Helena Wakefield (inset) was found dead in her car in Remuera, where she had been living. The council is reviewing its response to calls about her from the public. Photo / Michael Craig
Helena Wakefield (inset) was found dead in her car in Remuera, where she had been living. The council is reviewing its response to calls about her from the public. Photo / Michael Craig
A homeless hotline or "one-stop shop" is being proposed in Auckland to prevent rough sleepers from falling through the cracks.
Auckland Council is reviewing its systems after staff wrongly categorised a 72-year-old woman living in her car in Remuera as a freedom camper, despite concerns about her safety.
The woman, Helena Wakefield, was found dead by Auckland City Mission outreach staff on July 7.
Auckland Central MP Chlöe Swarbrick has written to council CEO Jim Stabback to suggest a single contact point or "triaging service" for people who were experiencing or witnessing homelessness.
She said central and local government services, NGOs, social services and police all had different processes for responding to homelessness, and were often overstretched or did not share information between them.
A centralised service - possibly a hotline, website or app - would mean there was a backstop that ensured homeless people were not overlooked, Swarbrick told the Herald.
She said it could be modelled on London's Streetlink. Introduced in 2020 by Mayor Sadiq Khan, the service allows members of the public to call a hotline with concerns about a homeless person, which is then referred to the appropriate outreach centre so support services can be provided.
New Zealand Police introduced a service called Awhi in 2018, a collaboration with the Ministry of Social Development in which non-criminal matters were referred to social services.
Swarbrick said the council could build on the police initiative, but she also noted that law enforcement was not the best response to homelessness. Police officers did not always have the skills to deal with complex homeless cases, rough sleepers could be distrustful of authorities, and it could lead to homeless people being stigmatised.
"There continues to be this conflation with people who are experiencing the streets with criminality, and therefore with a lack of safety," Swarbrick said.
Green MP for Auckland Central Chlöe Swarbrick says Auckland Council should create a single point of contact for homeless issues, similar to London's Streetlink. Photo / Michael Craig
Lifewise youth housing team leader Aaron Hendry backed the proposal for a centralised response to homelessness. It would be particularly useful for young people, who were more likely to fall through the cracks, he said.
"We had a really heartbreaking story during lockdown where a group of business owners were aware of a 16-year-old girl sleeping rough on Queen St. And they did what they could to try help her, but they didn't know that there was more support available to her.
"Meanwhile, we were around the corner providing support for rangatahi during lockdown. They didn't know about us, we didn't know about her. There was a huge gap there, and she slept rough during lockdown."
At a public meeting at the Auckland City Mission last week, Karangahape Rd residents spoke of the difficulties in knowing where and how to get help for people living on the street.
"I was trying to find a place for someone to stay during the first lockdown," one resident said. "He was a young guy who had just got out of prison, was sleeping rough in the cemetery, had been given $200 and a phone number. He couldn't get into Winz, he couldn't do anything."
The resident said he spent two days making calls, and eventually got the man an interview with the Salvation Army, only to be told he was not a suitable fit for its accommodation.
Swarbrick said a new, dedicated service would also provide better data on homelessness, which would assist with any policy response.
The most detailed study of homeless numbers in New Zealand, by the University of Otago, estimated 3624 people were sleeping rough or living in cars or improvised shelters in Auckland, but that was based on 2018 census data and predated Covid-19.
A council spokesperson said the council was committed to working with the sector to make improvements to its systems. It had already made some changes to its complaints process so if similar concerns about a homeless person arose they could be directed to the appropriate agency.
A new section on its website includes key contacts for anyone who had welfare concerns about rough sleepers.
