Web resource:	http://www.sisr.net/publications/right_to_belong.pdf
Type:	Report
Title:	'The right to belong' : family homelessness and citizenship
Authors:	Kolar, Violet Hulse, Kath
Keywords:	Impact on children and young people;Child protection;Human rights;Housing
Year:	2009
Publisher:	Swinburne University of Technology and Hanover Welfare Services, Hawthorn
Notes:	General Overview: In this report, Melbourne based authors, Hulse and Kolar investigate the impact of homelessness on the everyday experiences of women with children. Whereas previous homelessness research has focused on service delivery and public policy, this qualitative study is framed around the concepts of human rights and citizenship. Discussion: The report is based on in-depth interviews with twenty women living with at least one of their children in transitional housing. The women were recruited through Hanover Welfare Services in Melbourne, Victoria and ranged in age from nineteen to their late fifties. In all twenty cases, the women’s initial homelessness was triggered by a relationship breakdown, while eight women specifically identified domestic violence as a determining factor. The main aim of the study was to illuminate how family homelessness influences women’s understanding of and negotiation of their rights and responsibilities, their sense of belonging and their social participation. Using this framework, four key themes emerged from the research: * the invisibility, uncertainty and conditionality associated with being homeless * the practicalities of the ‘job’ of being homeless, including women’s on-going dealings with government and non government services * the ‘double bind’ that comes with caring for children and being homeless, including the potential for homelessness to prompt intervention by child protection authorities * the impact of homelessness on women’s perceptions of themselves, their family relationships and community attitudes towards them. The authors plan to undertake a larger-scale follow up study into family homelessness and citizenship, exploring the views of adolescent children, as well as their parents, and recruiting homeless families in different areas, including non-metropolitan areas.
URI:	https://anrows.intersearch.com.au/anrowsjspui/handle/1/18978
ISBN:	9780975717721
Physical description:	52 p.
Appears in Collections:	Reports

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