Providing better support for our queer community
I’m Tara and I’m a team leader at Launch Housing Southbank. I’ve been at Launch Housing for about five years now and working in the community mental health and housing sector for about seven years all together. My work here is a mix of direct client work and supporting, mentoring, and coaching the case managers here as their supervisor.
This Melbourne Pride, I’ve thought a lot about how my identify has informed my approach to providing a better service for LGBTQIA+ people experiencing homelessness.

Anne’s story
In 2021 Anne, moved into a one-bedroom apartment in the city at $290 a week. Seeking treatment for cancer at the time, Anne was unable to work and needed this affordable, well positioned apartment to access care at the hospital.
But just a year later, Anne’s real estate agency advised that her landlord would be increasing her rent to $400 per week, a 38% rise. She simply couldn’t afford the hike but at the same time could not afford to move somewhere else.
Read Anne’s Story in Launch Housing’s 2022 Impact Report.

Kalemi’s Story
Launch Housing’s Education Pathways Program supports regular school attendance, participation and wellbeing of children experiencing homelessness and family violence. The program specifically works to mitigate the negative effects of experiences of homelessness by supporting engagement or re-engagement with mainstream education.
Watch Kalemi’s Story within Launch Housing’s Impact Report to learn about the experiences of many of the children we support.

Sam’s Story
Sam’s support through the From Homelessness to a Home (H2H) program meant an interruption to the cycle of homelessness at a relatively early stage. With support from his H2H case manager, Sam has successfully maintained his first legal lease and is creating a life he is proud of.
Read Sam’s Story in Launch Housing’s 2022 Impact Report.

Sakshi’s Story
“I never thought the support would be so extensive, so focused individually on what you can do as a person and what your strengths are and move you forward, like I’ve moved forward in within these last two years,” – Sakshi.
Foyer Student Sakshi speaks about the impact the Foyers have made for her across two years of support.
Watch Sakshi’s Story in Launch Housing’s 2022 Impact Report.

Illili’s Story
Illili arrived in Australia from Ethiopia on an orphan visa in 2015 when was she was just 17 years old. Since arriving she faced significant barriers to finding stable accommodation, living for a short period with her sister, then moving between friends’ houses, a stressful experience of uncertainty:
“I wasn’t settled moving between family and friends. They don’t want you to stay long because they’ve got their own life and they don’t know how to support you. They’d ask ‘how long?’ and I wouldn’t know.”
Read Illili’s Story in Launch Housing’s 2022 Impact Report.

Volunteering gave a third aspect to my life – Meet Paul
Paul’s perception of homelessness has changed irrevocably through volunteering with Launch Housing. No experience of homelessness is the same, and over time he’s learnt of the complexity and uniqueness of each story by listening to staff and people experiencing homelessness.
