Addressing homelessness and hardship

The City of Holdfast Bay established a collaborative group to help combat homelessness and hardship in their community – Addressing Homelessness and Hardship Stakeholders Group.

The group's aim is to improve local coordination, reduce service fragmentation, and strengthen prevention focused responses to homelessness and hardship.

Council acts as a connector and facilitator, enabling services to work together more effectively rather than delivering services on their behalf.

About the program

The Addressing Homelessness and Hardship Stakeholders Group was established at the request of Holdfast Bay community organisations.

There was increasing demand on emergency relief, homelessness and hardship services, alongside growing complexity in the needs being presented.

At an initial workshop in July 2023, community and service providers were clear in their feedback: they did not want council to 'do the work for them'. Instead, they asked council to play a strong connecting, convening and enabling role.

Specifically, stakeholders wanted:

• better visibility of who was doing what
• clearer referral pathways
• a space to share emerging issues and test ideas
• practical improvements that reduced duplication and gaps.

In response, council established a stakeholder group which functions as a collaborative backbone. This supports alignment, shared problem solving, and incremental system improvements rather than operating as a service delivery program.

The group has evolved organically, shaped by frontline feedback and local context. They now form an integral part of council’s broader Wellbeing Hub approach.

Funding and partnerships

The group is convened and facilitated by the City of Holdfast Bay Community Wellbeing team. Participation is supported almost entirely through in-kind contributions.

Partners include:

• faith-based emergency relief providers, such as St Andrew’s Church, St Jude’s, St Paul’s
• community food pantries and op shops
• outreach services and NGOs, such as Sonder’s Toward Home team
• SA Police
• council internal teams (Libraries, Community Safety, Field Services)
• volunteer organisations, such as Rotary Clubs.

Council’s role focuses on facilitation, coordination and information sharing, enabling partners to leverage their own strengths and resources.

Promotion and reach

The stakeholder group itself is not publicly promoted. Participation occurs through invitation, networks and peer recommendation.

Meetings are held bi-monthly and are facilitated by council who organise agendas, coordination, and follow up. Meetings are hosted on a rotating basis by stakeholders who volunteer their spaces. This model reinforces shared ownership and helps ground discussions in real service environments.

The network has grown to 39 representatives across 16 organisations. The collective reach extends to hundreds of community members experiencing homelessness and/or hardship each month.

Key achievements

• Established a trusted, bi‑monthly collaboration forum that improves coordination and shared understanding across homelessness and hardship services.
• Co‑designed and continuously improves an Emergency Relief Support Flyer (list and map versions), now widely distributed by stakeholders, including SA Police as the largest distributor.
• Strengthened referral pathways and service navigation, reducing duplication and confusion for people seeking support.
• Enabled practical collaboration beyond meetings, including shared pantry space at St Andrew’s and Rotary volunteers supporting community kitchens.
• Created a safe space to identify gaps and develop solutions, including the emerging Homelessness and Hardship Health Days initiative.
• Provide an ongoing, real-time understanding of emerging needs and service gaps within the local community, informing more responsive and coordinated action.

Positive impact on participants

Stakeholders consistently report improved confidence and capacity to support people experiencing hardship through:

• better understanding of local services and referral pathways
• reduced duplication and “service run around” for clients
• stronger relationships that make collaboration faster and more informal.

Challenges and learnings

Challenges:

• Ongoing financial and capacity strain across services – reliance on volunteer and faith‑based providers whose absence would leave a substantial service gap.
• Staff turnover in partner organisations requiring regular re-engagement.
• Balancing information sharing with confidentiality.
• Maintaining momentum without adding burden to already stretched services.

Key learnings:

• Council’s value lies in coordination, not control.
• Low bureaucracy, relationship-based structures enable sustained engagement.
• Tools must remain adaptable as services and needs change; service continuity cannot be assumed.
• Hosting meetings across different locations strengthens shared ownership.
• Don’t assume – ask stakeholders to define what support looks like. Acting on their response builds trust and leads to more sustainable collaboration.

Outcome

The Addressing Homelessness and Hardship Stakeholders Group is an established, ongoing collaboration that continues to evolve in response to local needs.

One emerging outcome of the group’s work is the Homelessness and Hardship Health Days initiative. This is currently being developed through a partnership with Adelaide University. This initiative includes a placement project with fourth year Occupational Therapy students, working directly with St Andrew’s Church. Council would provide light touch support through facilitation and local connections.

Rather than a single event, Health Days are being designed as a slow, trust-based integration of health providers into existing community spaces. This builds both community confidence and health provider capacity. A key outcome of the student placement will be evidence-based recommendations on the sustainability and scalability of this approach.

The Addressing Homelessness and Hardship Stakeholders Group shows how councils can bring people together to improve local support. By building trust, agreeing clear roles, and taking consistent action, the group helps strengthen the local system. It supports earlier, more preventive responses to complex issues – without duplicating the work of frontline services.

Find out more

Visit emergency support to access resources for people experiencing homelessness and hardship in Holdfast Bay.

City of Holdfast Bay
Community Wellbeing Team
Email: wellbeing@holdfast.sa.gov.au
Phone: 08 8229 9999