6.2	5.7	4.3	7,500	
>1 month–3 months	22.7	19.7	27.5	18.2	23.8	34.5	22.0	20.7	22.5	39,700	
>4–6 weeks	8.3	7.0	12.0	6.9	7.7	12.8	8.3	8.6	8.4	14,900	
>6–8 weeks	5.0	4.7	5.7	4.5	5.7	8.0	4.8	5.1	5.1	9,000	
>8–10 weeks	4.2	3.5	4.5	3.1	5.0	6.2	3.8	3.2	4.1	7,200	
>10–14 weeks	5.1	4.4	5.3	3.7	5.4	7.4	5.2	3.7	4.9	8,600	
>3 months–6 months	10.4	7.3	8.9	6.4	11.2	12.9	15.1	6.9	9.0	15,800	
>14–16 weeks	3.6	2.7	3.4	2.4	3.5	4.6	5.4	2.7	3.2	5,600	
>16–19 weeks	2.7	1.8	2.2	1.6	3.0	3.3	4.1	1.5	2.3	4,000	
>19–22 weeks	2.0	1.5	1.7	1.2	2.3	2.7	2.4	1.4	1.7	3,100	
>22–26 weeks	2.1	1.4	1.6	1.3	2.4	2.3	3.2	1.3	1.7	3,100	
>6 months	10.0	6.3	7.4	6.9	11.8	11.0	27.2	8.3	8.5	15,000	
>26–39 weeks	3.7	2.7	3.2	2.8	4.5	4.8	8.3	2.3	3.3	5,900	
>39–52 weeks	2.4	1.3	1.5	1.4	2.5	2.5	4.1	1.2	1.8	3,300	
>52 weeks	3.9	2.4	2.7	2.8	4.8	3.7	14.8	4.9	3.3	5,900	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	27.9	33.6	14.7	7.7	9.6	3.2	1.1	2.4	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	49,300	59,400	26,000	13,600	16,900	5,700	1,900	4,200	. .	176,800	
Mean length (days)	71	49	61	51	81	81	163	79	. .	63	
Median length (days)	16	4	21	8	24	37	61	13	. .	14	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 0.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation. 
Source: Client Collection.

Table 6.2:	Closed support periods: length of support, by client group, Australia, 2008–09 
(per cent)
Length of support	Male alone under 25	Male alone 
25+	Female alone under 25	Female alone 
25+	Couple no children	Couple with children	Male 
with children	Female with children	Other	
										
1 week or less	39.4	56.7	38.2	51.7	36.2	23.8	27.1	33.6	30.2	
Less than 1 day	18.1	31.3	17.4	29.6	20.9	13.7	15.8	14.4	16.3	
1 day	7.4	9.5	7.2	7.7	4.6	2.9	3.3	6.3	4.5	
2–3 days	6.1	6.6	6.3	6.0	3.7	2.4	2.6	5.9	4.1	
4–5 days	3.7	3.8	3.3	3.5	2.7	1.8	1.6	3.6	2.1	
6–7 days	4.1	5.5	4.1	4.8	4.3	3.1	3.8	3.4	3.2	
>1 week–1 month	18.1	16.3	16.0	15.2	17.0	15.4	15.9	15.6	13.2	
>1–2 weeks	8.4	8.1	6.9	7.0	6.5	5.2	5.5	6.0	6.1	
>2–3 weeks	5.4	4.4	5.1	4.3	4.8	4.6	5.1	4.8	3.7	
>3–4 weeks	4.3	3.9	4.1	3.9	5.7	5.7	5.3	4.7	3.3	
>1 month–3 months	24.6	16.6	25.4	19.6	28.7	31.4	29.9	26.7	28.3	
>4–6 weeks	8.7	6.5	9.3	7.7	11.6	11.6	10.7	9.1	7.7	
>6–8 weeks	6.0	3.6	5.7	4.5	6.2	7.3	5.6	6.4	6.3	
>8–10 weeks	4.6	2.8	4.6	3.3	4.7	5.8	6.5	5.1	5.7	
>10–14 weeks	5.3	3.6	5.8	4.0	6.2	6.7	7.1	6.1	8.6	
>3 months–6 months	9.4	5.6	10.4	7.5	9.8	14.1	13.4	12.1	12.7	
>14–16 weeks	3.2	2.3	3.7	2.4	3.4	5.0	4.7	4.3	5.8	
>16–19 weeks	2.5	1.4	2.6	2.0	2.6	3.6	3.6	3.0	2.7	
>19–22 weeks	1.8	1.0	2.1	1.4	1.9	2.5	2.4	2.4	1.7	
>22–26 weeks	1.9	0.9	2.0	1.6	1.9	3.0	2.6	2.4	2.5	
>6 months	8.6	4.7	9.9	6.1	8.3	15.2	13.8	12.0	15.7	
>26–39 weeks	3.2	1.8	3.8	2.5	3.9	5.5	5.7	4.9	6.1	
>39–52 weeks	2.2	1.0	2.5	1.3	1.8	3.0	2.8	2.5	2.7	
>52 weeks	3.1	1.9	3.6	2.3	2.6	6.7	5.3	4.7	6.8	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	
Total (row %)	10.7	25.7	12.9	18.4	3.2	4.4	1.4	22.5	0.8	
Total (number)	18,700	44,800	22,500	32,100	5,600	7,700	2,400	39,200	1,400	
Mean length (days)	65	40	72	48	63	105	96	83	112	
Median length (days)	17	5	21	7	25	42	36	30	40	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 2,808.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 6.3:	Closed support periods in which clients were accommodated: total length of accommodation, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Length of accommodation	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
									%	Number	
1 week or less	37.3	26.5	37.3	54.8	39.1	43.9	16.3	59.9	39.7	19,500	
1 day	13.8	9.3	10.5	18.2	11.5	16.2	4.4	19.4	13.1	6,500	
2–3 days	11.2	7.7	11.9	19.0	12.4	11.5	4.7	19.8	12.5	6,100	
4–5 days	6.5	4.8	7.9	9.6	8.3	6.6	3.7	12.3	7.5	3,700	
6–7 days	5.8	4.8	6.9	7.9	6.9	9.6	3.5	8.4	6.6	3,300	
>1 week–1 month	22.1	25.0	25.7	22.3	29.6	23.6	26.7	20.3	24.0	11,800	
>1–2 weeks	10.9	10.3	12.8	12.0	14.5	12.6	11.9	11.5	11.9	5,900	
>2–3 weeks	6.3	7.5	7.3	6.0	9.2	6.3	7.8	5.3	6.9	3,400	
>3–4 weeks	4.9	7.2	5.6	4.3	5.9	4.7	7.0	3.5	5.3	2,600	
>1 month–3 months	23.0	28.5	23.6	14.4	14.5	21.2	22.0	14.2	21.3	10,500	
>4–6 weeks	8.0	13.7	8.0	5.6	5.4	8.5	8.5	6.5	8.0	3,900	
>6–8 weeks	5.5	5.5	5.8	3.6	3.0	5.5	4.8	3.7	5.0	2,500	
>8–10 weeks	4.2	4.5	4.3	2.3	2.7	3.5	4.0	2.3	3.7	1,800	
>10–14 weeks	5.4	4.7	5.5	2.9	3.4	3.8	4.7	1.7	4.6	2,300	
>3 months–6 months	8.6	9.5	7.7	3.9	6.6	5.9	12.9	2.7	7.3	3,600	
>14–16 weeks	3.4	3.1	3.5	1.8	1.9	2.1	4.0	1.2	2.9	1,400	
>16–19 weeks	2.2	2.4	1.7	1.0	1.6	1.5	2.6	0.4	1.8	900	
>19–22 weeks	1.6	2.0	1.4	0.5	1.5	1.5	2.5	0.8	1.4	700	
>22–26 weeks	1.4	2.0	1.1	0.6	1.6	0.8	3.8	0.4	1.2	600	
>6 months	9.0	10.5	5.7	4.6	10.3	5.4	22.0	2.9	7.6	3,700	
>26–39 weeks	3.2	3.4	2.4	1.8	3.9	2.3	7.6	1.6	2.9	1,400	
>39–52 weeks	1.8	2.2	1.4	0.9	2.6	1.1	3.5	0.7	1.6	800	
>52 weeks	3.9	4.9	1.9	1.9	3.8	2.0	11.0	0.7	3.1	1,500	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	32.3	9.9	25.0	12.8	9.0	4.3	1.6	5.1	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	15,900	4,900	12,300	6,300	4,400	2,100	800	2,500	. .	49,200	
Mean length (days)	66	79	49	37	60	45	124	25	. .	57	
Median length (days)	16	27	14	6	12	11	38	5	. .	13	
Accommodation starting and ending on the same date (number)	4,300	300	500	400	100	100	<50	300	. .	6,000	
Total closed support periods with accommodation (number)	20,100	5,200	12,900	6,700	4,500	2,200	800	2,800	. .	55,200	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 3,057.
2.	Clients were able to be accommodated on more than one occasion in a support period.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 6.4:	Closed support periods in which clients were accommodated: total length of accommodation, by client group, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Length of accommodation	Male alone under 25	Male alone 
25+	Female alone under 25	Female alone 
25+	Couple no children	Couple with children	Male 
with children	Female with children	Other	
										
1 week or less	37.9	41.3	41.5	49.1	40.0	14.4	18.6	33.9	35.4	
1 day	12.2	12.5	14.4	17.4	10.5	2.9	4.0	10.0	14.1	
2–3 days	11.4	13.1	13.7	15.8	10.7	5.3	5.6	11.9	8.3	
4–5 days	7.4	8.2	7.0	9.0	5.9	2.2	2.0	6.6	4.9	
6–7 days	6.9	7.5	6.5	6.8	13.0	4.0	7.0	5.4	8.0	
>1 week–1 month	28.1	27.2	23.7	22.9	20.6	11.6	11.9	20.5	21.2	
>1–2 weeks	13.9	14.3	11.3	11.3	10.7	4.9	5.6	9.0	11.8	
>2–3 weeks	8.3	7.2	7.5	6.7	5.0	3.0	3.3	6.2	8.2	
>3–4 weeks	5.9	5.7	5.0	4.9	4.9	3.7	3.0	5.3	1.2	
>1 month–3 months	22.2	20.9	20.4	18.4	21.4	24.2	26.6	23.6	13.6	
>4–6 weeks	8.6	7.6	8.3	7.5	9.3	5.7	7.2	8.2	3.0	
>6–8 weeks	5.6	5.1	4.3	4.1	3.9	5.0	4.3	5.6	1.7	
>8–10 weeks	3.7	3.7	3.8	3.3	3.7	5.5	4.7	4.0	3.8	
>10–14 weeks	4.3	4.6	4.0	3.5	4.5	7.8	10.4	5.7	5.0	
>3 months–6 months	6.0	6.6	7.0	4.8	7.9	20.9	18.9	9.6	9.6	
>14–16 weeks	2.2	3.1	2.5	2.0	3.3	7.3	5.4	3.5	3.8	
>16–19 weeks	1.4	1.6	1.8	1.3	1.9	4.4	3.6	2.3	2.9	
>19–22 weeks	1.4	1.2	1.3	0.8	1.0	4.5	4.4	1.9	1.3	
>22–26 weeks	1.0	0.8	1.4	0.6	1.7	4.6	5.5	1.9	1.7	
>6 months	5.8	4.0	7.3	4.9	10.1	28.9	24.1	12.5	20.3	
>26–39 weeks	2.3	1.7	2.7	2.0	3.8	8.4	9.4	4.6	9.5	
>39–52 weeks	1.3	1.0	1.7	1.0	3.5	5.0	4.4	2.6	2.4	
>52 weeks	2.1	1.3	2.9	1.8	2.8	15.5	10.3	5.2	8.4	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	
Total (row %)	13.7	30.4	13.7	14.3	1.8	2.7	0.8	22.2	0.4	
Total (number)	6,700	14,800	6,600	6,900	900	1,300	400	10,800	200	
Mean length (days)	47	41	54	41	61	167	144	79	104	
Median length (days)	13	12	13	8	14	91	75	22	18	
Accommodation starting and ending on the same date (number)	500	3,900	400	600	100	100	<50	500	<50	
Total closed support periods with accommodation (number)	7,100	18,700	7,000	7,500	900	1,400	400	11,200	200	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 3,950.
2.	Clients were able to be accommodated on more than one occasion in a support period.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 6.5:	Support periods: type of support provided to clients, by state and territory, Australia, 
2008–09 (per cent)
Type of support	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
Housing/accommodation	65.9	38.9	71.8	57.1	48.7	60.6	78.5	75.0	56.1	
SAAP/CAP accommodation	42.7	13.3	52.5	45.1	28.4	39.0	45.3	66.0	34.2	
Assistance to obtain/maintain short-term accommodation	14.9	20.8	16.8	7.0	11.9	10.5	21.3	4.6	15.7	
Assistance to obtain/maintain medium-term accommodation	12.0	3.7	9.3	6.0	16.5	11.3	18.3	4.6	8.8	
Assistance to obtain/maintain independent housing	29.9	19.9	23.8	16.2	18.9	22.1	43.6	12.5	23.3	
Financial/employment	38.9	38.2	40.2	31.1	27.9	31.0	44.3	53.6	37.3	
Assistance to obtain/maintain government allowance	15.0	9.9	10.6	8.3	8.7	5.6	13.7	15.3	11.3	
Employment/training assistance	7.5	3.6	5.0	4.4	3.5	1.9	9.1	3.3	5.0	
Financial assistance/material aid	29.1	32.3	32.8	24.0	21.4	25.3	36.7	39.5	29.7	
Financial counselling and support	12.0	7.2	9.9	7.2	7.1	6.1	12.6	8.9	9.1	
Personal support	68.6	46.7	52.2	47.2	66.8	60.7	68.4	65.8	57.2	
Incest/sexual assault	1.8	0.9	1.0	0.9	2.3	13.5	1.1	0.5	1.7	
Domestic/family violence	21.3	20.2	13.8	22.1	25.1	5.9	15.2	22.7	19.8	
Family/relationship	22.6	12.1	17.0	12.7	13.5	10.2	28.5	12.6	16.3	
Emotional support	65.4	39.4	47.3	39.8	58.3	48.4	62.5	61.0	51.2	
Assistance with problem gambling	0.6	0.1	0.2	0.1	0.3	0.3	0.6	0.2	0.3	
General support/advocacy	86.0	74.4	75.0	57.5	85.7	70.7	76.5	65.0	77.3	
Living skills/personal development	26.5	14.7	17.7	12.6	15.5	16.9	31.1	22.4	19.0	
Assistance with legal issues/court support	11.2	7.9	9.1	7.0	10.7	3.8	11.5	4.8	9.1	
Advice/information	80.5	68.4	65.9	48.8	78.4	61.5	70.6	57.4	70.5	
Retrieval/storage/removal of personal belongings	24.3	6.6	18.6	9.6	14.4	6.7	15.6	24.7	15.1	
Advocacy/liaison on behalf of client	46.2	38.1	37.6	28.3	42.8	33.2	46.6	37.3	40.0	
Specialist services	30.3	14.2	17.7	28.7	29.2	10.3	25.3	19.1	22.3	
Psychological services	3.1	3.7	1.8	4.0	2.8	2.0	1.9	6.3	3.2	
Specialist counselling	5.6	2.3	2.5	3.1	11.9	3.2	5.4	2.3	4.4	
Psychiatric services	1.4	1.8	2.3	0.5	0.7	0.4	3.4	0.3	1.5	
Pregnancy support	1.5	0.8	1.5	0.9	1.3	0.8	6.6	0.9	1.2	
Family planning support	1.2	0.4	1.0	0.6	1.4	0.5	4.2	0.7	0.9	
Drug/alcohol support or intervention	11.9	2.8	2.8	7.1	4.8	2.2	6.0	3.0	6.1	
Physical disability services	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.2	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.1	
Intellectual disability services	0.3	0.2	0.1	0.1	0.3	0.2	0.6	0.1	0.2	
Culturally specific services	6.2	3.7	2.5	12.4	8.0	0.6	5.4	3.5	5.3	
Interpreter services	1.2	1.2	0.4	1.0	0.9	0.4	0.9	0.1	1.0	
Assistance with immigration issues	1.0	0.8	0.7	1.2	0.3	0.2	1.5	0.1	0.8	
Health/medical services	12.0	5.3	10.7	7.2	7.5	3.1	11.5	7.6	8.5	
Basic support/other n.e.s.	62.9	30.0	56.6	59.7	37.7	43.3	60.2	69.2	48.5	
Meals	48.0	9.5	42.6	35.2	22.9	24.0	32.5	59.7	31.0	
Laundry/shower facilities	40.1	8.8	36.3	34.8	22.2	21.6	35.4	59.5	27.4	
Recreation	24.1	6.0	23.0	17.8	8.8	10.1	27.4	47.4	16.4	
Transport	25.6	13.2	28.0	21.2	17.2	21.5	39.0	46.1	21.4	
Other	21.5	15.4	7.3	21.2	7.5	9.6	9.7	21.4	15.6	
No support provided directly	1.3	3.4	1.8	4.7	3.7	3.7	3.0	2.7	2.7	
Total (number)	60,400	63,200	28,900	16,800	19,700	6,900	2,600	4,600	203,000	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 9,440 (support periods with no information on support requirements or provision).
2.	Clients were able to receive multiple types of support, so the percentages do not add to 100.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 6.6:	Support periods: type of support provided to clients, by client group, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Type of support	Male 
alone under 25	Male alone 
25+	Female alone under 25	Female alone 
25+	Couple no children	Couple with children	Male 
with children	Female with children	Other	
Housing/accommodation	65.2	59.8	59.4	44.8	60.6	59.6	57.6	57.2	45.4	
SAAP/CAP accommodation	40.8	44.1	33.6	25.4	19.6	23.2	23.9	32.5	21.6	
Assistance to obtain/maintain short-term accommodation	22.3	14.7	19.2	11.3	22.8	20.2	18.1	14.8	14.1	
Assistance to obtain/maintain medium-term accommodation	13.1	8.1	13.0	4.4	10.3	12.3	11.5	9.2	6.1	
Assistance to obtain/maintain independent housing	21.6	19.8	22.1	18.6	34.7	37.8	35.5	30.5	20.9	
Financial/employment	41.6	36.9	39.2	36.7	41.2	40.7	42.1	39.7	25.9	
Assistance to obtain/maintain government allowance	15.2	10.5	14.9	11.2	7.8	7.1	8.8	11.9	6.7	
Employment/training assistance	12.3	3.0	10.7	2.3	4.0	4.6	2.9	3.6	5.1	
Financial assistance/material aid	29.9	30.5	28.0	29.7	33.9	34.5	36.1	33.0	19.2	
Financial counselling and support	11.5	8.2	10.2	8.5	10.1	12.6	12.4	9.8	5.7	
Personal support	53.8	40.6	64.5	64.6	44.3	51.4	53.6	74.0	54.3	
Incest/sexual assault	1.0	0.2	3.0	1.6	0.5	0.6	0.5	1.9	1.2	
Domestic/family violence	3.7	2.3	15.8	35.0	4.7	7.2	6.0	44.7	19.1	
Family/relationship	19.5	7.8	24.0	15.0	12.6	17.4	17.4	22.0	18.0	
Emotional support	50.5	39.4	58.5	56.6	41.6	46.4	48.9	64.6	45.4	
Assistance with problem gambling	0.2	0.6	0.1	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.5	0.2	0.1	
General support/advocacy	78.3	76.7	78.0	77.6	76.5	79.5	80.2	82.7	67.0	
Living skills/personal development	32.8	16.3	31.4	14.1	15.2	13.6	15.2	16.8	14.1	
Assistance with legal issues/
court support	9.2	3.5	7.5	12.1	4.2	5.0	5.6	16.2	6.4	
Advice/information	69.3	69.0	71.0	71.2	70.8	74.2	75.0	77.0	57.1	
Retrieval/storage/removal 
of personal belongings	19.4	27.8	14.0	8.7	9.3	7.0	6.4	9.8	7.7	
Advocacy/liaison on behalf of client	41.2	32.0	43.7	40.1	43.9	45.1	46.8	49.6	41.1	
Specialist services	20.8	25.6	21.8	23.7	17.7	14.5	11.7	25.1	20.1	
Psychological services	2.8	4.9	2.7	3.7	2.6	1.4	1.9	2.6	3.9	
Specialist counselling	3.2	2.4	4.5	5.8	2.6	2.9	2.7	7.6	5.4	
Psychiatric services	1.4	3.4	0.7	1.5	0.9	0.4	0.3	0.6	1.1	
Pregnancy support	0.2	0	3.1	0.4	2.2	2.1	0.3	2.5	2.5	
Family planning support	0.7	0.1	1.9	0.3	1.1	1.5	0.5	1.7	0.8	
Drug/alcohol support or intervention	8.9	11.0	5.1	5.7	3.4	2.5	3.4	2.6	2.5	
Physical disability services	0.1	0.1	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2	0.2	
Intellectual disability services	0.4	0.1	0.2	0.1	0.2	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.4	
Culturally specific services	3.7	1.7	5.6	6.5	5.3	4.8	3.6	9.8	5.8	
Interpreter services	0.3	0.1	0.6	1.3	0.5	0.9	0.4	2.3	1.4	
Assistance with immigration issues	0.4	0.1	0.8	1.5	0.2	0.7	0.3	1.6	0.6	
Health/medical services	8.8	13.0	8.2	7.1	6.4	4.3	3.6	7.6	4.8	
Basic support/other n.e.s.	54.6	61.1	50.8	45.1	38.7	29.2	29.8	43.8	43.6	
Meals	40.1	45.0	33.8	26.9	18.0	10.0	12.2	21.8	9.7	
Laundry/shower facilities	34.8	43.3	28.2	22.9	13.0	6.0	7.0	19.7	7.7	
Recreation	25.3	17.1	23.8	14.0	6.8	5.2	5.4	14.8	8.7	
Transport	30.5	12.1	32.7	19.5	18.0	15.1	15.0	27.0	18.7	
Other	12.1	21.8	11.2	15.8	13.1	10.9	12.0	17.5	28.9	
No support provided directly	3.0	1.5	3.3	1.8	3.8	3.5	3.1	2.5	8.7	
Total (number)	22,000	49,600	26,600	35,200	6,500	9,500	2,800	46,500	1,900	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 11,906 (including support periods with no information on support requirements or provision).
2.	Clients were able to receive multiple types of support, so the percentages do not add to 100.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 6.7:	Accompanying child support periods: type of support provided to accompanying children, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Type of support	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
Accommodation	48.1	54.2	73.6	68.2	25.7	59.5	58.7	88.3	53.8	
SAAP/CAP accommodation	48.1	54.2	73.6	68.2	25.7	59.5	58.7	88.3	53.8	
School liaison/child care	33.4	13.7	26.6	18.9	7.3	21.4	21.7	6.5	21.4	
School liaison	15.5	9.4	11.7	6.9	2.8	11.7	13.6	5.3	10.3	
Child care	24.9	5.2	18.1	13.9	4.8	14.9	10.7	1.8	14.4	
Personal support	29.9	10.4	16.1	13.9	8.1	23.8	27.5	4.6	17.8	
Help with behavioural problems	12.7	5.5	5.5	4.4	5.3	9.3	10.4	2.3	7.6	
Sexual/physical abuse support	3.7	1.6	1.1	0.8	1.1	15.6	2.1	0.6	2.3	
Skills education	11.0	2.0	4.2	3.4	3.1	4.7	13.8	0.1	5.7	
Structured play/skill development	21.6	5.3	12.0	9.7	4.1	8.2	22.8	2.7	12.0	
General support/advocacy	60.5	46.2	23.9	24.2	72.5	29.0	53.5	8.6	47.2	
Access arrangements	5.6	3.6	2.3	1.5	2.5	3.2	4.4	0.9	3.5	
Advice/information	44.1	27.0	18.1	14.8	62.0	17.9	41.1	6.2	34.3	
Advocacy	44.1	32.2	15.1	12.2	27.2	20.9	40.9	2.9	29.0	
Specialist services	19.6	11.8	9.1	19.3	8.9	17.4	19.9	31.7	15.2	
Specialist counselling	5.8	3.2	1.6	2.3	1.4	11.9	0.5	0.8	3.4	
Culturally specific services	10.5	5.3	2.2	14.1	6.0	2.2	9.8	4.4	7.6	
Health/medical services	8.7	5.6	6.5	4.1	3.7	4.7	13.2	27.4	7.0	
Basic support/other n.e.s.	61.5	33.4	59.8	60.9	25.8	37.7	54.4	72.9	49.9	
Meals	37.7	16.5	42.1	45.4	13.7	13.1	23.1	66.1	31.5	
Showers/hygiene	31.7	13.7	33.2	46.8	15.6	21.9	25.7	62.7	28.5	
Recreation	33.1	12.3	31.1	23.0	10.0	21.3	34.8	40.4	24.0	
Transport	37.6	20.7	37.1	31.5	10.3	31.6	35.1	52.7	29.6	
Other	26.9	10.3	16.6	15.0	8.8	13.2	24.8	26.8	17.5	
No support provided directly by agency	4.1	8.6	2.7	5.3	5.1	6.8	2.1	1.8	5.0	
Total accompanying child support periods (number)	17,900	10,900	8,800	7,300	9,300	1,500	1,300	1,900	58,900	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 52,238 (accompanying child support periods with no information on support requirements or provision). In 51,132 of these, ‘no assistance’ was indicated as required for the accompanying child.
2.	Accompanying children were able to receive multiple types of support, so the percentages do not add to 100.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 6.8:	Accompanying child support periods: type of support provided to accompanying children, by client group, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Type of support	Couple 
with children	Male 
with children	Female 
with children	Other 
with children	
Accommodation	48.0	43.1	55.0	44.8	
SAAP/CAP accommodation	48.0	43.1	55.0	44.8	
School liaison/child care	10.9	10.9	23.0	22.7	
School liaison	6.6	8.5	10.8	17.0	
Child care	4.8	4.6	15.9	14.2	
Personal support	8.6	10.7	19.1	39.7	
Help with behavioural problems	3.9	5.5	8.1	17.0	
Sexual/physical abuse support	0.8	4.4	2.4	—	
Skills education	3.6	4.3	5.9	28.5	
Structured play/skill development	5.5	4.4	13.0	31.2	
General support/advocacy	42.2	51.3	47.6	80.9	
Access arrangements	1.4	4.0	3.7	2.8	
Advice/information	34.1	39.3	34.1	69.8	
Advocacy	23.6	31.3	29.5	52.8	
Specialist services	8.1	9.3	16.2	48.2	
Specialist counselling	1.5	4.9	3.6	5.5	
Culturally specific services	4.0	4.0	8.2	34.2	
Health/medical services	3.5	4.3	7.5	25.5	
Basic support/other n.e.s.	29.3	35.9	52.8	65.0	
Meals	12.8	20.8	34.1	25.2	
Showers/hygiene	7.3	11.8	31.6	19.6	
Recreation	9.0	11.4	26.2	33.8	
Transport	12.0	14.2	32.2	42.2	
Other	10.3	11.1	18.6	37.0	
No support provided directly by agency	6.6	4.8	4.8	2.8	
Total accompanying child support periods (number)	5,800	2,000	50,900	<50	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 52,486 (including accompanying child support periods with no information on support requirements or provision). In 51,132 of these, ‘no assistance’ was indicated as required for the accompanying child.
2.	Accompanying children were able to receive multiple types of support, so the percentages do not add to 100.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

