Each year, residents from remote communities across the Northern Territory move to Darwin in search of safety, services and space. A lack of health resources, overcrowding, and anti-social behaviour are among the issues forcing people off country and into the city. But once people arrive, they can become trapped in a cycle of temporary accommodation and homelessness. Housing providers say more social housing is the key, but they're worried the Territory is falling behind on the federal government's push to boost supply.
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00:00Sitting with her mum outside her Binjari home near Catherine, Stella Raymond waits for her
00:10kids to get home from school. Stella grew up here with five children of her own. It's not
00:17the community she remembers as a kid. It's changed a lot. As I was growing up, yeah,
00:23it changed a lot. The kids just see people comes in with alcohol and that's a big issue here.
00:31Stella says housing is the other major problem for families like hers.
00:36In my household I got five kids and me and my partner and we live in a two-bedroom
00:41flat. I meant to get a new house, like a three-bedroom house, but still waiting on housing to clear that up.
00:49A lack of housing and services across the territory's bush communities are forcing many
00:54residents into town centres where homelessness is rife. Those lucky enough to get a bed in Darwin
01:01often end up stuck in a cycle of short-term accommodation. This 180-bed facility run by
01:07Catholic Care is at capacity as demand for public housing reaches record highs.
01:13For public housing applicants, the wait time for a one-bedroom unit in Darwin
01:18is up to a decade. Last year, of the 2,344 applications for public housing across Darwin,
01:26just 101 people were allocated a home, leaving the rest with limited options.
01:34Michelle Martin has been here since January. Her sons and grandsons suffer from a rare brain disorder
01:40and they have to travel from Man and Greta to get treatment. Michelle is also dealing with her own
01:45health challenges and needs to stay on in Darwin to be closer to doctors.
01:50She's been on a wait list for permanent housing in Darwin since 2020, but her application is on hold
02:06because she doesn't have a tenancy reference. Catholic Care NT has plans to build 44 new
02:12social homes on this block. We're ready to go. We have practically a shovel-ready project here.
02:19But the plans have hit a wall. A funding application under a federal government initiative supporting
02:2520,000 new social homes and 10,000 affordable homes across the country has been knocked back.
02:31We applied for funding for the Housing Australia Future Fund rounds one and two. Sadly, we were rejected.
02:38Of the 183 projects selected for funding under round one of the initiative, just five are from the NT.
02:46It costs a lot to build houses up in the territory. You know, we have skills shortages, labour shortages.
02:52If Housing Australia is looking at quotas and ticking boxes, the territory is going to get left behind.
02:57Marama Johnstone says she's seen people forced to return to community, sometimes to violent or dangerous situations,
03:05because there's no other option. People just need shelter and there's nowhere.
03:09Back in Binjari, Stella wants to see her children thrive on country and says a bigger house is the first step.
03:17Big difference. Yeah, big difference and better community. That's what we want.
03:24Big difference. Relieving pressure on the city by addressing problems in the bush.