President of the Sacred Heart Conference of St Vincent de Paul, Ian Witherden, said Centrelink payments and tight Inverell accommodation presents a real problem.

“I’ve seen grown men cry,” he said.

Homelessness in Inverell no longer has an age or gender barrier; men, women, adolescents and children have all been affected.

The most imminent issue is housing cost and shortage, and fewer choices for temporary accommodation.

Ian said St Vincent de Paul was stretched to find shelter for people, and rental options were slim and often out of reach.

He said the Newstart allowance was pegged so low, many recipients could “not afford much by way of rent”.

“The hotels now are reluctant to let rooms to them, and I guess that this is because bad experiences that they’ve had with (homeless),” he said.

“The caravan parks are probably beyond their means to afford a cabin.”

Ian said St Vincent de Paul and other local not-for-profit organisations have recently helped individuals forced to spend nights under an Inverell bridge when housing options were lost.

The NSW Department of Family and Community Services provides temporary assistance if accommodation can be secured.

Homeless are allowed 28 days support per year, other than exceptional circumstances when periods of a two week extension may be considered. 

Ian said men have an additional obstacle.

“(They’re) at a real disadvantage because accommodation is tight and it will always go to women with children with first and then women ahead of blokes,” he said.

“Usually if they’ve got no accommodation, then they’ve got no way of cooking a meal, their Newstart benefit is so poor, that they can’t afford to buy takeaway, or there’s a limit to how many they can afford.”

An Inverell event to observe Homeless Prevention Week is at 11am on Wednesday August 5 at Campbell Park. The public are invited for food, live entertainment, a hip hop workshop with DukeBox Bailey, cupcake decoration and a blanket drive to help those sleeping rough.