7	Meeting the needs of clients and accompanying children
One way that performance can be assessed is by measuring the ability of agencies to meet the needs of their clients and accompanying children. In the Client Collection, this can be measured by whether the worker indicated that a particular type of support was required and then whether that support was able to be provided. In some cases, agencies might not be able to meet all needs directly. In these instances, referrals to appropriate organisations might be arranged. However, for some of the required support, it might not be possible either to provide the support or to refer the person on, which results in an unmet need.
Whether or not the needs of a client or accompanying child have been met can only be measured after the support period has ended. It is, therefore, necessary to look at closed support periods when examining the provision of required support. Note that the number of times a type of support was required, provided or referred is not collected: only that the support type was required, provided or referred sometime during the support period. For example, a client may have required a meal three times within a support period, but the Client Collection only shows that a meal was required sometime during the client’s support, not that it was required three times.
Overall, agencies were able to directly meet the needs of clients and accompanying children in the majority of cases. Basic support—such as meals and shower facilities—were the most likely type of support to be provided directly. Specialist services—such as physical or intellectual disability services—were the least likely type of support to be provided directly and the most likely to be referred on.
7.1	Meeting the needs of clients
Agencies provided information on the action they took to meet the needs of clients for 171,200 of the 176,800 support periods that finished during 2008–09 (Table 7.1 and Chapter 6). In almost all of these closed support periods (170,000), agencies recorded at least one type of support being required by the client (Table 7.5, Part b). In many cases, several types of support were needed, so that overall 961,400 distinct support types were required. This equates to an average of six different types of support being required in each closed support period.
Support required
At the broad level, the most commonly required group of support was general support or advocacy (needed in 79% of closed support periods) (Table 7.1). Housing or accommodation-related support (63%), personal support (58%), basic support (49%), and financial or employment services (40%) were required less frequently. Specialist services were required least (in 27% of closed support periods).
Looking at the individual support types, advice or information was required more often than any other type (in 72% of closed support periods), followed by emotional support (51%), advocacy or liaison on behalf of the client (41%) and ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ (39%).
Note that the model of homelessness service delivery in Victoria has had an impact on the proportions of ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ required nationally. In Victoria, a large proportion of properties in the complementary Transitional Housing Management program accommodate tenants provided with specialist homelessness support (see Chapter 3). Consequently, ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ may not be identified as being required. This is reflected in ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ being needed in at least 44% of closed support periods in all jurisdictions except Victoria where it was identified as needed in 16% 
(Table 7.1).
State and territory
The types of support required varied considerably across the states and territories, at both the broad and individual support type levels (Table 7.1). Some of the differences between the jurisdictions may be partly explained by different approaches to service delivery by different types of agencies dominating service provision, and by the different demographic profiles in the states and territories.
For example, culturally specific services were required in 14% of closed support periods in Western Australia, which was far higher than the 1% reported in Tasmania (Table 7.1). Western Australia had a relatively high proportion of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander clients as well as one of the highest proportions of clients born in predominantly non-English speaking countries (see Table 4.9). These clients would reasonably be expected to require support that was delivered in a way that was sensitive to their ethnic or cultural background.
Client group
Although general support or advocacy was the most common broad type of support required by all client groups overall, the other broad types of support—as well as the individual types of support within these groups—varied according to the person or group being assisted (Table 7.2). Some examples include: for most groups, the next most common broad type of support required was housing or accommodation-related support, but females alone aged 25 years and over and females with children next often required personal support, particularly support related to domestic or family violence; males alone required ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ and basic support, such as meals and laundry or shower facilities, more than the other client groups; and couples both with and without children, and males with children, required assistance to obtain or maintain independent housing in a higher proportion of closed support periods than the other client groups.
Support provision and referral
Although the types of support required by clients can vary considerably in terms of the number who may require them, an inability to provide a particular type of support can have a significant impact on the client requiring it. In these circumstances, an agency’s ability to refer clients to other appropriate service providers assumes added importance. For this reason, the need for a particular type of support is considered to be met if the support could be provided directly by the agency or referred out.
Overall, agencies were able to meet the needs of clients in the majority of cases (Figure 7.1). Agencies directly provided support or referred clients to other organisations in 96% of cases (derived from Table 7.5, Part b).
The three broad types of support most often provided to clients when they were required were basic support (97% of cases), general support or advocacy (96%), and personal support (95%). Specialist services were the least likely to be provided (70%).
Specialist services were the least likely broad group to be provided directly when required (70%) (Table 7.5, Part b). Some particular specialist services, such as physical disability services and intellectual disability services, were provided directly by agencies in less than half of the closed support periods in which these types of support were required (46% and 45%, respectively) (Table 7.5, Part a). However, as Figure 7.1 shows, as the level of direct provision of services falls, referrals generally increase, so that clients received far more referrals for specialist services than other types of support (22%, compared with only 1% for basic support services).
Figure 7.1: Provision of support required by clients, Australia, 2008–09 (percentage of distinct types of support required in closed support periods)
Vertical bar chart showing, for provided and referred only, per cent on y-axis and type of support required on x-axis.
Source: Table 7.5, Part b.
State and territory
There were some variations according to state and territory in the types of support most and least often provided when required (see Table 7.3 in the state and territory supplements to this report). In particular, in South Australia, personal support, rather than basic support, was the broad type of support most often provided when required, and housing or accommodation-related support, rather than specialist services, was the type of support least often provided directly when required and the most likely type of support to be referred on.
Unmet needs
As mentioned above, 96% of the types of support required by clients were able to be provided directly or referred out. This left 4% (or 35,800) of required support needs unmet at the end of a period of support (Table 7.5, Part b). These unmet needs were spread over approximately 15,000 closed support periods (Table 7.7; this includes closed support periods with missing data in the table; see Note 2). Unmet needs may be underestimated because, although a client may require a particular type of support more than once within a period of support, a requirement for a support need only be provided or referred on once for it to be considered met.
When examined as a proportion of distinct types of support required, the most common unmet needs were for specialist services (8%), housing or accommodation services (7%), and financial or employment services (5%) (Table 7.5, Part b).
When examined as a proportion of all unmet needs (as opposed to as a proportion of all required types of support) the most common forms of support that were neither provided nor referred were housing or accommodation services (accounting for 32% of unmet needs), followed by specialist services (16%), and financial or employment services (16%) (Table 7.7).
Client group
The level of unmet need varied according to the client group. Females with children had the highest number of unmet needs, at 8,300 in 4,100 closed support periods (Table 7.7). In contrast, there were only 600 unmet needs for males with children in 400 closed support periods. These figures mainly reflect the total number of support periods provided to each group.
However, by comparing the distribution of all closed support periods with that of unmet needs across client groups, it can be seen that some groups have higher levels of unmet need than others. For example, single young males and females had higher proportions of unmet need than they did of closed support periods. In contrast, single older males and females had lower proportions of unmet need than they did of closed support periods.
The broad types of support that remained unmet at the conclusion of support also varied according to the client group. Although for all groups, support related to housing or accommodation accounted for the highest proportion of unmet need, the proportions varied greatly. The unmet need for housing or accommodation related support was particularly apparent for males with children and couples with children (51% of unmet need for males with children and 49% for couples with children, compared with 25% for males alone aged 25 years). In contrast, males alone aged 25 years and over had higher proportions of unmet need for specialist services (22% of unmet needs, compared with 10% for males with children and 11% for couples with children).
7.2	Meeting the needs of accompanying children
During 2008–09, agencies reported at least 90,100 closed accompanying child support periods (Table 7.3; this includes cases with either missing information or where ‘no assistance’ was indicated as being directly required for the accompanying child; see Note 1). Of these, 46,700 included information about support requirements and provision for accompanying children, and in 46,500 at least one type of support was required by the accompanying child (tables 7.3 and 7.6). In many cases, several different types of support were needed, so that 167,000 different support types were required overall (Table 7.6, Part b). This equates to an average of four different types of support being required in each period.
Support required
At the broad level, accommodation-related support (‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’) was required in 64% of the closed accompanying child support periods where information about support requirements and provision were recorded (Table 7.3). Basic support, such as meals, was required in 53% and general support or advocacy services in 49%. The broad types of support required least often were personal support (19%) and specialist services (20%).
Looking at the individual support types, ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ was needed more often than any other type of support, followed by advice or information and meals (required in 64%, 36% and 35% of closed accompanying child support periods, respectively). The individual support types that were least often required were sexual or physical abuse counselling or support (3%), assistance with access arrangements (4%), specialist counselling (5%) and skills education (6%).
State and territory
As with clients, the pattern for accompanying children varied considerably across the states and territories (Table 7.3). For example, at the broad level, requirement for ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ ranged from 56% of closed accompanying child support periods in New South Wales to 91% in the Northern Territory. The Northern Territory also reported a higher level of requirement than the other states and territories for basic support (78%, compared with between 29% and 66% for the other states and territory).
The Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales and Tasmania reported a higher proportion of closed accompanying child support periods where the broad category of personal support was required (32%, 31% and 26%, respectively, compared with between 6% and 19% for the other states and territory). For the Australian Capital Territory and New South Wales, this personal support was mostly related to help with behavioural problems, structured play, and skills education and development. Tasmania, however, reported a far higher proportion of closed accompanying child support periods in which sexual or physical abuse support was required (15%, compared with between 1% and 4% for the other states and territories).
Client group
There was some variation in the support required by accompanying children, depending on the client with whom they presented (Table 7.4). Although for most groups, with the exception of ‘other with children’, the most commonly required type of support was ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’—and the proportions for this were roughly similar—some other types of support showed large variations. For example, children who presented with a mother or other female guardian more often required school liaison or child care than children in the other client groups (25%, compared with between 13% and 19% for the other client groups).
Support provision and referral
Overall, agencies were able to meet the needs of accompanying children in the vast majority of cases (Table 7.6, Part b). Agencies directly provided the required support in 91% of cases and referred the child on for a further 6%, resulting in 97% of support requirements being met in some way at the completion of support.
In broad terms, as for clients, some types of required support were more likely to be provided directly than others. As illustrated in Figure 7.2, basic support was the broad group of support most often provided directly (in 97% of cases), followed by general support or advocacy (94%), and personal support (88%). Specialist services were the least likely to be provided directly by agencies when required (73%), but were the most frequently referred on (23%).

