Launch Housing’s George Hatvani recently appeared on ABC Drive

George Hatvani has worked in homelessness in Melbourne for nearly 30 years, as an outreach worker, manager of programs, researcher and advocate. He currently heads Launch Housing’s Advance to Zero program which aims to end rough sleeping in Melbourne by 2030. 

George’s interview with ABC Drive built on a conversation around concerns about the way people experiencing rough sleeping homelessness are being targeted by community members and portrayed on social media. Highlights from the interview have been adapted below.

Are you aware of what is being shared in online forums?

For a long time, there has been a conflation of criminality and homelessness, but the reality is that they are most often the victims of stigmatising and criminal behaviour. 

Tell us about Functional Zero

We bring the services that work with people sleeping rough together. That might be your local entry point, where people are asked to drop in, might be assertive outreach.  

It might be mental health, disability care, aged care, the drop-in centres and we come together around a by-name list.  We have a list of all the people who are sleeping rough in the area. We know who they are, we know where they are, we know what services they’re connected to, and then we work collectively to identify what the next step is on a pathway out of homelessness, the right type of housing that will help that person get out of homelessness. And then we advocate for that type of housing, and we stick with that person, we don’t let them fall through the cracks. 

The homelessness service system operates in a highly constrained environment. There is an absence of crisis accommodation, or emergency shelter. 

How do you provide alternatives as part of Advance to Zero?

We work within the system but desperately need more shelter for people sleeping rough.  

We fight for prioritisation into social housing. There’s new housing coming thorough the big housing build and there’s new housing coming through the Commonwealth.  

It’s going to take time. We’re fighting for the people sleeping rough to get into those programmes and social housing. Our job is to keep people hopeful while they’re waiting, while they’re in distress, while they’re being harassed, while they’re being criminalised and targeted – until that housing comes.  

And it’s amazing the change that comes across people once they get their housing. It’s incredible. 

Listen to the full ABC Radio Melbourne interview.