Mosaic News

Buy Me A Coffee
News without borders
Friday, 29 May 2026
Mosaic News is free to read — but not free to run. Your (monthly) donation keeps it going. →
Australia & Oceania·Human Rights·Health

Australia's homelessness crisis claims 14 lives per year in public spaces, analysis finds

Sunday, 10 May 2026, 06:20 · 1 min read

An analysis of coronial records commissioned by The Guardian has found that an average of 14 homeless people die each year in Australia's public parks and countryside areas, including riverbanks, bushland, and beaches. Between 2010 and 2020, at least 139 such deaths were recorded — figures drawn largely from non-public reports held by the National Coronial Information System — highlighting what researchers describe as a systemic failure in housing and social support. The findings come amid a string of high-profile deaths, including a newborn at a makeshift camp near Wagga Wagga (a regional city in New South Wales), a young Aboriginal mother who died of sepsis after eviction from public housing in Western Australia, and a Nepali international student found dead in Sydney's Hyde Park, prompting calls for the federal government to legally recognise housing as a human right and to accelerate investment in social housing ahead of the upcoming federal budget.

Sources
The Guardian‘A sobering indictment’: 14 homeless people die a year in public parks or countryside in Australia, analysis finds ↗︎
This article was automatically compiled by AI from the sources above. It may contain inaccuracies. Always read the original sources for the full context.