Figure 7.2: Provision of support required for accompanying children, Australia, 2008–09 (percentage of distinct types of support required in closed accompanying child support periods)
Vertical bar chart showing, for provided and referred only, per cent on y-axis and type of support required on x-axis.
Source: Table 7.6, Part b.
Unmet needs
As mentioned, agencies were able either to provide required support directly to accompanying children or to refer the support out in 97% of cases (Table 7.6, Part b). This left 3% (or 5,500) of support needs unmet at the conclusion of a period of support. These unmet needs were spread across around 3,500 closed accompanying child support periods (Table 7.8; this includes closed support periods with missing data in the table; see Note 2).
When examined as a proportion of distinct types of support required, the most common unmet needs were for accommodation (8%), school liaison or child care (5%) and specialist services (4%) (Table 7.6, Part b). Basic support accounted for the lowest unmet need (1%).
When examined as a proportion of all unmet needs, as opposed to as a proportion of all required support, the most common unmet need was for accommodation (accounting for 42%of unmet needs), followed by basic support (16%) (Table 7.8). Specialist services made up the lowest proportion of unmet needs for accompanying children (9%).
Client group
The level of unmet need for accompanying children varied according to the client with whom they presented. Children accompanying a mother or other female guardian had the highest number of unmet needs, at 4,700 in 2,800 closed support periods (Table 7.8). These figures, however, mainly reflect the total number of accompanying child support periods in each group.
By comparing the distribution of all closed accompanying child support periods with that of unmet needs across client groups, however, it can be seen that children in some groups have lower levels of unmet need than others. For example, children accompanying a mother or other female guardian had relatively fewer unmet needs (84%, compared with 87% of closed accompanying child support periods). In contrast, children accompanying couples and a father or other male guardian had higher proportions of unmet need than they did of closed accompanying support periods.
Accommodation (‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’) was the most common unmet need for all accompanying children, but the proportion varied greatly from 37% of unmet needs for children accompanying female clients to 67%, 65% and 49%, respectively, for children who accompanied couples, males and ‘other’ clients.
7.3	
Tables
Table 7.1:	Closed support periods: type of support required by clients, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Type of support	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
									%	Number	
Housing/accommodation	72.2	43.2	79.0	65.1	69.8	67.2	87.0	80.0	63.0	107,800	
SAAP/CAP accommodation	46.8	16.2	56.9	53.4	45.9	44.3	53.7	72.4	39.1	67,000	
Assistance to obtain/maintain 
short-term accommodation	18.6	23.5	19.6	9.2	14.8	12.2	26.8	5.7	18.9	32,300	
Assistance to obtain/maintain 
medium-term accommodation	14.0	4.4	11.6	6.8	22.2	11.8	24.0	6.4	10.5	18,000	
Assistance to obtain/maintain 
independent housing	33.1	22.8	28.4	17.6	23.4	27.0	52.2	14.2	26.4	45,200	
Financial/employment	41.0	41.3	42.9	35.6	31.3	35.0	48.5	59.0	40.4	69,100	
Assistance to obtain/maintain government allowance	16.3	11.1	12.1	9.4	9.6	6.4	16.0	17.6	12.5	21,400	
Employment and training assistance	7.7	4.8	6.5	5.6	5.5	3.4	12.2	4.3	6.0	10,300	
Financial assistance/material aid	30.6	34.5	34.7	27.5	23.1	27.8	40.0	43.3	31.9	54,600	
Financial counselling and support	12.4	8.9	11.5	8.5	9.0	8.0	17.6	10.1	10.3	17,700	
Personal support	67.6	47.7	52.1	52.1	69.6	62.6	73.2	68.1	57.6	98,600	
Incest/sexual assault	1.9	1.3	1.3	1.0	1.9	13.3	2.1	0.7	1.9	3,200	
Domestic/family violence	22.0	21.7	15.6	24.9	26.6	6.8	17.5	25.3	21.2	36,300	
Family/relationship	22.1	13.4	17.7	13.7	13.2	11.1	33.6	13.5	16.6	28,500	
Emotional support	64.3	39.7	46.9	44.2	59.8	49.2	65.7	63.2	51.1	87,400	
Assistance with problem gambling	0.5	0.3	0.4	0.1	0.4	0.5	1.0	0.2	0.4	600	
General support/advocacy	86.4	75.8	74.2	62.7	90.0	72.9	80.1	66.4	78.6	134,500	
Living skills/personal development	23.7	15.8	18.8	13.3	15.9	17.8	35.6	21.9	18.7	32,000	
Assistance with legal issues/court support	12.2	9.1	10.6	8.7	12.1	4.6	14.8	6.3	10.3	17,600	
Advice/information	81.3	69.7	64.6	53.4	82.4	63.2	74.1	58.6	71.7	122,800	
Retrieval/storage/removal of belongings	25.2	6.9	19.2	11.2	16.1	7.1	18.0	24.0	15.6	26,700	
Advocacy/liaison on behalf of client	45.0	39.1	37.7	31.2	49.1	33.5	47.9	40.3	40.8	69,900	
Specialist services	35.1	18.8	24.7	34.7	34.3	14.5	39.7	24.8	27.2	46,500	
Psychological services	4.4	5.6	3.2	4.8	3.1	3.1	6.8	8.0	4.6	7,900	
Specialist counselling services	8.9	4.3	4.6	5.3	15.0	5.3	11.5	3.5	6.8	11,700	
Psychiatric services	2.1	2.7	3.8	1.0	1.8	1.2	7.7	1.2	2.4	4,200	
Pregnancy support	1.3	1.0	1.8	1.2	1.3	1.1	8.8	1.1	1.3	2,300	
Family planning support	1.1	0.5	1.2	0.8	1.1	0.8	5.5	1.0	0.9	1,600	
Drug/alcohol support or intervention	12.7	4.3	5.7	9.2	5.7	3.8	9.3	4.4	7.4	12,700	
Physical disability services	0.2	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.3	0.5	0.3	0.2	400	
Intellectual disability services	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.2	0.5	0.3	0.5	0.2	0.3	500	
Culturally specific services	6.5	4.0	2.7	13.9	8.5	0.7	6.5	4.2	5.6	9,700	
Interpreter services	1.2	1.3	0.6	1.2	0.8	0.4	1.3	0.2	1.1	1,800	
Assistance with immigration services	0.9	0.9	0.9	1.3	0.3	0.2	1.9	0.2	0.9	1,500	
Health/medical services	17.1	7.6	15.0	9.6	9.6	4.3	29.5	11.3	11.9	20,400	
Basic support/other n.e.s.	63.2	30.6	57.4	64.7	40.2	46.0	62.5	71.5	49.1	84,000	
Meals	49.6	10.2	44.4	36.3	26.3	27.7	36.9	62.8	32.0	54,800	
Laundry/shower facilities	41.4	9.5	37.5	39.6	24.5	24.3	41.4	62.2	28.4	48,700	
Recreation	22.8	6.5	24.1	20.6	9.3	11.2	32.0	49.3	16.5	28,200	
Transport	24.5	13.0	27.7	23.9	17.9	22.2	43.2	48.6	21.2	36,200	
Other	21.6	16.3	7.0	25.6	6.6	9.0	5.9	23.5	16.1	27,500	
No needs recorded	0.2	1.5	0.5	0.2	0.5	0.8	0.3	0.1	0.7	1,200	
Total (number)	48,300	57,000	25,100	13,300	16,000	5,600	1,800	4,100	. .	171,200	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 5,607 (closed support periods with no information on support requirements or provision).
2.	Clients were able to receive multiple types of support, so the percentages do not add to 100.
3.	A client may require more than one type of support within a broad type of assistance. 
4.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 7.2:	Closed support periods: type of support required by clients, by client group, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Type of support	Male 
alone under 25	Male alone 
25+	Female alone under 25	Female alone 
25+	Couple no children	Couple with children	Male 
with children	Female with children	Other	
Housing/accommodation	73.1	61.9	67.5	49.4	68.4	71.1	70.0	65.7	60.6	
SAAP/CAP accommodation	46.2	45.7	39.3	28.7	23.7	33.4	34.3	40.5	26.7	
Assistance to obtain/maintain 
short-term accommodation	27.6	15.7	24.5	13.2	27.1	23.0	21.9	17.3	21.0	
Assistance to obtain/maintain 
medium-term accommodation	15.7	9.0	15.4	5.4	12.8	14.3	13.0	10.5	10.8	
Assistance to obtain/maintain independent housing	25.5	21.4	25.2	20.3	40.2	45.0	41.0	34.2	29.0	
Financial/employment	44.5	37.9	42.4	39.4	48.6	47.1	49.5	43.7	29.5	
Assistance to obtain/maintain government allowance	17.3	10.8	16.6	12.6	9.3	8.7	10.4	13.0	7.4	
Employment and training assistance	15.8	3.3	13.4	2.6	5.9	5.1	4.1	4.2	6.3	
Financial assistance/material aid	31.1	31.6	29.5	31.7	39.9	40.3	41.8	35.8	20.8	
Financial counselling and support	12.7	8.4	11.1	9.6	12.8	15.5	16.4	11.9	7.0	
Personal support	54.4	38.5	66.5	64.4	45.6	52.8	54.9	76.0	58.1	
Incest/sexual assault	1.1	0.2	3.6	1.7	0.7	0.7	0.8	2.2	1.8	
Domestic/family violence	4.3	2.5	17.9	35.9	5.7	8.2	6.9	47.8	24.3	
Family/relationship	20.1	7.7	25.1	15.1	13.8	18.6	17.9	22.6	19.8	
Emotional support	50.6	37.2	59.4	56.2	42.1	47.5	49.8	65.7	48.6	
Assistance with problem gambling	0.2	0.6	0.1	0.3	0.3	0.4	0.8	0.3	0.1	
General support/advocacy	79.3	76.7	79.4	77.9	77.9	82.0	82.2	84.1	72.0	
Living skills/personal development	33.3	15.9	31.8	13.5	16.4	13.0	15.3	15.8	14.5	
Assistance with legal issues/court support	9.2	3.5	8.7	13.9	5.1	5.6	7.7	19.1	7.2	
Advice/information	69.9	69.4	71.8	71.6	72.3	76.6	76.6	78.4	61.7	
Retrieval/storage/removal of belongings	19.8	27.9	13.9	8.9	9.7	7.1	6.0	10.5	7.6	
Advocacy/liaison on behalf of client	40.9	31.7	44.1	40.8	45.6	50.4	51.9	51.6	43.9	
Specialist services	25.9	27.8	27.0	28.2	22.4	19.1	17.9	32.0	27.2	
Psychological services	4.1	5.6	4.3	5.4	3.8	2.8	4.4	4.5	6.7	
Specialist counselling services	5.4	3.2	7.7	8.2	4.2	5.0	5.3	12.2	8.8	
Psychiatric services	2.5	4.3	1.9	2.8	1.7	1.0	1.1	1.0	1.5	
Pregnancy support	0.1	—	3.6	0.5	2.7	2.3	0.4	2.5	4.1	
Family planning support	0.7	0.1	2.3	0.4	1.0	1.7	0.6	1.7	1.3	
Drug/alcohol support or intervention	11.0	12.3	6.3	6.7	5.2	3.3	4.9	3.1	2.6	
Physical disability services	0.1	0.2	0.1	0.3	0.5	0.4	0.4	0.2	0.2	
Intellectual disability services	0.7	0.2	0.4	0.2	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.7	
Culturally specific services	3.8	1.8	5.7	6.9	5.9	5.3	4.1	10.7	6.6	
Interpreter services	0.2	0.1	0.6	1.4	0.6	1.1	0.2	2.6	1.6	
Assistance with immigration services	0.3	0.2	0.9	1.7	0.3	0.7	0.3	1.6	0.7	
Health/medical services	13.1	14.1	13.2	10.2	9.2	7.4	7.9	12.4	8.1	
Basic support/other n.e.s.	55.5	61.0	51.8	45.5	39.1	29.1	29.3	45.0	40.2	
Meals	41.7	45.1	35.3	27.5	18.7	10.8	12.2	23.1	10.6	
Laundry/shower facilities	36.7	43.2	30.1	23.3	13.1	5.4	6.0	20.5	8.8	
Recreation	26.2	16.4	24.8	13.9	6.4	4.6	4.7	14.9	7.7	
Transport	30.3	12.0	32.9	19.6	17.9	13.8	14.5	26.9	17.4	
Other	12.3	22.3	11.2	16.0	12.7	11.6	12.3	18.1	24.2	
No needs recorded	0.7	0.7	0.6	0.6	1.3	1.7	1.1	0.6	1.3	
Total (number)	18,200	44,000	21,800	31,300	5,400	7,500	2,300	37,900	1,300	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 7,580 (including closed support periods with no information on support requirements or provision).
2.	Clients were able to receive multiple types of support, so the percentages do not add to 100.
3.	A client may require more than one type of support within a broad type of assistance. 
4.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection. 

Table 7.3:	Closed accompanying child support periods: type of support required for accompanying children, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Type of support	NSW	Vic	Qld	WA	SA	Tas	ACT	NT	Total	
									%	Number	
Accommodation	55.8	61.8	74.9	73.8	59.0	66.0	65.6	90.7	64.3	30,000	
SAAP/CAP accommodation	55.8	61.8	74.9	73.8	59.0	66.0	65.6	90.7	64.3	30,000	
School liaison/child care	34.2	18.4	32.0	22.1	7.2	27.2	25.9	9.7	23.8	11,100	
School liaison	15.0	11.9	14.3	7.8	2.9	14.3	14.5	6.9	11.1	5,200	
Child care	26.4	7.7	21.6	16.5	4.6	20.1	15.5	3.6	16.2	7,600	
Personal support	30.9	14.1	19.4	15.6	7.5	25.5	31.7	6.1	19.2	9,000	
Help with behavioural problems	12.7	8.2	7.4	4.9	4.6	11.0	14.1	3.2	8.4	3,900	
Sexual/physical abuse support	3.3	2.6	1.4	1.2	1.1	15.1	3.9	1.0	2.5	1,200	
Skills education	10.9	2.6	4.5	3.7	2.3	4.7	14.7	0.2	5.6	2,600	
Structured play/skill development	21.6	6.3	13.7	10.7	3.3	8.5	25.5	3.5	12.3	5,800	
General support/advocacy	63.0	47.4	26.4	25.2	78.4	32.0	58.4	8.6	49.4	23,000	
Access arrangements	6.8	5.3	3.0	1.8	2.4	3.9	9.0	1.0	4.3	2,000	
Advice/information	46.3	28.4	19.9	14.8	66.7	20.2	43.7	6.0	36.1	16,800	
Advocacy	44.7	33.2	16.5	13.0	40.7	23.0	44.7	3.2	31.5	14,700	
Specialist services	25.6	17.5	16.0	24.6	10.4	21.8	29.0	36.3	20.4	9,500	
Specialist counselling	6.9	7.1	3.9	5.7	2.0	13.7	4.2	1.3	5.4	2,500	
Culturally specific services	11.5	6.5	2.5	14.9	6.1	2.7	10.5	4.6	8.3	3,900	
Health/medical services	14.3	7.9	11.9	5.8	3.9	8.1	23.8	32.1	10.7	5,000	
Basic support/other n.e.s.	62.1	38.2	63.8	66.4	29.1	43.6	58.6	77.7	53.2	24,800	
Meals	38.2	19.9	47.2	50.7	15.7	17.9	26.9	71.2	34.6	16,200	
Showers/hygiene	32.2	16.9	36.7	52.3	15.8	28.3	27.6	68.2	31.1	14,500	
Recreation	33.4	15.3	33.1	25.7	9.9	27.0	36.6	43.9	25.5	11,900	
Transport	37.1	24.4	40.9	34.8	12.8	36.6	39.8	56.6	31.8	14,900	
Other	26.9	10.5	18.5	15.7	7.4	15.7	26.6	28.5	17.8	8,300	
No needs recorded	0.2	1.1	0.1	0.6	0.2	0.3	0.2	0.1	0.4	200	
Total (number)	13,700	8,700	7,000	6,000	7,500	1,100	900	1,700	. .	46,700	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 43,374 (closed accompanying child support with no information on support requirements or provision). In 42,370 of these, ‘no assistance’ was indicated as required for the accompanying child.
2.	Accompanying children were able to receive multiple types of support, so the percentages do not add to 100.
3.	An accompanying child may require more than one type of support within a broad type of assistance. 
4.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 7.4:	Closed accompanying child support periods: type of support required for accompanying children, by client group, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
Type of support	Couple 
with children	Male
with children	Female 
with children	Other 
with children	
					
Accommodation	62.5	56.6	64.9	55.9	
SAAP/CAP accommodation	62.5	56.6	64.9	55.9	
School liaison/child care	13.3	13.9	25.2	19.2	
School liaison	7.4	10.4	11.5	16.0	
Child care	6.7	7.0	17.5	12.8	
Personal support	9.9	13.3	20.4	41.6	
Help with behavioural problems	4.5	7.6	8.8	16.0	
Sexual/physical abuse support	1.1	5.1	2.5	—	
Skills education	3.5	5.2	5.8	32.1	
Structured play/skill development	5.6	5.0	13.2	35.2	
General support/advocacy	47.9	55.2	49.3	84.8	
Access arrangements	1.7	5.1	4.6	3.2	
Advice/information	39.1	43.4	35.5	72.3	
Advocacy	32.1	36.8	31.3	53.1	
Specialist services	11.4	12.8	21.7	54.2	
Specialist counselling	2.0	7.8	5.7	9.4	
Culturally specific services	4.6	4.3	8.8	38.5	
Health/medical services	6.4	6.6	11.3	25.5	
Basic support/other n.e.s.	32.0	38.0	55.9	66.7	
Meals	14.5	23.4	37.1	28.5	
Showers/hygiene	8.0	11.8	34.2	22.1	
Recreation	9.4	11.5	27.6	38.1	
Transport	13.5	15.8	34.3	41.1	
Other	10.7	11.8	18.7	41.7	
No needs recorded	0.2	0.9	0.4	—	
Total (number)	4,200	1,500	40,800	<50	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 43,582 (including closed accompanying child support with no information on support requirements or provision). In 42,370 of these, ‘no assistance’ was indicated as required for the accompanying child.
2.	Accompanying children were able to receive multiple types of support, so the percentages do not add to 100.
3.	An accompanying child may require more than one type of support within a broad type of assistance. 
4.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 7.5:	Type of support required by clients in closed support periods, by provision, Australia, 2008–09
Part a:	Individual types of support required in closed support periods, by provision (percentage of closed support periods)
	Not provided	Provided		Closed support periods (number)	
Type of support	Neither provided nor referred	Referred only	Sub-total	Provided only	Provided and referred	Sub-total	Total		
Housing/accommodation									
SAAP/CAP accommodation	5.7	7.3	13.0	82.1	4.9	87.0	100.0	67,000	
Assistance to obtain/maintain 
short-term accommodation	6.1	11.8	17.9	60.3	21.8	82.1	100.0	32,300	
Assistance to obtain/maintain 
medium-term accommodation	10.3	14.5	24.8	48.1	27.1	75.2	100.0	18,000	
Assistance to obtain/maintain independent housing	8.1	9.7	17.8	62.7	19.5	82.2	100.0	45,200	
Financial/employment									
Assistance to obtain/maintain government allowance	5.0	8.5	13.5	69.6	16.8	86.4	100.0	21,400	
Employment and training assistance	13.7	17.8	31.5	49.1	19.4	68.5	100.0	10,300	
Financial assistance/material aid	3.1	5.7	8.8	80.6	10.6	91.2	100.0	54,600	
Financial counselling and support	6.6	11.5	18.1	69.1	12.8	81.9	100.0	17,700	
Personal support									
Incest/sexual assault	8.2	12.0	20.2	63.5	16.2	79.7	100.0	3,200	
Domestic/family violence	3.2	3.7	6.9	84.5	8.6	93.1	100.0	36,300	
Family/relationship	5.0	4.3	9.3	82.3	8.4	90.7	100.0	28,500	
Emotional support	1.5	0.7	2.2	93.8	4.0	97.8	100.0	87,400	
Assistance with problem gambling	20.9	19.2	40.1	42.9	17.0	59.9	100.0	600	
General support/advocacy									
Living skills/personal development	4.9	1.8	6.7	88.1	5.2	93.3	100.0	32,000	
Assistance with legal issues/
court support	5.4	13.0	18.4	55.9	25.6	81.5	100.0	17,600	
Advice/information	0.8	0.2	1.0	94.9	4.0	98.9	100.0	122,800	
Retrieval/storage/removal of belongings	2.8	1.7	4.5	91.4	4.1	95.5	100.0	26,700	
Advocacy/liaison on behalf of client	1.7	2.6	4.3	87.9	7.8	95.7	100.0	69,900	
Specialist services									
Psychological services	9.6	25.5	35.1	48.8	16.2	65.0	100.0	7,900	
Specialist counselling services	9.1	31.1	40.2	40.1	19.7	59.8	100.0	11,700	
Psychiatric services	13.9	32.1	46.0	36.6	17.4	54.0	100.0	4,200	
Pregnancy support	8.7	16.8	25.5	42.7	31.8	74.5	100.0	2,300	
Family planning support	10.1	16.9	27.0	48.2	24.7	72.9	100.0	1,600	
Drug/alcohol support or intervention	10.6	12.7	23.3	57.1	19.6	76.7	100.0	12,700	
Physical disability services	17.5	36.4	53.9	23.7	22.4	46.1	100.0	400	
Intellectual disability services	23.5	31.1	54.6	27.2	18.1	45.3	100.0	500	
Culturally specific services	2.5	8.3	10.8	76.1	13.2	89.3	100.0	9,700	
Interpreter services	1.8	10.5	12.3	69.3	18.5	87.8	100.0	1,800	
Assistance with immigration issues	4.7	13.5	18.2	52.2	29.6	81.8	100.0	1,500	
Health/medical services	5.4	28.4	33.8	45.1	21.1	66.2	100.0	20,400	
Basic support/other n.e.s.									
Meals	1.2	1.3	2.5	95.7	1.8	97.5	100.0	54,800	
Laundry/shower facilities	1.0	0.5	1.5	97.6	0.8	98.4	100.0	48,700	
Recreation	2.3	1.3	3.6	93.9	2.5	96.4	100.0	28,200	
Transport	3.1	1.6	4.7	91.9	3.4	95.3	100.0	36,200	
Other	2.6	3.0	5.6	87.6	6.7	94.3	100.0	27,500	
 (continued)
Table 7.5 (continued):	Type of support required by clients in closed support periods, by provision, Australia, 2008–09
Part b:	Broad types of support required in closed support periods, by provision (percentage of distinct types of support required)
	Not provided	Provided		Distinct types of support required
(number)	Assoc. closed support periods
(number)	
Broad type of support	Neither provided nor referred	Referred only	Subtotal	Provided only	Provided and referred	Subtotal	Total			
Housing/
accommodation	6.9	9.7	16.6	68.6	14.8	83.4	100.0	162,500	107,800	
Financial/
employment	5.2	8.5	13.7	73.3	13.1	86.4	100.0	103,900	69,100	
Personal support	2.8	2.3	5.1	88.7	6.2	94.9	100.0	156,000	98,600	
General support/
advocacy	2.0	2.0	4.0	89.4	6.6	96.0	100.0	269,000	134,500	
Specialist services	7.7	22.2	29.9	50.8	19.4	70.2	100.0	74,500	46,500	
Basic support/
other n.e.s.	1.9	1.4	3.3	94.1	2.6	96.7	100.0	195,400	84,000	
Total (%)	3.7	5.5	9.2	82.0	8.8	90.8	100.0	. .	. .	
Total (number)	35,800	52,900	88,700	788,000	84,600	872,600	. .	961,400	170,000	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 5,607 (closed support periods with no information on support requirements or provision).
2.	In broad groups of support types, a client may require more than one type of support within the group. The percentages for broad groups relate to all needs and not to support periods. For individual types of support, a need can be recorded only once within a support period, so the percentages relate to support periods.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 7.6:	Type of support required for accompanying children in closed support periods, by provision, Australia, 2008–09
Part a:	Individual types of support required for accompanying children in closed support periods, by provision (percentage of closed accompanying child support periods)
	Not provided	Provided		Closed accom-panying child support periods (number)	
Type of support	Neither provided nor referred	Referred only	Subtotal	Provided only	Provided and referred	Subtotal	Total		
Accommodation									
SAAP/CAP accommodation	7.8	8.9	16.7	78.8	4.5	83.3	100.0	30,000	
School liaison/child care									
School liaison	6.0	7.9	13.9	69.5	16.6	86.1	100.0	5,200	
Child care	4.3	10.0	14.3	74.8	10.9	85.7	100.0	7,600	
Personal support									
Help with behavioural problems	5.4	12.0	17.4	64.0	18.6	82.6	100.0	3,900	
Sexual/physical abuse support	4.5	13.3	17.8	53.2	29.1	82.3	100.0	1,200	
Skills education	4.1	8.5	12.6	74.6	12.8	87.4	100.0	2,600	
Structured play/skill development	3.0	3.5	6.5	88.4	5.1	93.5	100.0	5,800	
General support/advocacy									
Access arrangements	5.5	21.6	27.1	55.3	17.7	73.0	100.0	2,000	
Advice/information	1.6	0.4	2.0	93.7	4.4	98.1	100.0	16,800	
Advocacy	1.7	6.6	8.3	82.6	9.1	91.7	100.0	14,700	
Specialist services									
Specialist counselling	7.4	34.3	41.7	34.7	23.7	58.4	100.0	2,500	
Culturally specific services	3.2	4.3	7.5	73.8	18.7	92.5	100.0	3,900	
Health/medical services	3.9	30.9	34.8	39.1	26.1	65.2	100.0	5,000	
Basic support/other n.e.s.									
Meals	1.1	1.5	2.6	95.6	1.9	97.5	100.0	16,200	
Showers/hygiene	1.0	0.2	1.2	98.1	0.7	98.8	100.0	14,500	
Recreation	1.7	1.0	2.7	94.9	2.4	97.3	100.0	11,900	
Transport	1.6	2.1	3.7	94.7	1.6	96.3	100.0	14,900	
Other	1.8	2.8	4.6	85.4	10.0	95.4	100.0	8,300	
(continued)

