With Homelessness Awareness Week running from August 4-10, the Central Coast’s leading frontline charity has delivered a sobering message – the need for help has never been greater, and the ability to meet it has never been more strained.
Coast Shelter, which has provided emergency accommodation and support services across the region for more than 30 years, is now turning away two out of every three people who reach out for help.
“We’re bracing for another tough Winter,” Community Centre Manager Penny Williams said.
“We’ve seen a 55% surge in demand, and the reality is we can only help one in three people who call us.
“It breaks our hearts.
“Behind every statistic is a person — someone who’s cold, hungry, scared, or trying to flee a violent home.
“It’s not just numbers; it’s people.”
Last Winter, the organisation supported more than 1,100 Coasties in crisis, delivering hot meals, temporary shelter, counselling, and case management.
But the rising cost of living, skyrocketing rents, and lack of affordable housing have pushed services – and the people who rely on them – to the edge.
The data tells one story; the people tell another.
The Central Coast is a region under pressure.
According to the Central Coast Local Housing Strategy up to one in five households are experiencing rental stress and social housing wait times have stretched to 7.5 months.
Many locals are paying more than half their income in rent.
Coast Shelter is seeing the fallout firsthand.
Over the past year: 16,665-plus hot meals were served at their community kitchen; more than 500 individuals were supported through crisis accommodation; and 313 young people were helped through specialised youth programs.
And still, thousands are being left behind.
“We can’t do it alone,” Williams said.
“Every day we have to make impossible choices about who we can help; families with kids, people sleeping in cars, survivors of domestic violence and with the way things are going, the numbers aren’t slowing down.
“This is not just a housing issue; it’s a human issue, a safety issue.
“And it’s getting worse.”
The Coast Shelter team is dealing with people who never thought they’d end up in this position — young people ageing out of foster care, victims of abuse, low-income families who’ve been priced out of the rental market, and men and women with mental health challenges.
“The face of homelessness is changing,” Williams said.
“It’s mums, dads, kids, your neighbour, and we’re being left to carry this crisis without the resources to match.”
Despite the strain, Coast Shelter remains a lifeline for thousands of people across the Central Coast.
The team of staff and volunteers continues to do what they can – every day, every meal, every bed – but they are calling on the broader community to act now.
“Every donation helps and every time someone shares our story, speaks up, or puts pressure on decision-makers – that’s where change starts,” Williams said.
“This is not a hopeless situation, but it is an urgent one.”
Nationally, the picture is just as grim.
A recent snapshot released by Homelessness Australia found: the number of women and girls already homeless when seeking help rose by 20% between May 2022 and March 2025; the number at risk of homelessness rose by 8%; and 45% of women and girls seeking homelessness support had experienced domestic and family violence.
Homelessness Australia CEO Kate Colvin said the system was struggling to cope.
“Homelessness is increasing for all, but women and girls are copping the brunt of this crisis,” she said.
“They’re being forced back into unsafe homes or left on the streets.
“We welcome Labor’s investments in social housing, but the uncomfortable truth is that investment hasn’t kept pace with demand.
“Services like Coast Shelter are doing extraordinary work, but they can’t carry this alone.”
Homelessness Australia has launched a three-point plan calling on the Federal Government to: establish a National Housing and Homelessness Plan with measurable targets; inject new investment in homelessness services, in partnership with the states; and grow social housing stock to 10% of total dwellings, and increase income support to help people afford rent.
hope non addicts are given priority especially women girls and young kids
Selection on the basis of drug addiction has never been a criteria for Coast Shelter. The only basis for assistance is need.
The use of illegal drugs is prohibited on Coast Shelter premises and residents effected by drugs or alcohol were excluded in the past and I assume that hasn’t changed.
Keep up the good work Coast Shelter.
yet a few years ago, when rough sleepers were being moved on from campsites behind TAFE, Coast Shelter opposed using the former Mitre 10 premises .. then owned by Family and Community Services .. as temporary emergency accommodation ..