Events

You Can’t Ask That! – Housing First

Join us for homelessness week and ask us anything about Housing First!

“You Can’t Ask That: Housing First” is the third session in our ongoing “You Can’t Ask That” series, following previous conversations exploring lived expertise and gender diversity. These sessions are designed to create space for honest, respectful and challenging conversations about topics that are often misunderstood, heavily debated, or difficult to talk about openly.

Join us during homelessness week and ask us anything! We have a bold and dynamic panel who are ready to answer your questions. Hear directly from some of the Housing First trainers in QLD and one special interstate guest that was involved in creating the Australian Housing First Principles.

This session will focus on Housing First, one of the most discussed and contested approaches in the homelessness sector. While Housing First is widely recognised internationally as an evidence based approach to ending homelessness, it is also frequently misunderstood, criticised, and debated, particularly in the context of Australia’s current housing crisis and severe shortage of affordable housing.

Can Housing First work when there are not enough homes?

Is Housing First just housing people?

What happens when someone continues using substances?

Is it just letting people do whatever they want?

What happens when tenancies break down?

Is Housing First realistic in Queensland right now?

Why bother trying with Housing First if we cannot do high fidelity practice?

Facilitated by Housing First trainers who have been through the Train the Trainer course supported by Homelessness Australia, this panel style discussion will provide an opportunity to ask the questions people are often hesitant to raise publicly. No question is off limits, provided it is asked respectfully. Participants are encouraged to bring curiosity, scepticism, differing perspectives, and real world practice questions into the conversation.

Rather than avoiding the difficult discussions, this session aims to explore them directly, unpacking the theory behind Housing First, the evidence, the tensions, the implementation challenges, and the realities of trying to deliver Housing First approaches in an environment where housing supply is critically limited. We want to move beyond awareness to action.

Date: Wednesday 5 August

Time: 10:00-11:00am (QLD time)

Online via Zoom and Free!