Table 7.6 (continued):	Type of support required for accompanying children in closed support periods, by provision, Australia, 2008–09
Part b:	Broad types of support required for accompanying children in closed support periods, by provision (percentage of distinct types of support required)
	Not provided	Provided		Distinct types of support required
(number)	Assoc. closed accom-panying child support periods
(number)	
Broad type of support	Neither provided nor referred	Referred only	Sub-
total	Provided only	Provided and referred	Sub-
total	Total			
Accommodation	7.8	8.9	16.7	78.8	4.5	83.3	100.0	30,000	30,000	
School liaison/
child care	5.0	9.1	14.1	72.6	13.2	85.8	100.0	12,800	11,100	
Personal support	4.0	7.8	11.8	75.6	12.6	88.2	100.0	13,400	9,000	
General support/
advocacy	1.9	4.4	6.3	86.5	7.2	93.7	100.0	33,600	23,000	
Specialist services	4.4	22.6	27.0	49.9	23.0	72.9	100.0	11,400	9,500	
Basic support/
other n.e.s.	1.4	1.4	2.8	94.5	2.7	97.2	100.0	65,800	24,800	
Total (%)	3.3	5.9	9.2	83.8	6.9	90.8	100.0	. .	. .	
Total (number)	5,500	9,900	15,400	140,000	11,600	151,600	. .	167,000	46,500	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 43,374 (closed accompanying child support periods with no information on support requirements or provision). In 42,370 of these, ‘no assistance’ was indicated as required for the accompanying child.
2.	In broad groups of support types, an accompanying child may require more than one type of support within the group. The percentages for broad groups relate to all needs and not to support periods. For individual types of support, a need can be recorded only once within a support period, so the percentages relate to accompanying child support periods.
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 7.7:	Type of support required by clients in closed support periods that were neither provided nor referred: broad type of support, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
	Male alone under 25	Male alone 25+	Female alone under 25	Female alone 25+	Couple no children	Couple with children	Male with children	Female with children	Other	Total	
										%	Number	
Broad type of support	Percentage of unmet needs			
Housing/ accommodation	27.9	24.6	30.1	29.1	28.7	49.3	51.3	36.8	36.4	31.8	10,500	
Financial/ employment	19.7	13.9	18.4	14.4	22.1	16.3	15.4	13.4	10.3	15.8	5,200	
Personal support	10.7	7.0	13.6	13.2	9.8	9.1	7.2	12.1	14.2	10.9	3,600	
General support/ advocacy	15.8	14.7	15.2	15.9	17.6	10.6	10.5	15.3	13.8	15.0	4,900	
Specialist services	15.0	22.0	14.0	19.0	14.7	10.7	10.0	14.9	17.7	16.3	5,400	
Basic support/
other n.e.s.	10.8	17.8	8.8	8.5	7.1	4.0	5.5	7.4	7.6	10.1	3,300	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	32,900	
Summary totals												
Total unmet needs (%)	14.2	19.8	16.3	12.1	3.7	5.8	2.0	25.2	0.9	. .	. .	
Total unmet needs (number)	4,700	6,500	5,400	4,000	1,200	1,900	600	8,300	300	. .	32,900	
Total closed support periods with unmet needs (%)	11.6	18.6	14.5	12.9	3.6	7.6	2.4	27.7	1.1	100.0	. .	
Total closed support periods with unmet needs (number)	1,700	2,800	2,100	1,900	500	1,100	400	4,100	200	. .	14,800	
Total closed support periods (%)	10.7	26.0	12.9	18.5	3.2	4.4	1.3	22.3	0.8	100.0	. .	
Total closed support periods (number)	18,200	44,000	21,800	31,300	5,400	7,500	2,300	37,900	1,300	. .	169,700	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 423 identified unmet needs.
2.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 202 closed support periods with identified unmet needs.
3.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 7,580 closed support periods (including closed support periods with no information on support requirements or provision).
4.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 7.8:	Type of support required for accompanying children in closed support periods that were neither provided nor referred: broad type of support, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
	Couple with children	Male with children	Female with children	Other with children	Total	
					%	Number	
Broad type of support	Percentage of unmet needs			
Accommodation	66.9	65.2	37.3	48.8	41.9	2,300	
School liaison/child care	8.0	12.2	12.0	—	11.5	600	
Personal support	4.9	5.6	10.7	—	9.8	500	
General support/advocacy	3.9	10.7	12.3	25.8	11.3	600	
Specialist services	4.0	2.9	10.2	12.9	9.2	500	
Basic support/other n.e.s.	12.2	3.3	17.5	12.6	16.3	900	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	5,500	
Summary totals							
Total unmet needs (%)	11.6	4.1	84.2	0.2	100.0	. .	
Total unmet needs (number)	600	200	4,700	<50	. .	5,500	
Total closed accompanying child support periods with unmet needs (%)	14.5	5.0	80.3	0.2	100.0	. .	
Total closed accompanying child support periods with unmet needs (number)	500	200	2,800	<50	. .	3,500	
Total closed accompanying child support periods (%)	9.0	3.2	87.7	0.1	100.0	. .	
Total closed accompanying child support periods (number)	4,200	1,500	40,800	<50	. .	46,500	
Total closed support periods with accompanying children with unmet needs (%)	12.1	6.1	81.5	0.3	100.0	. .	
Total closed support periods with accompanying children with unmet needs (number)	200	100	1,600	<50	. .	1,900	
Total closed support periods with accompanying children requiring assistance (%)	8.1	3.8	87.9	0.1	100.0	. .	
Total closed support periods with accompanying children requiring assistance (number)	1,900	900	20,400	<50	. .	23,200	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 18 identified unmet needs for accompanying children.
2.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 16 closed accompanying child support periods with identified unmet needs.
3.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 43,582 closed accompanying child support periods (including closed accompanying child support periods with no information on support requirements or provision).
4.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 10 closed support periods with accompanying children with unmet needs.
5.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 111 closed support periods with accompanying children requiring assistance.
6.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.
8	Circumstances of clients before and after support
This chapter details changes in clients’ circumstances following the provision of support. For this reason, closed support periods—that is, support periods that finished on or before 30 June 2009—are used as the basis for analysis. Data are not collected on the circumstances of accompanying children before or after support.
It is important to note that the achievement of client goals does not depend on the intervention of agencies alone—a complex interplay of policies and programs relating to income security, housing and community services, as well as individuals’ personal circumstances before and after support, will influence outcomes for clients. In addition, the data describe only the immediate outcomes and therefore do not provide information on the longer term situation of the client. Also, there is a significant amount of data where the circumstances of the client were not known or missing (especially after assistance has ended), and this should be taken into account.
Generally, the immediate circumstances of clients improved following support, particularly for those who required assistance with income, employment and housing, and for those supported for longer periods.
8.1	Main source of income
In the vast majority of cases, clients were recipients of a government payment before support (in 82% of closed support periods) (Table 8.1). In 8% of closed support periods, clients reported having ‘other’ sources of income, and in 10% as having no source of income at all. These proportions had changed slightly by the time support had ended. After receiving support, an increase was seen in the proportion in which clients were on a government payment (to 84%) and a decrease was seen in the proportion with no income (to 7%). The proportion with ‘other’ sources of income increased slightly to 9%.
Although across all closed support periods clients’ main source of income did not vary much from before to after support, when clients specifically required assistance to obtain or maintain a government pension or benefit, there was a marked improvement. After support, these clients were receiving a government payment in 85% of closed support periods: a large increase from the 76% before support. Consequently, the proportion of closed support periods in which these clients had no income dropped from 17% before support to 8% after support. The proportion with ‘other’ sources of income remained relatively unchanged, at around 7% both before and after support.
Length of support
In general, the longer a client was supported, the more likely they were to have a source of income after they exited support (Table 8.3). For example, the proportion in receipt of ‘other’ income increased from 7% for those supported for 1 day or less to 14% for those supported for longer than 1 year. The proportion in receipt of a government payment after support fluctuated, but it decreased overall (from 86% for those supported for 1 day or less to 82% for those supported for longer than 1 year). The proportion of closed support periods where clients reported no main source of income immediately following a period of support also fluctuated, but decreased overall: rising from 8% for those supported for 1 day or less to 10% for those supported for between 1 and 7 days, before steadily decreasing to 4% for those supported for longer than 1 year.
8.2	Employment status
The vast majority of clients were not in paid employment (not in the labour force or unemployed and looking for work) on entry to, and exit from, support (90% before and 88% after) (derived from Table 8.2). When examined for all closed support periods, there were only small changes in the employment profile of clients from before support to after support. However, among those clients who specifically required assistance in the area of employment and training during their period of support, there was a marked increase in the proportion in paid work following support. These clients were employed in some capacity following 20% of closed support periods: a large increase from the 10% before support.
Length of support
In general, the longer a client was supported, the more likely they were to be employed and the less likely they were to be unemployed (looking for work) or not in the labour force after exiting support (Table 8.3). The proportion of closed support periods in which clients were employed, either full time or part time, increased the longer a client was supported, while the proportion who reported that they were unemployed or not in the labour force generally decreased.
8.3	Student status
In the majority of cases, clients aged 5 years and over were not students either immediately before or immediately after a period of support and there was no change following support (91% before and 90% after support) (Table 8.4). Note that this does not include children accompanying clients because student status is not recorded for accompanying children.
When examined according to age group, in 54% of their closed support periods, 5–17 year-olds were not students before support, 38% were primary or secondary school students and 8% were post-secondary students or undertaking employment training. Other than a slight increase in the proportion in post-secondary education or employment training (from 8% of closed support periods before to 10% after), there was little change in the educational circumstances of these clients after support. Clients aged 18 years and over were not students before support in 95% of closed support periods, were undertaking post-secondary education or employment training in 4% and were primary or secondary students in 1%. These proportions were relatively unchanged following support.
8.4	Housing
Generally, positive housing outcomes were reported following support (tables 8.5 and 8.6). Quantifying a ‘positive’ outcome for such a diverse population is difficult, but it is generally accepted that, for most people, having security of dwelling tenure is positive. In the majority of closed support periods, clients were living in a house or flat and the majority had tenure both before and after support. These proportions increased following support, particularly for those who specifically required assistance to obtain or maintain independent housing.
Figure 8.1: Type of house/dwelling immediately before and after a support period, Australia, 2008–09 (percentage of closed support periods)
Horizontal bar chart showing, for before and after, type of house/dwelling on y-axis and per cent on x-axis.
Source: Table 8.5.
Length of support
In general, the longer a client was supported, the more likely they were to have a positive housing outcome after exiting support (tables 8.7 and 8.8).
8.5	Living situation
The most common living situation for clients before receiving support was living alone (in 25% of closed support periods), followed by living with relatives or friends in the short term (15%), living with other unrelated persons (15%), living alone with children (12%) and living with a spouse or partner and children (12%) (Table 8.9).
By the time support had finished, the living arrangements for some clients had changed considerably. The most common situation was still living alone; however, the proportion had increased (to 28% of closed support periods). There was also an increase in the proportion living alone with children (to 18%). In contrast, there was a decrease in the proportion living with relatives or friends in the short term (to 11%), and a decrease in the proportion living with a spouse or partner and children (to 9%).
8.6	Case management plan
The majority of clients had a case management plan in place by the end of their support (in 61% of closed support periods) (Table 8.10). In 28% of cases, clients did not have a case management plan because their support period was considered too short, in 7% clients did not agree to have a case management plan and in 4% of cases there was no plan in place for other reasons.
Achievement of case management goals
In the majority of cases (94%), the case management goals set for the client were achieved to some extent by the end of their support (Table 8.11). In 44% of the closed support periods in which a case management plan was in place by the end of support, all the goals specified were achieved, in 50% most or some of the goals were achieved and in 6% none of the goals were achieved.
8.7	
Tables
Table 8.1:	Closed support periods: main source of income immediately before and after a support period, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
	Closed support periods in which clients needed assistance to obtain/maintain a pension or benefit	All closed support periods	
Main source of income	Before	After	Before	After	
No income	17.4	7.8	9.7	6.9	
Government payments	75.6	84.8	81.9	84.1	
Other	7.0	7.4	8.4	9.1	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	
Total (number with valid data)	20,100	18,900	160,400	147,700	
Number with ‘Client left 
without providing any information’	. .	2,200	. .	15,000	
Number with ‘Don’t know’	1,900	900	16,000	13,300	
Number with missing data	200	200	800	1,300	
Total (number)	22,100	22,100	177,300	177,300	
Note: Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 8.2:	Closed support periods: employment status in the week before and after a support period, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
	Closed support periods in which clients needed assistance in employment and training	All closed support periods	
Employment status	Before	After	Before	After	
Employed full time	2.3	7.0	3.6	4.7	
Employed part time	7.7	13.3	6.3	7.2	
Unemployed (looking for work)	34.0	30.2	21.7	20.5	
Not in labour force	56.1	49.5	68.3	67.6	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	
Total (number with valid data)	10,400	9,300	159,600	144,900	
Number with ‘Client left 
without providing any information’	. .	800	. .	16,500	
Number with ‘Don’t know’	200	500	16,900	14,400	
Number with missing data	<50	100	700	1,400	
Total (number)	10,700	10,700	177,300	177,300	
Note: Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 8.3:	Closed support periods: main source of income and employment status after a support period, by length of support, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent) 
After support	1 day or less	>1–7 days	>1–4 weeks	>4–14 weeks	>14–26 weeks	>26–52 weeks	>52 weeks		Total	
								%	Number	
Main source of income										
No income	7.5	9.5	7.3	5.9	5.1	4.7	4.2	6.9	10,200	
Government payments	85.5	83.2	84.6	84.3	81.5	81.7	81.8	84.1	124,200	
Other	7.0	7.3	8.1	9.9	13.4	13.5	14.0	9.1	13,400	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	29.6	13.3	16.1	23.0	9.2	5.3	3.4	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	43,800	19,700	23,800	34,000	13,600	7,900	5,000	. .	147,700	
Employment status										
Employed full time	3.1	3.7	4.4	5.4	7.1	7.5	7.9	4.7	6,800	
Employed part time	4.4	5.5	6.5	8.5	11.4	12.7	13.9	7.2	10,500	
Unemployed (looking for work)	22.2	20.6	22.4	21.0	16.5	13.8	12.9	20.5	29,700	
Not in labour force	70.2	70.1	66.7	65.2	64.9	66.0	65.3	67.6	98,000	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	30.0	13.2	16.0	23.0	9.2	5.3	3.4	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	43,400	19,100	23,200	33,300	13,300	7,700	4,900	. .	144,900	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 29,564 (main source of income, including ‘Don’t know’ and ‘Client left without providing any information’).
2.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 32,325 (employment status, including ‘Don’t know’ and ‘Client left without providing any information’).
3.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 8.4:	Closed support periods: student status immediately before and after a support period, by age, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent) 
	5–17 years	18+ years	Total	
Student status	Before	After	Before	After	Before	After	
Not a student	53.7	52.5	95.4	95.0	90.7	90.4	
Primary/secondary student	38.1	37.7	1.0	0.9	5.2	4.8	
Post-secondary student/employment training	8.2	9.8	3.6	4.2	4.1	4.8	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	
Total (number with valid data)	17,800	15,400	139,600	128,400	157,400	143,800	
Number with ‘Client left without providing any information’	. .	2,600	. .	13,200	. .	15,800	
Number with ‘Don’t know’	2,000	1,700	15,200	12,600	17,200	14,300	
Number with missing data	100	300	1,100	1,700	1,200	2,000	
Total (number)	20,000	20,000	155,900	155,900	175,900	175,900	
Notes
1.	Table excludes closed support periods for clients aged 4 years and under.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.
Table 8.5:	Closed support periods: type of house/dwelling immediately before and after a support period, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent) 
	Closed support periods in which clients needed assistance to obtain/maintain 
independent housing	All closed support periods	
Type of house/dwelling	Before	After	Before	After	
Improvised dwelling/sleeping rough	9.1	2.6	11.9	7.1	
Improvised dwelling/car/tent/squat	5.9	1.9	5.9	3.0	
Street/park/in the open	3.3	0.7	6.0	4.1	
House/dwelling	85.6	93.9	83.3	89.0	
House/flat	69.2	79.3	65.8	70.2	
Caravan	2.8	2.3	2.0	1.7	
Boarding/rooming house	7.2	7.5	8.5	10.2	
Hostel/hotel/motel	6.4	4.8	7.0	6.9	
Institutional setting	5.2	3.5	4.8	3.9	
Hospital	0.8	0.4	0.8	0.5	
Psychiatric institution	0.8	0.3	0.6	0.3	
Prison/youth training centre	1.3	0.5	1.2	0.6	
Other institutional setting	2.3	2.2	2.1	2.4	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	
Total (number with valid data)	43,400	35,800	160,500	132,200	
Number with ‘Client left 
without providing any information’	. .	6,000	. .	22,600	
Number with ‘Don’t know’	2,700	3,900	16,200	21,200	
Number with missing data	200	500	500	1,400	
Total (number)	46,200	46,200	177,300	177,300	
Note: Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 8.6:	Closed support periods: type of tenure immediately before and after a support period, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent)
	Closed support periods in which clients needed assistance to obtain/maintain 
independent housing	All closed support periods	
Type of tenure	Before	After	Before	After	
SAAP/CAP funded accommodation	13.1	11.8	12.7	14.9	
SAAP/CAP crisis/short-term accommodation	9.1	5.8	8.5	8.6	
SAAP/CAP medium/long-term accommodation	2.3	4.4	2.1	4.3	
Other SAAP/CAP funded accommodation	1.7	1.6	2.0	2.1	
No tenure	13.9	5.0	16.7	10.8	
Institutional setting	3.5	2.0	3.2	2.3	
Improvised dwelling/sleeping rough	7.8	1.8	10.5	5.8	
Other	2.6	1.3	3.0	2.7	
Tenure	73.0	83.2	70.6	74.3	
Purchasing/purchased own home	2.9	1.9	4.3	3.7	
Private rental	30.1	39.3	27.2	30.3	
Public housing rental	8.5	15.0	10.0	12.8	
Community housing rental	3.4	6.7	5.4	7.7	
Rent-free accommodation	8.7	4.8	8.0	5.6	
Boarding	19.5	15.5	15.7	14.2	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	
Total (number with valid data)	41,500	34,600	150,100	124,700	
Number with ‘Client left without providing any information’	. .	6,200	. .	23,100	
Number with ‘Don’t know’	4,400	4,900	25,900	27,500	
Number with missing data	400	600	1,300	2,000	
Total (number)	46,200	46,200	177,300	177,300	
Note: Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 8.7:	Closed support periods: type of house/dwelling occupied immediately after a support period, by length of support, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent) 
Type of house/dwelling	1 day or less	>1–7 days	>1–4 weeks	>4–14 weeks	>14–26 weeks	>26–52 weeks	>52 weeks	Total	
								%	Number	
	All closed support periods	
Improvised dwelling/sleeping rough	13.5	8.7	5.5	3.3	1.9	1.8	1.6	7.1	9,400	
Improvised dwelling/car/tent/squat	5.3	2.5	2.4	2.0	1.2	1.0	1.0	3.0	3,900	
Street/park/in the open	8.2	6.2	3.0	1.2	0.7	0.8	0.7	4.1	5,400	
House/dwelling	83.3	85.7	89.3	93.2	94.5	95.3	95.3	89.0	117,700	
House/flat	56.2	64.1	71.1	78.1	84.3	87.6	89.3	70.2	92,900	
Caravan	1.3	1.8	2.3	1.9	1.6	1.2	0.8	1.7	2,200	
Boarding/rooming house	16.8	9.4	8.7	7.5	5.4	4.6	3.3	10.2	13,500	
Hostel/hotel/motel	9.0	10.4	7.2	5.7	3.2	1.9	1.9	6.9	9,100	
Institutional setting	3.2	5.5	5.2	3.6	3.6	2.9	3.0	3.9	5,200	
Hospital	0.5	1.1	0.7	0.4	0.3	0.2	0.3	0.5	700	
Psychiatric institution	0.3	0.5	0.4	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	0.3	400	
Prison/youth training centre	0.3	0.6	0.7	0.6	0.8	0.9	1.0	0.6	800	
Other institutional setting	2.1	3.4	3.4	2.2	2.2	1.5	1.5	2.4	3,200	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	30.3	12.0	15.4	23.3	9.6	5.7	3.6	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	40,000	15,900	20,300	30,800	12,700	7,600	4,700	. .	132,200	
	Closed support periods in which clients were accommodated	
Improvised dwelling/sleeping rough	29.1	14.1	8.7	4.4	2.1	1.7	1.0	10.5	4,300	
Improvised dwelling/car/tent/squat	2.7	2.8	2.8	2.0	1.1	0.6	0.5	2.2	900	
Street/park/in the open	26.4	11.3	5.9	2.4	1.0	1.2	0.6	8.3	3,400	
House/dwelling	63.9	77.8	82.6	88.4	91.7	94.2	95.9	82.4	33,600	
House/flat	46.5	59.1	61.3	68.2	76.5	85.2	90.8	64.7	26,400	
Caravan	0.8	1.6	2.2	1.8	1.7	0.8	0.8	1.5	600	
Boarding/rooming house	5.2	6.6	9.4	9.7	7.3	5.0	2.3	7.4	3,000	
Hostel/hotel/motel	11.5	10.5	9.6	8.7	6.2	3.3	2.0	8.7	3,600	
Institutional setting	7.0	8.1	8.7	7.2	6.1	4.1	3.1	7.1	2,900	
Hospital	1.2	1.7	1.3	0.9	0.7	0.4	0.4	1.1	400	
Psychiatric institution	0.6	0.6	0.6	0.5	0.4	0.4	0.2	0.5	200	
Prison/youth training centre	0.4	0.6	1.1	1.1	1.1	1.2	1.0	0.9	400	
Other institutional setting	4.8	5.2	5.7	4.7	3.9	2.0	1.5	4.6	1,900	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	15.8	19.7	20.1	22.6	10.0	6.5	5.3	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	6,500	8,000	8,200	9,200	4,100	2,700	2,200	. .	40,800	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 45,067 closed support periods (including ‘Don’t know’ and ‘Client left without providing any information’); 17,584 closed accommodated support periods (including ‘Don’t know’ and ‘Client left without providing any information’). 
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.
Table 8.8:	Closed support periods: type of tenure immediately after a support period, by length of support, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent) 
Type of tenure	1 day or less	>1–7 days	>1–4 weeks	>4–14 weeks	>14–26 weeks	>26–52 weeks	>52 weeks	Total	
								%	Number	
	All closed support periods	
SAAP/CAP funded accommodation	15.2	23.3	15.9	13.5	11.7	9.0	7.9	14.9	18,600	
SAAP/CAP crisis/short-term accommodation	10.4	15.3	9.2	6.4	4.5	3.1	2.9	8.6	10,700	
SAAP/CAP medium/long-term accommodation	2.0	4.6	5.0	5.5	6.3	5.1	4.7	4.3	5,400	
Other SAAP/CAP funded accommodation	2.8	3.4	1.8	1.6	0.9	0.8	0.3	2.1	2,600	
No tenure	17.7	14.1	9.7	6.1	4.7	4.3	3.7	10.8	13,400	
Institutional setting 	1.6	3.6	3.0	2.1	2.2	2.1	2.0	2.3	2,800	
Improvised dwelling/sleeping rough	11.6	6.4	4.1	2.6	1.6	1.5	1.2	5.8	7,200	
Other	4.4	4.1	2.6	1.4	1.0	0.7	0.4	2.7	3,400	
Tenure	67.1	62.6	74.3	80.4	83.6	86.7	88.4	74.3	92,700	
Purchasing/purchased own home	3.5	2.9	3.3	4.0	4.7	4.1	3.4	3.7	4,600	
Private rental	23.7	22.9	32.0	38.1	36.5	33.9	30.0	30.3	37,800	
Public housing rental	11.7	9.1	10.3	10.8	16.3	23.0	31.9	12.8	16,000	
Community housing rental	8.6	7.4	6.9	6.8	7.3	8.3	11.4	7.7	9,600	
Rent-free accommodation	5.0	6.9	6.3	5.6	5.5	5.6	3.6	5.6	7,000	
Boarding	14.7	13.5	15.5	15.1	13.3	11.9	8.1	14.2	17,700	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	30.1	11.8	15.3	23.5	9.8	5.8	3.7	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	37,600	14,700	19,100	29,300	12,200	7,300	4,600	. .	124,700	
	Closed support periods in which clients were accommodated	
SAAP/CAP funded accommodation	20.4	20.8	20.6	22.5	18.8	12.3	9.1	19.7	7,600	
SAAP/CAP crisis/short-term accommodation	15.9	15.3	12.2	11.0	7.6	4.3	2.9	11.6	4,500	
SAAP/CAP medium/long-term accommodation	2.8	3.6	6.5	9.2	10.1	7.0	5.7	6.3	2,400	
Other SAAP/CAP funded accommodation	1.6	2.0	1.9	2.2	1.1	1.0	0.5	1.7	700	
No tenure	35.4	20.7	16.0	9.6	6.4	5.2	3.5	16.1	6,200	
Institutional setting 	3.3	5.2	5.3	3.9	3.1	2.9	2.0	4.1	1,600	
Improvised dwelling/sleeping rough	18.0	9.1	5.8	3.0	1.8	1.5	0.9	6.8	2,600	
Other	14.2	6.4	4.9	2.7	1.5	0.8	0.5	5.3	2,000	
Tenure	44.2	58.4	63.4	67.9	74.9	82.5	87.5	64.2	24,700	
Purchasing/purchased own home	1.3	2.0	2.0	1.6	1.5	1.6	1.8	1.7	700	
Private rental	11.1	17.9	23.3	27.2	30.5	31.5	31.9	23.0	8,800	
Public housing rental	8.3	8.7	7.2	8.9	15.6	22.7	30.4	11.2	4,300	
Community housing rental	8.6	10.0	8.3	9.1	9.5	10.6	12.9	9.4	3,600	
Rent-free accommodation	4.9	6.6	7.2	6.2	4.1	4.1	2.4	5.7	2,200	
Boarding	9.9	13.1	15.4	14.9	13.7	12.1	8.0	13.2	5,100	
Total	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	100.0	. .	
Total (row %)	15.8	19.3	19.8	22.8	10.3	6.7	5.4	100.0	. .	
Total (number)	6,100	7,400	7,600	8,800	3,900	2,600	2,100	. .	38,500	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 52,562 closed support periods (including ‘Don’t know’ and ‘Client left without providing any information’); 19,974 closed accommodated support periods (including ‘Don’t know’ and ‘Client left without providing any information’).
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 8.9:	Closed support periods: living situation immediately before and after a support period, Australia, 2008–09 (per cent) 
Living situation	Before	After	
With both parents	2.5	2.0	
With one parent and parent’s spouse/partner	1.8	1.2	
With one parent	4.1	3.4	
With foster family	0.3	0.2	
With relatives/friends temporary	15.0	10.5	
With relatives/friends long-term	3.6	4.6	
With spouse/partner	8.6	6.6	
With spouse/partner and child(ren)	11.6	9.0	
Alone	24.5	27.9	
Alone with child(ren)	12.2	18.2	
With other unrelated persons	14.8	15.4	
Other	1.0	1.1	
Total	100.0	100.0	
Total (number with valid data)	159,700	133,700	
Number with ‘Client left without providing any information’	. .	21,600	
Number with ‘Don’t know’	16,800	20,400	
Number with missing data	700	1,500	
Total (number)	177,300	177,300	
Note: Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 8.10:	Closed support periods: existence of a case management plan, Australia, 2008–09
Case management plan	Per cent	Number	
Yes	60.7	100,800	
No, client did not agree to one	7.0	11,600	
No, support period too short	28.4	47,200	
No, other reason	4.0	6,600	
Total	100.0	166,100	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 10,690.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 8.11:	Closed support periods where a case management plan was in place by the end of support: extent to which the client’s case management goals were achieved, Australia, 2008–09
Achievement of goals	Per cent	Number	
All goals achieved	44.0	44,000	
Most or some goals achieved	50.4	50,500	
No goals achieved	5.5	5,600	
Total	100.0	100,000	
Notes
1.	Number excluded due to errors and omissions (weighted): 726.
2.	Figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
Source: Client Collection.

