Mayor Nathan Conroy throws his support behind Roughin’ It Challenge
Published on 24 May 2022
Frankston City Council Mayor Nathan Conroy is participating in this year’s Roughin’ It Challenge to raise awareness about homelessness.
The Mayor said: “Homelessness is fundamentally a national human rights issue that not only needs to be spoken about, but addressed.
“Behind the alarming homelessness statistics are real people facing hardship. It’s also not solely about inadequate access to a safe and secure house – there are other impacts such as disconnection from family, friends and community. No one deserves that.”
Launch Housing Chief Executive, Bevan Warner, said the organisation is committed to ending homelessness and this requires community support and action.
“The Roughin’ It Challenge provides the opportunity to show solidarity with those in our community who are without a safe place to call home.
“We need to challenge the misconception that homelessness is unavoidable; it just isn’t the case. Let’s use The Roughin’ It Challenge as an opportunity to ignite conversations around the kitchen table, at barbeques and in workplaces about how we can make Melbourne, and Australia as a whole, more liveable and affordable for everyone,” Mr Warner said.
Homelessness service organisations cite a range of factors impacting people including increasing cost of living, rental and mortgage stress and employment stability.
Launch Housing is one of Victoria’s largest Specialist Homelessness Organisations passionately committed to ending homelessness by providing immediate and practical solutions for those who are, or at risk of becoming homeless.
Mayor Conroy said Frankston City Council is also working hard on solutions to end homelessness in the local community, partnering with Launch Housing and the local service system on the Frankston Zero project.
“Frankston Zero involves a hyper local approach to ending homelessness that puts each individual at the centre of the service system. This approach involves the creation of a by-name list of each person who is sleeping rough in the local community and maintaining quality data to measure progress.
“Council, Launch Housing and the local service system come together regularly as a multi-agency team, putting each person on the by-name list at the centre of the system, sharing resources and relationships to find tailored housing and support solutions for each person,” the Mayor said.
For more information about support for the homeless and where to find help in Frankston City, as well as the Frankston Zero initiative, please visit https://www.frankston.vic.gov.au/Our-Community/Health-and-Wellbeing/Housing-and-Homelessness
Roughin’ It Challenge to help those without a home
- From 28 - 29 May, participants are encouraged to ‘rough it’ for 24 or 48 hours by living with no bed, one bag and just $10 a day for food and essentials.
- The challenge aims to build greater awareness and empathy for people experiencing homelessness and encourage kitchen table conversations about how we can make Melbourne, and Australia as a whole, more liveable for everyone.
- All money raised goes towards Launch Housing’s mission to end homelessness.
For more information and to support the challenge, please visit Roughin' It Challenge (roughinitchallenge.org.au)