Journeys Home: Tracking the most vulnerable

In 2010 the Australian Government commissioned The Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research at the University of Melbourne to undertake "Journeys Home (JH): A Longitudinal Study of the Factors Affecting Housing Stability". The broad aim of JH was to improve the understanding of, and policy responses to, the diverse social, economic and personal factors related to homelessness and the risk of becoming homeless. Importantly, JH is one of the first longitudinal studies of homeless people that both draws it sample from a wide population and includes people who are vulnerable to homelessness. This paper provides a brief summary of the JH survey, discussing its aims, survey design, data collection process, and response outcomes over its six waves of data collection. It also highlights some of the initial research that has been published utilising the data since its release.