9	Key changes from 1996–97 to 2008–09
This chapter presents the number of support periods, clients, accompanying children and accompanying child support periods, as well as the participation and valid consent rates over the 13 years of the SAAP NDC. However, it is important to note when examining trends over these years that changes have occurred in definitions and in the way the jurisdictions administer and allocate agencies and funding. For example, in 2005–06, refined definitions and a new statistical linkage key were introduced, resulting in a break in the data series; in 2006–07, the first of the Innovation and Investment (I & I) Fund Pilot Projects joined the Collection (see AIHW 2009); and, in 2008–09, SAAP was discontinued and replaced by the NAHA midway through the financial year, resulting in another break in the data series (see Chapter 1). Caution should therefore be taken when examining data across years. Readers should refer to previous annual reports for further information on changes.
9.1	Agencies
The number and profile of agencies change each year as a result of the amalgamation or splitting of agencies, the opening of new agencies, or the reclassification of service delivery models or target groups. Inclusion or exclusion from the collection and changes in agency status and type are determined by state and territory governments. The major changes over the years are outlined below:
•	The number of agencies required to participate in the Client Collection generally increased between 1996–97 (1,119) and 2001–02 (1,211), before decreasing slightly to 1,202 in 2002–03 as a result of agencies being merged in some jurisdictions (Table 9.1).
•	The large increase in the number of participating agencies from 1,219 in 2005–06 to 1,456 in 2006–07 can be explained by the introduction of I & I agencies as well as by the creation of a relatively large number of other new SAAP agencies in some jurisdictions. This was, in part, brought about by the equalisation of funding between the Australian Government and the states and territories.
•	Because of the large increase in the number of agencies in 2006–07, in 2007–08 the state and territory governments that administered SAAP were asked to closely review the participation status, primary target group and service delivery models of their agencies. This resulted in some changes in the classification of some agencies from 2006–07 to 2007–08. In 2007–08, there were 1,444 agencies required to participate in the collection.
•	On 1 January 2009, SAAP was discontinued and replaced with the NAHA. This resulted in some changes in the way the jurisdictions administer the agencies. In particular, both the number of funded agencies and the number of agencies that were required to participate in the collection decreased from those reported in 2007–08 (funded agencies from 1,562 in 2007–08 to 1,532, in 2008–09 and participating agencies from 1,444 to 1,433) (tables 2.1 and 9.1; AIHW 2009:Table 2.1). It is likely that the decrease occurred as the states and territories developed new services to be implemented, but that very few of these new services were introduced between January and June 2009.
Participation
The agency participation rate remained fairly constant over the first 9 years of reporting
(1996–97 to 2004–05), ranging from 93% to 95%. At the introduction of the core data set in 2005–06, the participation rate was 93% before falling to 87% in 2006–07 (Figure 9.1). This decrease was primarily due to the large number of new agencies created in Victoria that did not participate in the collection. The participation rate increased to 92% in 2007–08. A 94% participation rate was recorded in 2008–09.
Figure 9.1: Agency participation and valid consent, by reporting period, Australia, 1996–97 to 
2008–09
Stacked line chart showing, for participation and valid consent, per cent on y-axis and reporting period on x-axis.
Notes
In 2005–06, refined definitions and a new statistical linkage key were introduced, resulting in a break in the data series.
In 2008–09, SAAP was discontinued and replaced by the NAHA on 1 January 2009, resulting in a break in the data series.
Source: Table 9.1.
Valid consent
The proportion of forms returned with valid consent has increased significantly since the inception of the NDC: from 64% in 1996–97 to peak at 88% in 2003–04, before falling slightly to 87% in 2004–05 (Figure 9.1).
In 2005–06, a new statistical linkage key was introduced and the definition of ‘valid consent’ was adjusted to reflect this. The decrease to 82% in 2005–06 can be partly explained by the introduction of this new statistical linkage key, which includes the requirement to have a valid full date of birth rather than just a valid year of birth (refer to Appendix 2 and AIHW 2006). The rate of valid consent remained relatively steady in 2006–07 at 81% before increasing slightly to 83% in 2007–08. A valid consent rate of 85% was recorded in 2008–09.
9.2	Factors affecting support periods
Figure 9.2 presents the number of clients and support periods over the 13 years of the SAAP NDC.
Figure 9.2: Number of support periods and clients, by reporting period, Australia, 1996–97 to 
2008–09
Stacked line chart showing, for support periods and clients, number on y-axis and reporting period on x-axis.
Notes
In 2005–06, refined definitions and a new statistical linkage key were introduced, resulting in a break in the data series.
In 2008–09, SAAP was discontinued and replaced by the NAHA on 1 January 2009, resulting in a break in the data series.
Source: Table 9.2.

