The number of people sleeping rough in the City of Sydney continues to decline, new figures from the recent street count reveal.
There has been a 10 per cent reduction in rough sleepers since February 2019, and a 23 per cent reduction since February 2017.
Minister for Families, Communities and Disability Services Gareth Ward said the reduction in rough sleepers is positive, but there is still more to be done.
“We are working hard as a Government to achieve the ambitious target we have set to halve rough sleeping by 2025,” Mr Ward said.
“By engaging with rough sleepers, assisting them into housing and providing services and support to help them sustain tenancies, we can achieve positive outcomes.
“We will continue to work collaboratively with the City of Sydney and non-government organisations to build on the progress we have made and further reduce rough sleeping in Sydney.”
The street count recorded 334 people sleeping rough in Sydney’s CBD, down from 373 in February 2019.
It comes as the Department of Communities and Justice, working with homelessness services, community housing providers and local councils, embarks on the largest street count ever conducted in NSW.
NSW is part of a global movement to end street sleeping, with the Premier signing the Act to End Street Sleeping Agreement in February 2019 with the Institute of Global Homelessness, the City of Sydney and several non-government organisations.
