Housing demand for pregnant homeless women outstrips supply, experts say
While the exact number of pregnant women who are homeless in Victoria is unknown, experts say the outsized demand for specialty support services indicates more can be done.
Amanda was two-months pregnant and suffering from severe morning sickness when she was taken in by nuns at a Melbourne convent about a decade ago.
She'd been kicked out of the home she'd been living in, and was facing an uncertain future.
"You just go into survival mode," she said.
"That was the only way that I kept on moving forward."
About a week before her baby girl arrived, Amanda was placed in transitional housing.
"You don't really realise until later on that you've gone through something huge," she said.
"Not having a home and getting through everything, it's quite unbelievable."
Amanda says she went into "survival mode" when she became homeless while pregnant. (ABC News: Nicole Asher)
That baby girl is now an active and intelligent nine year old. Together, they're living a settled and stable life.
Amanda's story is far from unique, but there's no real data on how many women are homeless while pregnant.
"These aren't statistics that are regularly taken," RMIT sociologist Juliet Watson said.
"What we do know about women … who are pregnant is that they're likely to be more highly represented in the homeless population than they are in the general population.
"But we don't have clear statistics on it. There's no routine data."
Juliet Watson, an RMIT sociologist, says there is no clear data on the number of pregnant women who are homeless. (ABC News: Nicole Asher)
Dr Watson said that needed to change so governments knew the size of the cohort who needed specialised help.
"We need accurate data about how many women this is affecting," she said.
"Then when we get data we can actually speak to people in government, people who are responsible for policy to actually look at this as a serious issue."
Demand for services outstrips availability
Even though the data is missing on how many women are homeless while pregnant, one thing is certain — demand for help outsizes the help available.
"Once they have a baby, they may be priorities for social housing, but it's really difficult for women to be prioritised until that baby is actually born," Dr Watson said.
Every month, women like Amanda are being turned away from a one-of-a-kind, and at capacity, homelessness program specifically targeted at pregnant women.