Key changes in the number of support periods over the years are summarised below:
•	In 1996–97, there were an estimated 156,500 support periods (Table 9.2). This increased to 164,300 in 1997–98, but dropped back over the next 2 years, returning almost to 1996–97 levels in 1999–00.
•	In 2000–01, there was a sharp rise to 170,700 support periods. The main cause of this increase was the participation of one agency that had not previously participated in the Client Collection—this agency returned a very large number of forms. Although the weighting system adjusts for non-participation (refer to Appendix 2), it does not fully account for non-participating agencies, such as this one, that are different from other agencies.
•	The number of support periods increased further in 2001–02 to 177,000. However, a change in reporting practice part way through the 2002–03 financial year by the previously mentioned high-volume agency decreased the number reported to 176,300. If this agency had reported consistently throughout the year, the total number of support periods in 2002–03 would be estimated at approximately 178,700. This agency reported a full year under its new guidelines in 2003–04, resulting in a substantial decrease from the previous year in the number of support periods it reported. However, there was still a sharp increase in support periods in 2003–04 to 187,200. This was due to the participation of another large agency that had not participated in the Client Collection since 1997–98.
•	The decrease in 2004–05 to 173,100 support periods was mainly due to an adjustment to the definition of an ongoing support relationship in 2004–05, in preparation for the introduction of the core data set in July 2005. This change mostly affected agencies that were previously classified as high-volume. These agencies mainly used the high-volume collection form, which was discontinued in 2004–05. With the move of all high-volume agencies to the general collection form, agencies with a large turnover of clients were instructed to apply an adjusted rule to the definition of an ongoing support relationship. This rule stated that if an ongoing support relationship was established with the client, and there was not a gap of more than a month between contacts with that client, then a single support period should be recorded. The data submitted in 2004–05 by two large agencies using a collection tool that was not able to apply the new definitions were manipulated to ensure consistency with the change in the definition. These variations highlight the effect on the Client Collection of inconsistencies in the application of the definition of a support period.
•	In 2005–06, the core data set was introduced, including refined definitions and a new statistical linkage key. These changes constitute a break in the data series and thus data for 2005–06 are not strictly comparable to previous years. In addition, the two large agencies for which adjustments were made in 2004–05 used a new collection tool that enabled them to record data using the new definition of an ongoing support relationship. For this reason, a decision was made to not adjust the data provided by these agencies, despite them having large numbers of short support periods. This meant that the number of support periods rose in 2005–06 to 180,000.
•	In 2006–07, support periods increased to 207,700 (or by 15%). There were several reasons for this, including changes in the number and structure of agencies, changes in reporting practices in some jurisdictions, and the inclusion of the SAAP I & I Fund in the collection for the first time (see AIHW 2009).
•	In 2007–08, support periods increased again to 220,300 (or by 6%), largely due to an increase in the support periods reported in New South Wales.
•	In 2008–09, SAAP was discontinued and replaced with the NAHA on 1 January 2009, resulting in another break in the data series (see Chapter 1). This resulted in some changes to the way the jurisdictions administer the agencies (see Section 9.1). In particular, the decrease in the number of agencies that were required to participate in the collection was a contributing factor in the decrease in the number of support periods from 220,300 in 2007–08 to 212,400 in 2008–09. Other factors were the increase in the average length of support (from 56 days in 2007–08 to 63 days in 2008–09) and the reduction in repeat use, from an average of 1.8 support periods per client in 2007–08 to 1.7 per client in 2008–09 (Table 3.1; AIHW 2009:Table 3.1).
State and territory
The overall number of support periods each year is affected by changes in the way the jurisdictions administer and allocate agencies and funding. Key factors related to changes in the number of support periods in the states and territories since the collection began are presented below.
The state and territory data have similar overall comparability issues between years as that described for the national data.
New South Wales
•	New South Wales accounted for the greatest number of support periods for the first 
6 years of the collection (Table 9.2). However, there was a decrease in the number of support periods provided between 1996–97 and 1997–98. The relatively high number recorded for 1996–97 was largely the result of reporting practices for people placed by police for 8 hours with SAAP agencies because of intoxication.
•	There was a 31% rise from 40,900 support periods in 2005–06 to 53,400 in 2006–07, primarily because of changes in reporting practices. As part of its ongoing reform of SAAP, the New South Wales Department of Community Services implemented funding reforms, of which the key components were: results-based accountability; performance-based contracting focusing on program priorities; a Performance Monitoring Framework; and evidence-based approaches. These reforms contributed to the increased number of support periods and clients.
•	In 2007–08, the number of support periods in New South Wales increased again to 64,500 (or by 21%), most likely because of the continuation of the reform agenda in New South Wales.
Victoria
•	In 2002–03, the number of support periods in Victoria exceeded the number in New South Wales for the first time (Table 9.2).
•	There was a substantial increase in the number of support periods from 48,800 in 
2002–03 to 67,200 in 2003–04. This jump was due mainly to the participation of an agency with a very high turnover of clients that had not participated in the collection since 
1997–98. This agency submitted around 16,000 forms—all of same-day duration—and had a relatively high level of repeat use by clients.
•	In 2004–05, two large agencies submitted in excess of 26,100 forms—again all of same-day duration. These forms were combined to be more consistent with the definition of an ongoing support relationship applied to agencies with a high turnover of clients in 
2004–05. Separate support periods for the same client that occurred less than a month apart were combined to form a single support period. This reduced the total number of forms for these two agencies to around 12,000.
•	In 2005–06, these two agencies again submitted large numbers of forms with same-day duration and a relatively high level of repeat use; however, because they were now using a tool that enabled them to record data according to the new definitions, no adjustment was made. This meant that the number of support periods in Victoria increased sharply to 71,800.
•	Victoria showed a further small increase in 2006–07 to 75,800, mostly due to the inclusion of a relatively large number of new agencies.
•	In 2007–08, the number of support periods reported in Victoria decreased to 70,300. This was largely the result of a reduction in the number of support periods submitted by two large Victorian agencies.
Queensland
•	Queensland showed a very large increase in 2000–01: from 26,100 support periods in 
1999–00 to 38,700 (Table 9.2). This jump was due mainly to the participation of a very high-volume agency for the first time in that year.
•	The number of support periods decreased from 41,400 in 2001–02 to 36,900 in 2002–03, then to 28,400 in 2003–04 and further to 26,300 in 2004–05. This decrease is partly attributable to the same agency, which changed its reporting practices during 2002–03 and submitted a full year of data with these amended reporting practices for the first time in 2003–04. The decrease in 2004–05 is probably also due to the change in reporting practices for previously high-volume agencies.
•	There were 25,400 support periods in 2005–06, increasing to 27,800 in 2006–07 and again to 31,800 in 2007–08. These increases were largely because of the inclusion of additional agencies in the data collection (see Table 9.1 in the Queensland supplementary report).
Western Australia
•	There was a decrease in the number of support periods from 14,900 in 2002–03 to 13,800 in 2003–04, despite an increase in the number of agencies required to submit data 
(Table 9.2). Contributing to this was a decrease in the participation rate by around four percentage points over the same period (see Table 9.1 in the Western Australian supplementary report).
•	In 2006–07, the number of support periods increased by 30% from 12,700 in 2005–06 to 16,500. This was primarily because of one high-volume agency reporting for the first time in 2006–07. This agency contributed to a significant increase in overall support provided, and the breakdown of support and client characteristics reported in 2006–07 may also have been unduly affected by this one agency. In addition, the number of agencies required to participate in the collection increased from 106 in 2005–06 to 133 in 2006–07 (see Table 9.1 in the Western Australian supplementary report).
•	The number of support periods in Western Australia increased again to 18,100 in 
2007–08, most likely because of an increase in the number of agencies participating in the collection (see Table 9.1 in the Western Australian supplementary report).
South Australia
•	The number of support periods in South Australia increased from 15,900 in 2005–06 to 20,000 (or by 26%) in 2006–07 (Table 9.2). This increase was mostly due to the introduction of I & I Pilot agencies, as well as other new agencies reporting in this state in 2006–07 (see Table 9.1 in the South Australian supplementary report).
•	The number of support periods in South Australia increased again in 2007–08 to 21,900, primarily because of the inclusion of additional agencies (see Table 9.1 in the South Australian supplementary report).
Tasmania
•	Tasmania is one of the few jurisdictions to regularly record 100% participation in the Client Collection: this has occurred every year since 2003–04 (see Table 9.1 in the Tasmanian supplementary report).
•	The number of support periods in Tasmania has been relatively consistent over the years, particularly since 2002–03 (Table 9.2).
Australian Capital Territory
•	The number of support periods in the Australian Capital Territory has fluctuated since the inception of the collection in 1996 (Table 9.2). In particular, there was a decrease from 2,800 in 2005–06 to 2,600 in 2006–07. The main reason for this was a key agency not submitting a full year’s worth of data for the 2006–07 reporting period. If this agency had submitted all of its data, it is likely that support periods in the Australian Capital Territory would have increased slightly from 2005–06 to 2006–07.
•	The data from 2006–07 were affected by extensive agency re-structuring. A number of agencies were consolidated and operated for only part of the year and/or did not return data. The principle for inclusion or exclusion of reporting agencies assumes that all agencies operate for a full 12 months. This assumption has a more significant impact on smaller jurisdictions.
Northern Territory
•	The number of support periods in the Northern Territory has been relatively consistent over the years (Table 9.2).
Daily support
Table 9.2 shows that the daily average number of support periods in each year does not always follow the general pattern for the overall number of support periods. 
Key changes over the years are summarised below:
•	Despite the actual daily number of support periods fluctuating between 1996–97 and 2002–03, the average daily number of support periods gradually increased from 13,600 in 1996–97 to 21,900 in 2002–03. Likewise, although there was an increase in the number of support periods in 2003–04, the number of support periods active each day decreased slightly. These variations can be partly explained by variations in the length of support periods between the years: in addition to the total number of support periods active in a reporting year, the length of support may also influence the daily average number of support periods. For example, the larger increase in the average daily number of support periods between 2000–01 and 2001–02 may be explained by the significant increase in support periods between the years (6,300) as well as the increase in the mean length of support (from 40 to 44 days) (refer to AIHW 2006:Table 9.7). The higher mean length of support periods in 2001–02 indicates that it is likely there were more long support periods in that year than in 2000–01.
•	The decrease in the daily average number of support periods in 2003–04 is likely to be due to the high number of single-day support periods reported in 2003–04, with the mean length of support dropping from 46 days in 2002–03 to 44 days in 2003–04.
•	The average daily number of support periods increased to 23,700 in 2004–05, along with an increase in the average length of support to 53 days.
•	The decrease in the average daily number of support periods in 2005–06 to 23,000—despite the increase in the total number of support periods overall—is party due to the decrease in the average length of support to 48 days, which, in turn, resulted largely from the non-adjustment of support periods for the two previously mentioned large agencies in that year (AIHW 2007:Table 6.1).
•	In 2006–07, the daily average number of support periods was 29,700. This increased to 34,200 in 2007–08 as a result of increases in both the number of support periods and in the average length of support (from 50 days in 2006–07 to 56 days in 2007–08) (AIHW 2008b:Table 6.1, 2009:Table 6.1).
Nightly accommodation
Table 9.2 shows the nightly average support periods with accommodation. When analysing this data, it is important to note that not all support periods include a period of accommodation (see Table 3.1). It is also important to note that, when a client is accommodated, the length of the accommodation period can be the same as, or shorter than, the associated support period and that there can be more than one accommodation period within a support period. These factors contribute to the smaller nightly average number of support periods with accommodation compared with the daily average number of support periods.
Key changes over the years are summarised below:
•	The nightly average number of support periods with accommodation fluctuated between 1996–97 and 1998–99 before increasing from 7,000 in 1999–00 to 8,700 in 2004–05 
(Table 9.2).
•	In 2005–06, the nightly average number of support periods with accommodation was 8,200, increasing to 8,800 in 2006–07. This did not increase as dramatically as the days of support because the increase in support periods was largely related to an increase in support-only services; that is, the support periods did not involve a period of accommodation (see AIHW 2008b:tables 3.3 and 3.4). This appears to be consistent with a greater emphasis in SAAP V on early intervention and post-crisis support.
•	The nightly average number of support periods with accommodation increased to 9,100 in 2007–08, despite a decrease in the proportion of support periods with accommodation (from 38% in 2006–07 to 34% in 2007–08) (AIHW 2008b:Table 3.1, 2009:Table 3.1). The increase is likely due to an increase in the average length of accommodation from 50 days in 2006–07 to 54 days in 2007–08 (AIHW 2008b:Table 6.3, 2009:Table 6.3).
•	In 2008–09, the nightly average number of support periods with accommodation was 8,400. This decrease was a result of a reduction both in the overall number of support periods with accommodation, from 75,800 in 2007–08 to 69,400 in 2008–09, and in the proportion of support periods with accommodation, from 34% in 2007–08 to 32% in 2008–09 (Table 3.1). The small overall increase in the length of accommodation (from a mean and median of 54 and 12 days, respectively, in 2007–08 to 57 and 13 days in 2008–09) was not sufficient to offset this (Table 6.3; AIHW 2009:Table 6.3).
•	A large proportion of the decrease in the nightly average number of support periods with accommodation came from Victoria. In this state, the nightly average number of support periods with accommodation decreased from 1,900 in 2007–08 to 900 in 2008–09 or by 53% (see Table 9.2 in the Victorian supplementary report). This was mainly because of a decrease both in the overall number of support periods with accommodation from 12,000 in 2007–08 to 8,400 in 2008–09 or by 30%, and in the proportion of support periods with accommodation from 17% in 2007–08 to 13% in 2008–09 (tables 3.1 and 9.2 in the Victorian supplementary report; AIHW 2009:Table 3.1). In conjunction with this, the average length of accommodation in Victoria also fell (from 84 days to 79 days) (Table 6.3; AIHW 2009:Table 6.3). This was primarily a result of the introduction of a new data collection in Victoria (see chapters 3 and 6).
9.3	Factors affecting clients
Key changes over the years are summarised below:
•	Trends in the number of clients provided with SAAP services showed a pattern similar to that for support periods over the first 9 years of the collection, although the changes were less pronounced in the last 5 of those 9 years (Figure 9.1). In 1996–97, an estimated 83,200 clients were provided with support; the figure rose to 94,100 in 1997–98 and then fell to 90,000 in 1999–00. In 2000–01 the number of clients increased again to 93,000 and continued to increase each year to reach 100,400 in 2004–05.
•	In 2005–06 a new statistical linkage key and data definitions were introduced. The statistical linkage key was aimed at improving both the quality of the data and the ability to anonymously link with other community services data collections. The statistical linkage key is fundamental in estimating the number of clients and, for this reason, estimates of the number of clients in 2005–06 are not strictly comparable with data from the first 9 years of the collection. The new statistical linkage key was introduced to reduce the rate of duplication, meaning that two clients with similar names and the same year of birth were more likely to be counted as separate clients. For this reason, some increase in the numbers of clients in 2005–06 was expected. In 2005–06, the number of clients was estimated to be 106,500.
•	In 2006–07, improved data editing and input procedures were implemented to further strengthen the linkage key. This, and changes in the number and structure of agencies and in reporting practices by the states and territories, resulted in an increase in the number of clients in 2006–07 to 118,800. The number increased again in 2007–08 to 125,600.
•	In 2008–09, the number of clients remained relatively steady at 125,800.
State and territory
In general terms, the number of clients receiving support over time reflected the pattern observed for support periods within each jurisdiction. However, there were some variations. For example:
•	Support periods in Queensland increased by 48% between 1999–00 and 2000–01, but the number of clients increased by only 12%, reflecting that clients of the newly reporting high-volume agency tended to access the service repeatedly during the year.
•	In 2007–08, the number of support periods in Western Australia increased, but the number of clients decreased from 11,100 in 2006–07 to 10,900. Contributing to this were an increase in the average number of support periods per client from 1.5 in 2006–07 to 1.7 in 2007–08, combined with a drop in the valid consent rate in Western Australia from 90% in 2006–07 to 83% in 2007–08 (AIHW 2008b:tables 3.1 and A2.1, 2009: tables 3.1 and A2.1).
•	In 2007–08, despite having fewer periods of support overall, New South Wales reported a higher number of clients than Victoria for the first time since 1997–98. A partial explanation for this is that Victoria had a higher number of support periods per client (1.9) than New South Wales (1.7), meaning that the same client was slightly more likely to have multiple periods of support in Victoria (AIHW 2009:Table 3.1).
9.4	Factors affecting accompanying child support periods
Key factors affecting accompanying child support periods are summarised below:
•	Before 2000–01, only limited data were collected on accompanying children. In 2001–02, the Client Collection was changed so that more information could be reported. Until that time, reliable estimates of the number of children accompanying clients to SAAP agencies were not available. However, an updated version of the computer-based collection tool, SMART, was not released until December 2000, resulting in agencies that used this tool not being able to report information until January 2001. For this reason, the first full year of collection reported is 2001–02.
•	Although responses to the accompanying children section of the Client Collection have generally improved, it is still not completed on all records where the presenting unit indicated that the client presented with accompanying children (see Appendix 2 for the current collection form).
•	In 2005–06, the core data set, including refined definitions and a new statistical linkage key, was introduced. These changes constitute a break in the data series and thus data for 2005–06 are not strictly comparable to previous years.
•	In 2008–09, SAAP was discontinued and replaced with the NAHA on 1 January 2009, resulting in another break in the data series (see Chapter 1).
State and territory
There were large variations between the states and territories in terms of the number of accompanying child support periods (Table 9.3). The variations between the states and territories most likely reflect differences in the service structures and demographic profile of the various jurisdictions. On a state and territory level, Victoria reported the highest number of accompanying child support periods across all 8 years.
9.5	Factors affecting accompanying children
Key factors affecting the estimates of accompanying children over the years are summarised below:
•	Although responses to the accompanying children section of the Client Collection have generally improved, it is still not completed on all records where the presenting unit indicated that the client presented with accompanying children.
•	In 2001–02, 2002–03 and 2003–04, data that enabled the number of accompanying children to be estimated were not collected by agencies using the high-volume collection form (refer to AIHW 2005a for an example of this form). For these years, estimates of accompanying children are reported only for the children accompanying a parent(s) or guardian(s) to a SAAP agency that used the general client form. The reporting year 
2004–05 was the first year that the number of accompanying children could be reported for all participating agencies.
•	In 2005–06, a new statistical linkage key and data definitions were introduced. The statistical linkage key is fundamental in estimating the number of accompanying children and, for this reason, estimates of the number of accompanying children in 
2005–06 are not strictly comparable with data from previous years.
State and territory
There were large variations between the states and territories in terms of the number of accompanying children (Table 9.3). Again, these variations most likely reflect differences in the service structures and demographic profile of the various jurisdictions. 
Key changes over the years are summarised below:
•	Victoria reported the highest number of accompanying children across the 8 years.
•	The number of accompanying children increased markedly in New South Wales between 2005–06 (11,400), 2006–07 (16,900) and 2007–08 (19,000) primarily due to an improvement in reporting practices over those years.

3.1	
9.6	Tables
Table 9.1:	Client Collection: agency participation rates and records returned with informed consent and valid consent, by reporting period, Australia, 1996–97 to 2008–09
	1996–97	1997–98	1998–99	1999–00	2000–01	2001–02	2002–03	2003–04	2004–05	2005–06	2006–07	2007–08	2008–09	
Agencies(a) (number)	1,119	1,159	1,163	1,159	1,178	1,211	1,202	1,225	1,212	1,219	1,456	1,444	1,433	
Agency participation rate (%)	95.4	94.6	95.0	93.2	94.1	94.5	94.0	92.7	92.6	92.9	87.2	92.1	93.7	
Records returned (number)	148,873	156,589	155,005	146,793	158,131	166,535	164,707	174,915	160,002	166,747	192,591	202,835	199,277	
Records returned with consent (%)	67.9	75.4	75.0	79.0	81.5	87.0	87.6	89.9	88.8	86.6	87.2	88.6	90.2	
Records returned with valid consent(b) (%)	63.7	72.0	71.5	76.5	78.7	85.1	85.9	88.3	86.8	81.5	81.1	82.5	85.0	
(a)	‘Agencies’ refers to the number of agencies that were ‘in scope’—that is, that should have been participating in the reference period. Refer to Appendix 1, Section A1.4.
(b)	‘Valid consent’ here refers to records with a valid statistical linkage key (refer to Appendix 1, Section A1.4 and AIHW 2006:Glossary). Note that in 2005–06 the statistical linkage key was changed and therefore data from that point on are not comparable to previous years.
Notes
1.	Table based on records returned from agencies in scope for the Client Collection during the reference period. Not all agencies are required to participate in the Client Collection. Consequently, some funded agencies (refer to Table 2.1) are not included in this table.
2.	In 2008–09, SAAP was discontinued and replaced by the NAHA on 1 January 2009. Data are therefore not strictly comparable to previous years.
Sources: Administrative Data and Client Collections.

Table 9.2:	Support periods and clients: state and territory, by reporting period, Australia, 1996–97 to 2008–09 (number)
	1996–97	1997–98	1998–99	1999–00	2000–01	2001–02	2002–03	2003–04	2004–05	2005–06	2006–07	2007–08	2008–09	
State/territory	Support periods	
NSW	57,900	55,000	55,400	51,200	49,300	47,900	47,900	48,600	41,300	40,900	53,400	64,500	62,000	
Vic	36,800	41,800	44,200	42,700	43,400	45,200	48,800	67,200	62,000	71,800	75,800	70,300	67,000	
Qld	25,100	26,800	25,800	26,100	38,700	41,400	36,900	28,400	26,300	25,400	27,800	31,800	30,400	
WA	12,000	12,500	12,400	13,100	15,200	14,700	14,900	13,800	14,500	12,700	16,500	18,100	17,200	
SA	11,400	12,900	11,100	10,900	11,000	14,400	14,100	14,700	15,600	15,900	20,000	21,900	21,200	
Tas	5,200	6,400	5,600	5,800	5,100	5,800	6,600	6,600	6,400	6,200	6,800	6,700	7,000	
ACT	3,200	3,300	3,000	3,200	2,900	2,700	2,500	3,000	2,300	2,800	2,600	2,900	2,700	
NT	4,800	5,500	5,600	4,700	5,200	4,800	4,500	4,800	4,600	4,300	4,800	4,100	4,900	
Australia	156,500	164,300	163,200	157,600	170,700	177,000	176,300	187,200	173,100	180,000	207,700	220,300	212,400	
Errors and omissions	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	
Nightly average support periods with accommodation	5,200	7,600	7,200	7,000	7,200	8,100	8,200	8,300	8,700	8,200	8,800	9,100	8,400	
Errors and omissions	3,498	4,053	6,047	4,167	2,361	2,505	2,177	7,579	2,689	2,885	2,456	1,450	3,773	
Daily average support periods	13,600	15,500	16,500	18,000	18,100	20,400	21,900	21,800	23,700	23,000	29,700	34,200	36,500	
Errors and omissions	6,302	4,265	319	212	1,437	1,347	254	75	1	—	—	—	—	
(continued)

Table 9.2 (continued):	Support periods and clients: state and territory, by reporting period, Australia, 1996–97 to 2008–09 (number)
	1996–97	1997–98	1998–99	1999–00	2000–01	2001–02	2002–03	2003–04	2004–05	2005–06	2006–07	2007–08	2008–09	
State/territory	Clients	
NSW	26,600	29,100	27,300	25,800	25,900	26,400	25,400	25,000	24,100	26,000	31,900	37,700	37,400	
Vic	23,700	28,000	29,100	28,500	28,200	29,200	30,500	34,900	36,100	37,700	37,900	36,600	35,500	
Qld	14,900	16,500	15,300	16,100	18,000	18,400	18,900	17,900	17,500	17,400	19,000	20,400	20,800	
WA	7,700	8,200	7,900	8,500	9,700	9,000	9,300	8,400	8,900	8,300	11,100	10,900	11,100	
SA	7,000	8,600	7,500	7,600	7,700	8,800	9,400	9,700	9,600	10,400	12,200	13,000	13,600	
Tas	3,200	3,800	3,500	3,500	3,500	3,700	4,300	4,500	4,600	4,400	4,700	4,700	4,800	
ACT	2,200	2,300	2,100	2,200	2,100	1,900	1,800	1,700	1,600	2,000	1,900	2,000	2,000	
NT	2,500	3,100	3,300	3,100	3,100	3,100	3,100	3,200	3,100	3,100	3,200	3,100	3,300	
Australia	83,200	94,100	90,700	90,000	93,000	95,600	97,600	100,200	100,400	106,500	118,800	125,600	125,800	
Errors and omissions	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	
Notes
1.	In 2005–06, the definition of a support period, the definition of a client and the statistical linkage key were changed. Data are therefore not strictly comparable to previous years.
2.	In 2008–09, SAAP was discontinued and replaced by the NAHA on 1 January 2009. Data are therefore not strictly comparable to previous years.
3.	The number of clients within a state or territory relates to the first visit for that client in that state or territory. Because a client may have support periods in more than one state or territory, the figures do not sum to the national figure.
4.	Support period figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
5.	Client figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Table 9.3:	Accompanying child support periods and accompanying children: state and territory, by reporting period, Australia, 
2001–02 to 2008–09 (number)
	2001–02	2002–03	2003–04	2004–05	2005–06	2006–07	2007–08	2008–09	
State/territory	Accompanying child support periods	
NSW	13,500	12,900	12,900	13,500	15,900	22,800	25,400	24,900	
Vic	23,900	25,700	25,700	29,700	29,400	32,300	31,600	34,900	
Qld	13,200	13,200	11,100	10,700	10,900	14,000	17,000	16,800	
WA	7,700	8,000	7,900	8,600	8,300	9,600	11,700	11,300	
SA	9,200	9,800	9,100	9,300	10,300	13,700	14,100	15,200	
Tas	2,300	2,900	2,700	3,200	3,000	2,800	2,900	3,100	
ACT	1,000	1,000	1,100	900	1,600	1,600	1,900	2,000	
NT	2,500	2,200	2,600	2,600	2,300	2,600	2,600	3,000	
Australia	73,300	75,800	73,200	78,500	81,700	99,300	107,300	111,200	
Errors and omissions	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	
Nightly average accompanying child support periods with accommodation	4,800	5,100	5,100	5,700	5,600	6,500	6,700	6,200	
Errors and omissions	1,459	1,371	1,609	1,641	1,507	929	723	2,330	
Daily average accompanying child support periods	12,300	13,600	12,600	13,900	14,600	18,500	21,800	23,800	
Errors and omissions	760	145	48	—	—	—	—	—	
(continued)

Table 9.3 (continued):	Accompanying child support periods and accompanying children: state and territory, by reporting period, Australia, 
2001–02 to 2008–09 (number)
	2001–02	2002–03	2003–04	2004–05	2005–06	2006–07	2007–08	2008–09	
State/territory	Accompanying children	
NSW	10,300	9,900	10,100	10,800	11,400	16,900	19,000	18,600	
Vic	18,300	19,900	19,700	20,400	18,500	20,500	21,400	23,100	
Qld	8,200	9,200	8,600	8,600	8,100	11,000	13,200	13,000	
WA	5,900	6,000	5,900	6,100	5,400	6,300	8,300	8,200	
SA	4,900	5,400	4,900	7,100	7,000	9,400	9,900	10,700	
Tas	1,900	2,300	2,400	2,600	2,100	2,300	2,400	2,400	
ACT	800	800	700	800	1,000	1,300	1,500	1,500	
NT	1,900	1,900	2,100	2,000	1,700	2,000	2,200	2,300	
Australia	50,800	53,800	52,700	56,800	54,700	69,100	76,900	79,100	
Errors and omissions	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	
Notes
1.	In 2005–06, the definition of a support period, the definition of a client and the statistical linkage key were changed. Data are therefore not strictly comparable to previous years.
2.	In 2008–09, SAAP was discontinued and replaced by the NAHA on 1 January 2009. Data are therefore not strictly comparable to previous years.
3.	Dates of support and accommodation are not collected for accompanying children. For the purposes of calculating the number of days of support and the number of nights of accommodation, accompanying children are assumed to have the same periods of support and accommodation as their parent(s) or guardian(s).
4.	‘Accompanying children’ exclude records where a valid statistical linkage key was not provided. The number of accompanying children within a state or territory relates to the first visit for that child in that state or territory. Because a client with accompanying children may have support periods in more than one state or territory, the figures do not sum to the national figure.
5.	In 2001–02, 2002–03 and 2003–04, data that enabled the number of accompanying children to be estimated was not collected by agencies using the high-volume collection form. The reporting year 2004–05 was the first year that the number of accompanying children could be reported for all participating agencies.
6.	Accompanying child support period figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation.
7.	Accompanying children figures have been weighted to adjust for agency non-participation and client non-consent.
Source: Client Collection.

