Over the past four years, the Emergency Relief & Food Assistance Service has seen a staggering 225% increase in employed individuals seeking help.
In a recent interview with The Sunday Times, Anglicare WA CEO Mark Glasson highlighted the growing need for emergency relief among working families in Western Australia. Over the past four years, the Emergency Relief & Food Assistance Service has seen a staggering 225% increase in employed individuals seeking help.
Rising Demand for Assistance
“We're seeing more and more families in work looking for emergency relief. Over the last four years The Emergency Relief & Food Assistance Service has seen a 225% increase in people in employment who need help,” Glasson stated. He questioned how, in such a wealthy state, so many working people are struggling to get by.
Addressing the Underlying Issues
Glasson emphasized the need to focus on the underlying problems causing financial hardship. “We need to be putting our mind to growing numbers of people can't get by. People who are looking for assistance, often for the first time. We need to focus on the underlying problem there,” he said.
While acknowledging the helpful measures already announced, such as the Rent Relief Scheme, which has supported thousands of families, Glasson pointed out that the scale of the response is not sufficient to meet the growing demand. “The problem we have is the scale of the issue that we're facing, and the response isn't meeting the scale. We would ask the government to focus on increasing the scale and pace of change,” he urged.
"The problem we have is the scale of the issue that we're facing, and the response isn't meeting the scale."
Glasson called for better concessions to provide relief from utilities, bills, registrations, and licenses. He also stressed the importance of continuing the rent relief scheme, which has proven effective. “We need to look at better concessions, giving people relief from utilities and other bills, registrations, and licenses. We need to see a continuation of the rent relief scheme, we know that works,” he concluded.
"We need to see a continuation of the rent relief scheme, we know that works."
Anglicare WA continues to advocate for increased support and swift action to address the financial challenges faced by many Western Australians.
