Anti-social behaviour could get worse, warns shelter boss
Friday, 18 October 2024
A homeless shelter that has seen increasing numbers of mentally unwell people turning up at its doorstep warn anti-social behaviour will only get worse unless action is taken to fix such issues.
Te Whare Korowai Taangata o Kirikiriroa, Hamilton Christian Nightshelter Trust CEO Joanne Turner said today’s homelessness is a consequence of “every ripple” since 1840.
“Tomorrow’s homeless are going to be in ever increasing numbers if we don’t get this right.”
In March, the shelter reported it had become a “dumping ground” for mentally unwell people who have been falling through the cracks of the mental health system, and Turner said the situation is not getting better.
The shelter provides 77 emergency and transitional beds, and Turner said they had always been full for the past six months, with seven people currently sleeping on its doorstep every night.
She said she had become a broken record about the topic but there was no change in sight.
“…and even worse, a significant increase in seeing those with complex mental health diagnoses, coupled with traumatic brain injury and drug/alcohol use left to squalor, both in homes (Kainga Ora) or on the street.”
Hamilton businesses who had been troubled by the city’s anti-social behaviour told the Waikato Times that the problem is not homelessness, as many problems were caused by those who had a roof over their head.
But Turner said homelessness is still part of the problem alongside poor mental health care.
“I note that businesses understand that not all the issues are related to the homeless but I would posit that they (streeties) have experienced homeless, have created a sense of commune and although housed, do not have adequate supports to live a fulfilling life.”
The position would resonate with Hamilton East businesses, who had seen a spike in anti-social behaviour as more social housing appeared in the area.
Turner said people with complex mental health issues are desperately seeking support, but at this stage there are no available effective treatments.
“This is not a want scenario, this is a need scenario, most of those who are homeless or inappropriately housed require a comprehensive treatment programme to ensure their safety and the safety of those around them.”
Despite advocating for funding to do the work over the past few years, there had not been money given to the organisation to do so.
Turner said undoubtedly the projects would be expensive, but she thinks it would be less expensive than the drain on the police, corrections, justice and health systems.
She said mental health problems need to be dealt with before they get worse and someone commits an offence.
“It is a joke that the new mental health hospital being built offers no increased capacity than what Henry Rogomau Bennett Centre currently offers but a bigger jail to accommodate an increase in forensic mental health patients is being built.
“Effectively, the answer seems to be, let them become so desperate that they commit crime, and we can accommodate them in jail.”
The Henry Rongomau Bennett Centre currently has capacity of 60 beds and the rebuild facility that is set to open in mid-2026 will have 64 beds.
RNZ reported in May that the facility operated at up to 115 percent occupancy in late April and early May, with at least one patient slept on a mattress on the floor for two nights.
Meanwhile, work is underway to add 810 beds to the Waikeria prison and will be open to host inmates by mid-2025.
In response to political comments suggesting a better economy will lead to lesser anti-social behaviour, Turner said while more employment opportunities positively impact middle-class New Zealanders, many of those living in poverty and unable to work are likely to see negligible change.