The Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) has been contracted by Homelessness NSW to evaluate the Homelessness Industry and Workforce Development Strategy 2017-2020 (Strategy 2017-2020).
The evaluation had five key components:
- Impact and process evaluation of the Strategy 2017-2020 (Did the Strategy achieve its goals?)
- Formative evaluation and training needs assessment of the NSW homelessness services workforce (Did training and workforce development meet sector needs?)
- Assessment of the organisational sustainability across the NSW Homelessness Industry (Are organisations sustainable?)
- Input to formation of the future NSW Homelessness Industry and Workforce Development Strategy 2020-2024 (Future Strategy 2020-2024) (What needs to happen in the next strategy?).
A further goal relating to the competence of the sector in providing culturally appropriate and safe services to Aboriginal clients was added in response to initial consultation findings.
- Assessment of the competence of the sector in providing culturally safe and competent services for Aboriginal clients and communities (How competent are services in serving Aboriginal clients and communities?)
The evaluation used a mix of quantitative and qualitative methods. It conducted a survey of both managers and practitioners in the NSW specialist homelessness services (SHS) workforce, examined administrative and secondary data relating to homelessness programs, consulted with key representatives of Aboriginal homelessness service providers, and conducted focus groups of managers to discuss the needs for a future strategy.
Findings for the first three goals and the final goal were published in separate reports. This final report summarises the results of the evaluation across all activities and adds findings that relate to the fourth goal. The final report should be read in conjunction with the previous evaluation reports.
