Join Sleep In Your Car to Support Homelessness Services

Sleep In Your Car: A new community fundraising campaign

This October, Mission Australia invites people across Australia to take part in Sleep In Your Car, a new community fundraising campaign where participants spend a night or more sleeping in their car to raise vital funds for Mission Australia’s homelessness services.

Responding to a growing housing and homelessness emergency

The new fundraising initiative comes as demand for Mission Australia’s homelessness services has increased by 19 per cent over the past year, with more people than ever living without a safe, secure place to call home. The 2021 Census recorded more than 120,000 people experiencing homelessness in Australia, with many living in severely overcrowded dwellings, refuges, boarding houses, couch surfing, other insecure accommodation, on the streets or in their cars.

Australia is in the midst of a housing emergency, driven by a chronic shortage of social and affordable housing, rising rents and living costs. On top of this, challenges such as family and domestic violence, mental health concerns and the impacts of natural disasters continue to push people into homelessness.

Mission Australia CEO, Sharon Callister said:

“Every hour, around 3,000 people turn to homelessness services like ours for support, and more people and families are reaching out for our help.”

Funds raised through Sleep In Your Car will directly support Mission Australia’s homelessness services. These include prevention and early intervention, crisis and transitional accommodation, outreach, case management and tailored support for young people, families and adults experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

Why Sleep In Your Car?

Sleep In Your Car offers people a way to take action by raising funds, showing support and starting conversations. While one night in a car doesn’t reflect the full reality of homelessness, it offers a small glimpse into the uncertainty and discomfort many people face daily without a safe place to sleep. The campaign encourages greater empathy, advocacy, connection and support.

Taking action beyond fundraising

While Sleep In Your Car raises funds for practical homelessness support, Mission Australia continues to advocate for long-term solutions to end homelessness in Australia and address the country’s housing emergency. This includes a national commitment to boost the supply of social and affordable homes, with at least one in ten new homes built being genuinely affordable for those on low incomes.

Ms Callister continued:

“Too many people are being pushed into homelessness in Australia. Mission Australia is working to provide support when people are at their most vulnerable.

Sleep In Your Car is an opportunity for people to come together and raise vital funds for services that so many rely on every day. But fundraising alone isn’t enough. We need a strong national response that invests in early intervention, homelessness services, and the social and affordable homes people urgently need.

Together, we can build real hope and possibility for people who need a safe place to call home.”

About Mission Australia’s homelessness services

With more than 165 years of experience, Mission Australia is one of the largest community service and community housing charities in Australia. Mission Australia believes everyone should have a safe, secure home and advocates for solutions to end homelessness in Australia. The charity provides vital homelessness services and social and affordable homes for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

Mission Australia’s homelessness services focus on prevention and early intervention, crisis and transitional accommodation, outreach, case management and specialist support. In Financial Year 2024, Mission Australia had 82 homelessness services which supported more than 23,400 people, and more than 4,550 social and affordable homes, with 7,650 tenants.

Get involved

To register, fundraise or learn more, visit sleepinyourcar.com.au