Appendix 1	The data
A1.1	The SAAP National Data Collection
The SAAP National Data Collection (NDC) consists of distinct components, each of which can be thought of as a separate collection. In 2008–09, three collections were run:
•	The Client Collection: collects information about clients and their accompanying children (refer to Section A1.4 for definitions). Data are recorded by service providers (agencies) during, or immediately following, contact with clients and are then forwarded to the NDCA after support has ended or, for ongoing clients, at the end of the reporting period (30 June). Data collected include information on: demographics, such as age, sex and country of birth for clients and accompanying children; the types of support required by, and provided to, each client and accompanying child; and the client’s situation before and after receiving support. Some data items require consent from the client to collect. More information on the Client Collection is provided in Section A1.2.
•	The Administrative Data Collection: consists of general information about the agencies providing accommodation and support to people who are homeless or in crisis. Details about these agencies are forwarded to the NDCA by the departments that administer agencies in each state and territory. The information provided for the Administrative Data Collection includes the client target group of each agency and details of funding.
•	The Demand for Accommodation Collection: measures the level of unmet demand for accommodation by collecting information about the number of requests for accommodation from agencies that are not met, for whatever reason. It is conducted annually over 2 separate weeks.
This report uses information collected in the Client and Administrative Data collections only. A further report examining the demand for accommodation, using data from the 2008–09 Demand for Accommodation Collection, will be released subsequently.
A1.2	The Client Collection
The Client Collection obtains information about clients and their accompanying children (refer to Section A1.4 for definitions). To ensure that the data collected accurately reflect the work done, it is important that there is both a high level of participation in the collection among funded agencies and a high level consent provided by clients.

Table A1.1:	Client Collection: participating agencies, agency participation rates and records returned with informed consent and valid consent for clients, by state and territory and primary target group of agency, Australia, 2008–09
	Agencies(a)	Records returned	
	Total	Participation rate	Total	Consent	Valid consent(b)	
State/territory	Number	Per cent	Number	Per cent	Per cent	
NSW	359	92.2	57,120	89.7	82.7	
Vic	488	92.8	62,255	90.5	87.1	
Qld	225	95.1	28,876	92.7	88.1	
WA	142	93.7	16,159	92.5	84.9	
SA	111	98.2	20,810	88.5	83.2	
Tas	36	100.0	7,014	80.9	78.0	
ACT	32	96.9	2,662	86.9	81.1	
NT	40	90.0	4,381	92.9	88.7	
Total	1,433	93.7	199,277	90.2	85.0	
Primary target group						
Young people	502	92.8	40,766	87.5	82.0	
Single men only	93	92.5	22,265	94.0	92.0	
Single women only	42	95.2	5,502	89.5	85.9	
Families	126	97.6	14,259	92.8	87.5	
Women escaping domestic violence	331	94.3	44,727	88.1	80.3	
Cross-target/multiple/general	339	93.2	71,758	91.5	87.0	
Total	1,433	93.7	199,277	90.2	85.0	
(a)	‘Agencies’ refers to the number of agencies that were ‘in scope’—that is, that should have been participating in the reference period. Refer to Section A1.4.
(b)	‘Valid consent’ here refers to all records with a valid statistical linkage key (refer to Section A1.4).
Note: Table based on records returned from agencies in scope for the Client Collection during the reference period. Not all funded agencies are required to participate in the Client Collection. Consequently, some funded agencies (refer to Table 2.1) are not included in this table.
Sources: Administrative Data and Client Collections.

Table A1.2:	Client Collection: records returned with informed consent and valid consent for accompanying children, by state and territory and primary target group of agency, Australia, 
2008–09
	Records returned	
	Total	Consent	Valid consent(a)	
State/territory	Number	Per cent	Per cent	
NSW	22,936	92.2	76.9	
Vic	32,416	90.8	66.1	
Qld	15,940	93.7	73.2	
WA	10,593	93.5	72.0	
SA	14,936	90.7	79.4	
Tas	3,119	84.5	68.4	
ACT	1,915	90.0	74.4	
NT	2,741	91.0	81.4	
Total	104,596	91.6	72.7	
Primary target group				
Young people	7,576	87.3	64.0	
Single men only	419	88.5	72.8	
Single women only	2,091	97.8	87.2	
Families	19,449	92.6	79.4	
Women escaping domestic violence	46,094	91.1	71.0	
Cross-target/multiple/general	28,967	92.6	72.1	
Total	104,596	91.6	72.7	
(a)	‘Valid consent’ here refers to all records with a valid statistical linkage key (refer to Section A1.4).
Sources: Administrative Data and Client Collections.
Agency non-participation and client non-consent
Participation
In assessing the quality of data in any collection, it is important to consider the level of coverage; that is, that a high proportion of clients who should participate in data collection actually did so.
The 2008–09 Client Collection achieved a national agency participation rate of 94%. This means that no records were returned for clients at 6% of participating agencies.
The jurisdictions all had participation rates of 90% or more, with Tasmania achieving 100% participation (Table A1.1).
According to the primary target group of the agency, participation varied from 93% in agencies primarily targeted at single men to 98% in agencies targeted at families.
Consent and valid consent
In assessing the quality of data in any collection, it is also important to consider the degree to which returned data are complete. All data collections and surveys invariably have some missing data, but this does not necessarily undermine the validity or reliability of information obtained. However, high levels of non-response to particular questions mean that some caution should be exercised when interpreting the data, because the results may not fully reflect the entire population of interest.
In this context, note that the protocols established for the NDC require that clients provide information in a climate of informed consent. If a client’s consent is not obtained, only a limited number of questions can be completed and a ‘statistical linkage key’ is not recorded. Statistical linkage keys allow data collected on separate occasions from the same person to be combined without identifying the person. Thus they allow enumeration of actual clients and accompanying children, in addition to occasions of support.
Clients
Across Australia, consent and valid statistical linkage keys (also termed ‘valid consent’) were obtained from clients in 90% and 85% of records, respectively (Table A1.1). This means that consent was not obtained for 10% of records for clients at participating agencies and valid statistical linkage keys were not obtained for around 15%.
In all states and territories, valid consent for clients was obtained in the majority of cases, ranging from 78% in Tasmania to 89% in the Northern Territory. The same was true according to primary target group, ranging from 80% for agencies primarily targeted at women and children escaping domestic violence to 92% for those that primarily targeted single men.
Accompanying children
The protocols of the NDC state that data should be collected in a climate of informed consent. However, consent in the case of accompanying children is more complicated than that for clients. Young children are not able to understand the purpose of the collection and cannot, therefore, give informed consent. In addition, the question concerning the age at which young people are able to give consent has no simple, universally accepted answer.
For the purposes of the NDC, consent can be obtained from either the parent/guardian or the child, depending on family circumstances and whether or not the child is judged able to comprehend what is being asked of her/him. In cases where there is a strong objection from the parent/guardian about the data collection, the wishes of the parent/guardian take precedence. 
Note that consent is obtained at the support period level, not the accompanying child support period level, and that a client may choose to provide consent for their details to be recorded but not wish to record those of their accompanying child. This is highlighted by the large gap between the rates of consent and valid consent for accompanying children. In 2008–09, consent was obtained in 92% of accompanying child records but valid consent was obtained in only 73% of cases (Table A1.2). This means that consent was not obtained in 8% of records from participating agencies and valid consent was not obtained for 27% 
(tables A1.1 and A1.2).
Across the states and territories, valid consent for accompanying children was obtained in the majority of cases, ranging from 66% in Victoria to 81% in the Northern Territory. The same was true according to primary target group, ranging from 64% for agencies primarily targeted at young people to 87% for those that primarily targeted single women.
Adjusting for agency non-participation and client non-consent in the Client Collection
In order to provide accurate data about all clients presenting at SAAP agencies, the data collected in the Client Collection must be adjusted for agency non-participation and client non-consent, if necessary.
The simplest way of adjusting for non-participation and non-consent is to scale up estimates at the total level. This assumes that, on average, the demographic characteristics and circumstances of people are the same regardless of whether data about them were reported to the NDCA. There may, however, be some differences between the profiles of support periods with and without consent. Consequently, distributions based only on support periods with consent may differ from those that would have been obtained had consent been provided in all cases. The varying valid consent rates by state and territory and primary target group (refer to Table A1.1) suggest that there are differences between support periods with and without consent. The AIHW has therefore developed an adjustment scheme that allows for differences between support periods with consent and those without. The scheme also adjusts estimates to allow for agency non-participation (if this occurs), for clients who give valid consent for some support periods but not for others (referred to as ‘mixed consent’), and for clients who do not give consent in any of their periods of support. The scheme is outlined below.
There is no strictly objective method that can be applied to the data from the Client Collection to adjust estimates for incomplete response. Karmel (1999:23, 26) describes the statistical assumptions underlying the adjustment scheme developed by the AIHW. The scheme has the following features:
•	The collection is divided into specified groups, or strata. Within the strata, it is assumed that support periods with valid consent (that is, with consent and a valid statistical linkage key) represent those without valid consent. This means that the characteristics of support periods within each stratum are assumed not to depend on whether valid consent was obtained. The strata are defined in terms of characteristics available for all support periods in participating agencies.
•	If there are any non-participating agencies within a state or territory, it is assumed that, on average, participating and non-participating agencies provide a similar volume and profile of support.
•	Some clients have mixed consent. Assumptions about the extent and nature of mixed consent are made to estimate the number of clients and the average number of support periods per client. Adjustments made for clients with mixed consent within subgroups are derived using simulation techniques and by-product data from the Client Collection.
•	For support period level estimates, two weights for adjusting estimates are derived:
–	a non-participation weight: a range of information is available for all support periods in participating agencies, and estimates using these data are adjusted only for agency non-participation
–	a full non-participation non-consent weight: for estimates using data that require consent, weights that adjust for both agency non-participation and client 
non-consent are used.
It is possible for these two weighting schemes to give slightly different estimates for the same item. Because estimates derived using the non-participation weights are based on a much larger sample than those using the full non-participation non-consent weights, the former (where available) are preferred because of their greater accuracy.
•	For client and accompanying child level estimates, only one weight is derived because valid consent is required to derive these estimates. A weight is derived for each record with at least one period with valid consent. Note that consent is not obtained separately for accompanying children and is the same as the consent recorded on the parent/guardian’s form. In estimates of numbers of clients and accompanying children, inaccuracies caused by identical statistical linkage keys for a small number and changing linkage key information for the same client or accompanying child are not considered in the adjustment scheme.
In this report, nearly all estimates of clients, support periods, accompanying children and accompanying child support periods obtained using data from the Client Collection have been adjusted for agency non-participation and, where applicable, client non-consent using the scheme just outlined. In the supplements associated with this report, unadjusted estimates are presented at the regional level because the scheme was developed for national and state-level estimates and is not appropriate for regional estimates.
A1.3	Interpretation of tables
When interpreting the tables in this report, the following should be noted:
•	The main unit used in the table (for example, percentages, numbers or dollars) is shown at the end of the table title. If no unit is given there, the units used are given in the body of the table.
•	In tables by state and territory, the number of clients in each state and territory is calculated based on their first visit in that state or territory. Further, the support periods for a particular client may have been at agencies in more than one state or territory. Consequently, the number of clients by state and territory does not sum to the national figure. The same is true for accompanying children and accompanying child support periods.
•	Records with missing data (due to either errors or omissions) are not included in the percentages or numbers in a table. Care should be taken when interpreting and using figures in a table if the numbers of errors and omissions are relatively high (as a rule of thumb, more than one-third the size of the number of records included in the table—see the ‘Total (number)’ row).
•	Components may not add to totals because of rounding. For rounding conventions, refer to Section A2.4.
•	In a number of tables, clients may have more than one response, so the percentages will not add to 100. A note to the table will indicate whether this is the case.
•	A number of tables have Australian population data included. This is to allow comparisons between clients and the general population.

In general, numbered notes at the bottom of the tables indicate:
•	the number of records excluded from the table because of errors and omissions in the data
•	any additional information needed to interpret the table.
A1.4	Counting rules and glossary
In this report, the following rules and definitions have been used when counting clients or support periods in particular groups. For detailed descriptions of categories and other terms used in this report, please refer to the collectors manual (AIHW 2005b).

Accommodated client	A client is considered to be accommodated during a support period if the support type of ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ was provided and/or a date of accommodation was provided.	
Accommodation period	The period during which a client was in supported accommodation (also referred to as a period of accommodation). A client may have no accommodation periods or one or more accommodation periods within a support period.
The dates on which each accommodation period began and ended during the support period are collected for clients, but not for accompanying children. It can, however, be reasonably assumed that an accompanying child will have the same accommodation period start and end dates as their parent(s) or guardian(s) in the majority of cases.	
Accompanying child	A person aged under 18 years who:
•	has a parent or guardian who is a client; and 
•	accompanies that client to a an agency any time during that client’s support period; and/or 
•	receives assistance directly as a consequence of a parent or guardian’s support period.
Tables detailing the characteristics of individual accompanying children generally present data collected during the child’s first accompanying child support period in the reporting period.	
Accompanying child requiring assistance	An accompanying child is said to require assistance if any information concerning the need for or provision of support (including referrals) has been reported for the child (refer to question 23 of the client form, Appendix 2).	
Accompanying child support period	Each support period in which the child either accompanies a parent or guardian to an agency or receives assistance as a result of a parent or guardian’s support period.
Within an accompanying child support period, the child may receive one-off assistance and/or support over a period of time. Because the child may not be supported for the entire duration of a parent’s or guardian’s support period, it is not possible to assess the exact length of support for an accompanying child. However, it can be reasonably assumed that an accompanying child will have the same support period start and end dates as their parent(s) or guardian(s) in the majority of cases.
The number of accompanying child support periods is calculated by summing the number of accompanying children reported for each support period.	
Age	The age of the client or accompanying child is calculated from their date of birth and is either their age at the beginning of the support period or their age on the first day of the reporting period (1 July), whichever is the later.	
Agency	An organisation or establishment that receives a specified amount of SAAP/NAHA funds to provide transitional accommodation and/or support to people experiencing or at risk of homelessness. Agencies may also receive funding from other sources.
Agency inclusion is determined by the states and territories. Not all funded responses to people experiencing or at risk of homelessness are included in the SAAP National Data Collection (see Chapter 1).
Note that the NPAH funding commenced 1 July 2009, so services funded under NPAH are not in scope for this report.
See also participating agency and government-funded specialist homelessness agency.	
Alpha code	A predetermined combination of letters from a client’s or accompanying child’s name, together with a letter designating their sex. See also valid alpha code.	
At imminent risk of homelessness	Includes people who are at risk of losing their housing because of factors that do not pose a threat to their safety; for example, interpersonal conflicts that do not involve violence. A person who requires the support of an agency worker to maintain their current housing situation and live independently in the community may also be considered to be at risk of becoming homeless.	
Client	A person who is homeless or at imminent risk of homelessness who:
•	is accommodated by an agency; or
•	enters into an ongoing support relationship with an agency; or
•	receives support or assistance from an agency which entails generally 1 hour or more of a worker’s time, either with that client directly or on behalf of that client, on a given day.
This includes people who are aged 18 years or older and people of any age not accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Client records from operational agencies are included in the analyses presented in this report if:
•	the client’s support period ended in the reporting period; or
•	the client’s support period started on or before the end of the reporting period and either was ongoing at the end of the reporting period (30 June) or the end date of the support period was unknown and the record was entered by the NDCA before the data entry close-off date for the reporting period; and
•	a valid statistical linkage key was provided.
Tables detailing the characteristics of individual clients generally present data collected during the client’s first support period in the reporting period.	
Closed accompanying child support periods	An accompanying child support period associated with a closed support period.	
Closed support period	A support period that had finished on or before the end of the reporting period—30 June.	
Country of birth	Collected and reported using the Standard Australian Classification of Countries (SACC). For this report, the groups used are:
•	Australia (including external territories)
•	Oceania and Antarctica (excluding Australia)
•	North-West Europe
•	Southern and Eastern Europe
•	North Africa and the Middle East
•	South-East Asia
•	North-East Asia
•	Southern and Central Asia
•	Americas
•	Sub-Saharan Africa.
For more details, refer to ABS 1998 and subsequent revisions.	
Cultural and linguistic diversity	The cultural and linguistic diversity classification has been used in this report in response to the limitations of the ethnicity classification used previously. The cultural and linguistic diversity grouping of a client is based on the responses to two questions: country of birth, and Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander identification. 
The four categories used in this report are derived as follows:
•	Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people—those who identify as an Aboriginal person and/or a Torres Strait Islander in the collection.
•	Other Australian-born people—those born in Australia who do not identify as an Aboriginal person or a Torres Strait Islander in the collection.
•	People born overseas, English proficiency group 1—those who do not identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Australians in the collection and who were born in English proficiency group 1 countries.
•	People born overseas, English proficiency groups 2–4
—those who do not identify as Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander Australians and who were born in English proficiency groups 2–4 countries.	
English proficiency	Relates to people born overseas. The English proficiency status of clients is determined by their country of birth. Four English proficiency groups based on country of birth (excluding Australia) have been specified by the then Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs (DIMA 2003). These are combined into two groups for this report: 
•	English proficiency group 1 countries—Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Zimbabwe
•	English proficiency groups 2–4 countries—all other countries (excluding Australia) that are not included in group 1.	
Funding allocations	Amounts of money specifically allocated during the reporting period by a state or territory department to an agency to fund salaries and associated on-costs, and ongoing operating costs.	
Government-funded specialist homelessness agency	For the purposes of this report refers to agencies considered in-scope for the SAAP National Data Collection. 
See also agency and participating agency.	
Homeless person	A person who does not have access to safe, secure and adequate housing. A person is considered not to have access to safe, secure and adequate housing if the only housing to which they have access:
•	damages, or is likely to damage, their health; or
•	threatens their safety; or
•	marginalises them through failing to provide access to:
–	adequate personal amenities, or
–	the economic and social supports that a home normally affords; or
•	places them in circumstances which threaten or adversely affect the adequacy, safety, security and affordability of that housing; or
•	has no security of tenure; that is, they have no legal right to continued occupation of their home.
A person is also considered homeless if he or she is living in accommodation provided by an agency or some other form of emergency accommodation.	
House/dwelling	The Client Collection specifies 10 categories of house or dwelling type for clients:
•	improvised dwelling/car/tent/squat
•	street/park/in the open
•	house/flat
•	caravan
•	boarding/rooming house
•	hostel/hotel/motel
•	hospital
•	psychiatric institution
•	prison/youth training centre
•	other institutional setting.	
Income source	The Client Collection specifies 22 distinct categories for the main income source of clients. In this report, the categories are combined into three groups:
•	no income—including no income and no income, registered/awaiting benefit
•	government payments—including Newstart; Youth Allowance; Community Development Employment Program (CDEP); ABSTUDY; Austudy; Disability Support Pension; Age Pension; Parenting Payment; Department of Veterans’ Affairs (DVA) payment (support or pension); and any other government allowance or benefit
•	other income—including Workcover or compensation; maintenance or child support; wages or salary or income from a client’s own business; spouse or partner’s income; and any other income source not specified above.	
Informed consent	For the purposes of the SAAP National Data Collection, informed consent is a statement by the client that he or she agrees to have personal information recorded and sent to the NDCA for analysis. The protocols of the collection state that the client must be given appropriate information about why the information is being recorded and what the information will be used for.	
Length of accommodation	Accommodation length is obtained by summing the individual accommodation period lengths reported for a support period. An individual accommodation length is obtained by subtracting the accommodation start date from the accommodation finish date for those periods with valid dates. If a client starts and ends accommodation on the same date, the length of accommodation is recorded as zero.
A support period with accommodation may begin before the start of the financial year. For this report, length of accommodation is the total length of accommodation within a support period, not the length of accommodation within the financial year.	
Length of support	The length of support is calculated by subtracting the support period start date from the support period finish date.
A support period may begin before the start of the financial year. For this report, length of support refers to the length of the entire support period, not the length of support within the financial year.	
Living situation	The Client Collection specifies 11 distinct categories for the living situation of clients and allows agencies to record other types of living situation not listed on the data form:
•	with both parents
•	with one parent and parent’s spouse/partner
•	with one parent
•	with foster family
•	with relatives/friends temporary
•	with relatives/friends long-term
•	with spouse/partner
•	with spouse/partner and child(ren)
•	alone with child(ren)
•	alone
•	with other unrelated persons
•	other.	
Mean	For non-funding support periods or client-level items, the mean value of an item is the weighted arithmetic average of the item using relevant records with valid values.
For funding items, the mean is the total funding as reported, divided by the relevant number of units. For funding per support period or per client, weighted estimates of support periods or clients are used in this division.	
Median	The median is the fiftieth percentile of a distribution. This is the value of an item such that half (using weights) of relevant records with valid values are below this value and half are above it.	
Missing values	Records that are not available for analysis are shown in table notes. The number of such records for each table is calculated in the following order of precedence:
•	records not available because of errors
•	records not available because of omissions.
In tables involving subpopulations, it is impossible to determine whether a given record should be included or excluded if data are missing for the variable(s) defining the subpopulation in the analysis. Such records are generally not included in the missing count for these tables.	
Monthly average	The monthly average figures for support are calculated by summing the number of active support periods on each day of a particular month, and dividing by the number of days in that month.
The monthly average figures for support periods with accommodation are calculated by summing the number of support periods with active accommodation periods on each night of a particular month, and dividing by the number of nights in that month.	
Ongoing support period	A support period is considered ongoing at the end of the reporting period if each of the following conditions is met:
•	no support end-date is provided
•	no after-support information is provided
•	the corresponding client form was received in the month following the end of the reporting period.
Ongoing support periods are generally not included in tables relating to duration of support or accommodation.	
Ongoing support relationship	An ongoing support relationship exists between an agency and a person if some assistance has been provided to that person, and it is expected that future contact will occur between the person and the agency for the purpose of providing additional assistance. Future contact can be assumed if:
•	a definite appointment has been made with the person to work through particular problems/issues; or
•	an agreement has been reached with the person to work through particular problems/issues even if a specific appointment has not been made; or
•	the agency expects the client to return for more assistance within a month.
However, an invitation to return to the agency in the future if the need arises does not constitute an ongoing support relationship. Rather it should simply be seen as an offer to enter into a new support period or to provide assistance at some future time.	
Participating agency/
participation rate	The participation status of an agency is determined by their status in the Administrative Data Collection, as well as by their participation in the SAAP National Data Collection, during the reference period.
The Administrative Data Collection contains information on all funded agencies. These agencies fall into one of two categories—non-participating agencies and participating agencies.
Non-participating agencies are funded, but are not required to participate in data collection. They are excluded from the calculation of the participation rate, but are included in tables relating to agency funding.
Participating agencies are those that are required to return data for the reference period. With some exceptions, these form the basis for the calculation of the participation rate. Participating agencies are not considered ‘in scope’ for the reference period if they were not able to participate in the collection for that year. For example, the Administrative Data Collection indicated that they were closed for the entire reference period and they did not return any data.	
Per 10,000 population	Calculated by dividing the population in the designated group by the estimated resident Australian population in that group and multiplying by 10,000. 	
Percentages	Percentages presented in the report are based on valid values only; that is, records without values for the relevant data item are excluded from the denominator before percentages are calculated.	
Period of accommodation	See accommodation period. 	
Primary target group	Refers to the primary target group of the agency; that is, the primary characteristics of persons to whom a service is targeted. There are six classifications used by the National Data Collection. These are:
•	young people
•	single men only
•	single women only
•	families
•	women and children escaping domestic violence
•	cross-target/multiple/general.	
Referral	For the purposes of the National Data Collection, a referral involves a formal process: not simply the provision of information. A (formal) referral occurs when an agency contacts another organisation and that organisation accepts the person concerned for an appointment or interview. A referral has not been provided if the person is not accepted for an appointment or interview.	
Region	Region in this national report is based on the Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC) Remoteness Structure (ABS 2007b). The delimitation criteria for remote areas are based on the Accessibility/Remoteness Index of Australia (ARIA) developed by the then Commonwealth Department of Health and Aged Care (DHAC) and the National Key Centre For Social Applications of GIS (GISCA). ARIA classifies areas based on the accessibility of services and remoteness in terms of population size and how far a person must travel in order to access services.
The ASGC has six categories based on an aggregation of geographical areas that share common characteristics of remoteness. This report uses five of these categories: 
1.	Major Cities
2.	Inner Regional
3.	Outer Regional
4.	Remote
5.	Very Remote.
For more details, refer to ABS 2007b.
For this report, a concordance produced by the ABS and based on the 2006 Census has been used. This concordance is used to convert Postal Area (postcode) data to the five category ASGC Remoteness codes. The variable called Postal Area was derived directly from the Collection District (CD) on the 2006 Census form, rather than using the respondent’s written in postcode. A Postal Area (POA) is created by allocating whole CDs to Australia Post postcode areas. Allocations have been determined using the best available information on postcode boundaries. 
The ABS POA/ASGC Remoteness classification excludes some Australia Post postcodes, such as post office boxes, mail back competitions, large volume receivers and specialist delivery postcodes. These postcodes have not been represented in the POA Classification because they are only valid for postal addresses and are not a valid location for population data. However, the AIHW concordance has been supplemented with these postcodes to enable users to allocate all postcode-based administrative data to ASGC Remoteness.
The concordance between Postal Area and Remoteness is not a one-to-one concordance. Therefore, percentages are included in the concordance to quantify the proportion of the population residing in a postcode that lives in each specified Remoteness category.
For the state and territory supplementary reports, region is as supplied in the administrative data provided by the relevant state or territory community services department. Details are contained in an appendix to the relevant state or territory supplementary report.	
Rounding	Weighted numbers of support periods and clients are generally rounded to the nearest 100 in both the national report and the state and territory supplementary tables.
Unweighted numbers of support periods at the state and territory regional level are generally rounded to the nearest 10.
Funding allocations are generally rounded to the nearest 1,000. Mean funding is generally rounded to the nearest 100.
Percentages in text are rounded to the nearest whole number. Percentages in tables are rounded to 1 decimal place.	
Statistical linkage key (SLK)	A statistical linkage key is a derived variable that allows demographic data about the same client to be combined across support periods without the name of the client being recorded.
See also valid statistical linkage key. 	
Support/service	Assistance, other than supported accommodation, provided to a client or accompanying child as part of a support period.
See also type of support/service.	
Support period	Commences when a client begins to receive support and/or supported accommodation from an agency. The support period is considered to finish when:
•	the client ends the relationship with the agency; or
•	the agency ends the relationship with the client.
If it is not clear whether the agency or the client has ended the relationship, the support period is assumed to have ended if no assistance has been provided to the client for a period of 
1 month. In such a case, the date the support period ended is the last contact with the client.
Support periods from operational agencies are included in the analyses presented in this report if:
•	the client’s support period ended in the reporting period; or
•	the client’s support period started on or before the end of the reporting period and either was ongoing at the end of the reporting period (30 June) or the end date of the support period was unknown and the record was entered by the NDCA before the data entry close-off date for the reporting period.	
Support period with accommodation	A support period in which a support type of ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ was provided and/or a date of ‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’ was provided.	
Supported accommodation	Accommodation owned, managed or arranged and paid for by an agency. The accommodation may be provided at the agency or may be purchased using SAAP/NAHA funds—at a motel, for example.	
Target group	See primary target group.	
Tenure	Tenure describes a person’s legal right to occupy a dwelling; that is, whether the dwelling they occupied immediately before and after support was owned, being purchased or rented. If a dwelling was being rented, information is also collected on whether that renting is in the private rental market, public housing or community housing. Clients may also be boarding or living rent-free or have no tenure.	
Type of support	The Client Collection specifies 34 distinct types of support for clients and 17 distinct types of support for accompanying children and allows agencies to record other types not listed on the data form. 
For clients, this report presents individual service or support types and includes a subtotal for six distinct groupings. The major classifications for clients are:
•	housing or accommodation—‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’; assistance to obtain or maintain 
short-term accommodation; assistance to obtain or maintain medium-term accommodation; and assistance to obtain or maintain independent housing
•	financial or employment—assistance to obtain or maintain a government allowance; employment and training assistance; financial assistance or material aid; and financial counselling and support
•	personal support—incest or sexual assault support; domestic or family violence support; family or relationship support; emotional support; and assistance with problem gambling
•	general support or advocacy—living skills or personal development; assistance with legal issues or court support; advice or information; retrieval, storage or removal of personal belongings; and advocacy or liaison on behalf of client
•	specialist services—psychological services; specialist counselling services; psychiatric services; pregnancy support; family planning support; drug or alcohol support or intervention; physical disability services; intellectual disability services; culturally specific services; interpreter services; assistance with immigration issues; and health or medical services
•	basic support and other not elsewhere specified (n.e.s.)—meals; laundry or shower facilities; recreation; transport; and other support.
For accompanying children, this report presents individual service or support types and includes a subtotal for six distinct groupings. The major classifications for accompanying children are: 
•	accommodation—‘SAAP/CAP accommodation’
•	school liaison or child care—school liaison; and child care
•	personal support—help with behavioural problems; sexual or physical abuse support; skills education; and structured play or skill development
•	general support or advocacy—access arrangements; advice or information; and advocacy
•	specialist services—specialist counselling; culturally specific services; and health or medical services
•	basic support and other not elsewhere specified (n.e.s.)—meals; showers or hygiene; recreation; transport; and other support.
Note that support for accompanying children is recorded on only one parent’s/guardian’s form when a couple presents to an agency.
For further information, refer to Appendix 2 for the form and to the collectors manual (AIHW 2005b) for the definitions.	
Unmet need	An unmet need occurs when an agency worker assesses that a client needs a support service during their support period, and that service is not provided or referred.	
Valid alpha code	This is an alpha code that is given with informed consent, and contains only letters from the alphabet or the numeral ‘2’ (to indicate a short name) and ends in either M or F to indicate the sex.	
Valid consent	Refers to a valid statistical linkage key.	
Valid date of birth	For the purposes of the National Data Collection, a valid date of birth is one that is provided with informed consent; and has the day and month of birth completed and not estimated; and the year of birth completed either estimated or not estimated.	
Valid statistical linkage key (SLK)	For the purposes of the National Data Collection, a valid SLK comprises a valid alpha code and valid date of birth.	

Appendix 2	Client Collection form
This form has been removed from this format. Please contact feedback@aihw.gov.au for more information.
References
ABS (Australian Bureau of Statistics) 1998. Standard Australian Classification of Countries (SACC). ABS cat. no. 1269.0. Canberra: ABS.
ABS 2007a. Migration Australia, 2005–06. ABS cat. no. 3412.0. Canberra: ABS.
ABS 2007b. Australian Standard Geographical Classification (ASGC). ABS cat. no.1216.0. Canberra: ABS.
ABS 2007c. Australian demographic statistics, December quarter 2007. ABS cat. no. 3101.0. Canberra: ABS.
ABS 2008. Australian demographic statistics, December quarter 2008. ABS cat. no. 3101.0. Canberra: ABS.
ABS 2009. Migration Australia, 2007–08. ABS cat. no. 3412.0. Canberra: ABS.
AIHW (Australian Institute of Health and Welfare) 2005a. Homeless people in SAAP: SAAP National Data Collection annual report 2003–04 Australia. SAAP NDC report series 9. Cat. no. HOU 126. Canberra: AIHW.
AIHW 2005b. SAAP National Data Collection collectors manual July 2005. Canberra: AIHW.
AIHW 2006. Homeless people in SAAP: SAAP National Data Collection annual report 
2004–05 Australia. SAAP NDC report series 10. Cat. no. HOU 142. Canberra: AIHW.
AIHW 2007. Homeless people in SAAP: SAAP National Data Collection annual report 
2005–06 Australia. SAAP NDC report series 11. Cat. no. HOU 156. Canberra: AIHW.
AIHW 2008a. Population database, based on 2006 Census postal area/ASGC remoteness concordance.
AIHW 2008b. Homeless people in SAAP: SAAP National Data Collection annual report 
2006–07 Australia. SAAP NDC report series 12. Cat. no. HOU 185. Canberra: AIHW.
AIHW 2009. Homeless people in SAAP: SAAP National Data Collection annual report 
2007–08 Australia. SAAP NDC report series 13. Cat. no. HOU 191. Canberra: AIHW.
DIMA (Department of Immigration and Multicultural Affairs Statistics Section) 2003. 2001 classification of countries into English proficiency groups. Canberra: DIMA.
Karmel R 1999. SAAP National Data Collection: adjustment methods for incomplete coverage. Cat. no. HOU 37. Canberra: AIHW.
List of tables
Table 2.1:	Agencies: number of funded agencies, funding allocations to agencies, and mean 
funding per agency, by state and territory, region and primary target group of 
agency, Australia, 2008–09
Table 2.2:	Support periods, accompanying child support periods, total support, funding 
allocations to agencies, and estimated resident population, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 3.1:	Support periods and clients, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 3.2:	Accompanying child support periods and accompanying children, by state and 
territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 3.3:	Support periods: number of support periods active each day, average by month 
and state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 3.4:	Support periods with accommodation: number of accommodation periods active 
each night, average by month and state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 4.1:	Clients: age, by sex, Australia, 2008–09
Table 4.2:	Accompanying children: age, by sex, Australia, 2008–09
Table 4.3:	Clients: number of support periods per client, by age and sex, Australia, 2008–09
Table 4.4:	Accompanying children: number of accompanying child support periods per accompanying child, by age, Australia, 2008–09
Table 4.5:	Clients: country of birth, by sex, Australia, 2008–09
Table 4.6:	Accompanying children: country of birth, Australia, 2008–09
Table 4.7:	Clients and support periods per client: cultural and linguistic diversity, by sex, 
Australia, 2008–09
Table 4.8:	Accompanying children: cultural and linguistic diversity, Australia, 2008–09
Table 4.9:	Clients: cultural and linguistic diversity and sex, by state and territory, Australia, 
2008–09
Table 5.1:	Support periods: client group, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 5.2:	Support periods: client group, by primary target group of agency, Australia, 
2008–09
Table 5.3:	Support periods for clients with accompanying children and associated 
accompanying child support periods: client group, by state and territory, 
Australia, 2008–09
Table 5.4:	Support periods: main reason for seeking assistance, by state and territory, 
Australia, 2008–09
Table 5.5:	Support periods: main reason for seeking assistance, by client group, Australia, 
2008–09
Table 6.1:	Closed support periods: length of support, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 6.2:	Closed support periods: length of support, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Table 6.3:	Closed support periods in which clients were accommodated: total length of accommodation, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 6.4:	Closed support periods in which clients were accommodated: total length of accommodation, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Table 6.5:	Support periods: type of support provided to clients, by state and territory, 
Australia, 2008–09
Table 6.6:	Support periods: type of support provided to clients, by client group, Australia, 
2008–09
Table 6.7:	Accompanying child support periods: type of support provided to accompanying children, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 6.8:	Accompanying child support periods: type of support provided to accompanying children, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Table 7.1:	Closed support periods: type of support required by clients, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 7.2:	Closed support periods: type of support required by clients, by client group, 
Australia, 2008–09
Table 7.3:	Closed accompanying child support periods: type of support required for 
accompanying children, by state and territory, Australia, 2008–09
Table 7.4:	Closed accompanying child support periods: type of support required for 
accompanying children, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Table 7.5:	Type of support required by clients in closed support periods, by provision, 
Australia, 2008–09
Table 7.6:	Type of support required for accompanying children in closed support periods, by provision, Australia, 2008–09
Table 7.7:	Type of support required by clients in closed support periods that were neither 
provided nor referred: broad type of support, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Table 7.8:	Type of support required for accompanying children in closed support periods 
that were neither provided nor referred: broad type of support, by client group, 
Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.1:	Closed support periods: main source of income immediately before and after a 
support period, Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.2:	Closed support periods: employment status in the week before and after a support 
period, Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.3:	Closed support periods: main source of income and employment status after a 
support period, by length of support, Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.4:	Closed support periods: student status immediately before and after a support 
period, by age, Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.5:	Closed support periods: type of house/dwelling immediately before and after a 
support period, Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.6:	Closed support periods: type of tenure immediately before and after a support 
period, Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.7:	Closed support periods: type of house/dwelling occupied immediately after a 
support period, by length of support, Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.8:	Closed support periods: type of tenure immediately after a support period, by 
length of support, Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.9:	Closed support periods: living situation immediately before and after a support 
period, Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.10:	Closed support periods: existence of a case management plan, Australia, 2008–09
Table 8.11:	Closed support periods where a case management plan was in place by the end 
of support: extent to which the client’s case management goals were achieved, 
Australia, 2008–09
Table 9.1:	Client Collection: agency participation rates and records returned with informed 
consent and valid consent, by reporting period, Australia, 1996–97 to 2008–09
Table 9.2:	Support periods and clients: state and territory, by reporting period, Australia, 
1996–97 to 2008–09
Table 9.3:	Accompanying child support periods and accompanying children: state and 
territory, by reporting period, Australia,  2001–02 to 2008–09
Table A1.1:	Client Collection: participating agencies, agency participation rates and records 
returned with informed consent and valid consent for clients, by state and 
territory and primary target group of agency, Australia, 2008–09
Table A1.2:	Client Collection: records returned with informed consent and valid consent for accompanying children, by state and territory and primary target group of agency, Australia, 2008–09

List of figures
Figure 1: Number of support periods and clients, by reporting period, Australia, 1996–97 to 
2008–09
Figure 2.1: Funding allocations to agencies, by primary target group, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 3.1: Support periods active each day, average by month, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 3.2: Accommodation periods active each night, average by month, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 4.1: Clients, by age and sex, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 4.2: Accompanying children, by age and sex, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 5.1: Support periods, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 5.2: Main reason for seeking assistance, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 6.1: Median length of support, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 6.2: Median length of accommodation for clients who were accommodated for at least 
1 day, by client group, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 7.1: Provision of support required by clients, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 7.2: Provision of support required for accompanying children, Australia, 2008–09
Figure 8.1: Type of house/dwelling immediately before and after a support period, Australia,
2008–09
Figure 9.1: Agency participation and valid consent, by reporting period, Australia, 1996–97 to
2008–09
Figure 9.2: Number of support periods and clients, by reporting period, Australia, 1996–97 to
2008–09