If you've had your power cut off at home because you can't afford to pay your electricity bills, or if you don't have a home, where do you shower and wash your clothes?
This question bothered Danny Liversidge, the manager of Daylesford Neighbourhood Centre, after a man who had been sleeping rough nearby told him he was considering skipping a medical appointment because he "stunk to high hell".
"That was a terrible choice someone who was homeless was having to make," he says.
Unfortunately, it's a reality facing thousands of Australians struggling with homelessness and rising costs of living.
Mr Liversidge realised there wasn't anywhere in Daylesford, a tourist town in central Victoria, that offered a free shower or laundry service, so he collaborated with other community groups to find a solution.
The answer? Creating a free hygiene station for vulnerable residents.
Hepburn Shire Council facilitated meetings and provided money, along with other organisations, to raise $18,000 to fund the development.
Mr Liversidge says the facility, located at the neighbourhood centre and comprising separate shower and laundry rooms, only opened in late March but had already been used extensively by a broad range of people.
As part of the service, the local op shop offers clients a fresh change of clothing while they use the laundry facilities.
They can also have a hot drink and a social chat at the neighbourhood centre, or a conversation with staff about other services that could help them.
It's a model, Mr Liversidge says, that could be adopted in other country towns across Australia where residents are finding it hard to cope with the rising living costs.
Filling a gap
The new hygiene station is not only filling a gap for people sleeping rough, but also for residents who have a roof over their heads but are struggling to pay the bills.
"We have a gentleman using the facility who has had his power cut off because he can no longer afford his power bills," Mr Liversidge says.
"We have several clients who are sleeping rough in vans out in the bush."
Jeremey Gunning now works as a peer support worker at Uniting in Ballarat but was once living in a van in the bush near Daylesford.
He says he didn't shower for a month at the time and it made him feel "horrible", so he's excited to hear about the new Daylesford service.
"I was conscious of my smell whenever I went to the supermarket," he says.
"I remember I had to go into the hospital, but I put it off by a week and really had to talk myself into going because I was smelly.
"I visited a client the other day, he is in the bush just out of Daylesford and [this service] is exactly what he will be needing."
A growing problem
Daylesford has a reputation as a popular, high-end tourist town but, like many regional towns across the nation, beneath the surface bubbles extreme housing affordability issues.
More than 300 households in Hepburn Shire, which encompasses Daylesford, are living in housing stress or at risk of homelessness, according to an analysis of the 2021 Census and Australian Bureau of Statistics homelessness data.
Cafs, a child and family services organisation, runs the entry point for homelessness services in Daylesford and says the rising cost of living and low rental availability is driving increasing demand for housing support.
"We are getting people asking for help who have never sought help from community organisations before," Cafs chief executive Wendy Sturgess says.
"It is ironic. Many people don't think there is a homelessness problem in Daylesford … I think it is sometimes a bit more invisible in these areas where there are high levels of tourism.
"The impact of Air BnB is not helping rental affordability or availability … We need more affordable rental accommodation."
The rental vacancy rate for the Ballarat area, including Daylesford, is 1.5 per cent, according to REIV, with 3 per cent and above considered a "healthy" rate.
Mr Liversidge says families are being driven out of the area because they can't afford to rent or buy a home, and hospitality venues are struggling to hire new staff because it is difficult for them to find a place to live.
The median rental price for houses in Daylesford has leapt 25 per cent in five years to $445 per week, with the average home up 84 per cent to almost $1 million, according to REIV data.
Hepburn Shire Council is in the process of developing an affordable housing strategy and action plan.
An adaptable model
Ms Sturgess says the further out people live from major regional centres, the less likely they are to be able to access services.
"I think that is why this Daylesford Neighbourhood Centre opportunity is so important," she says.
Mr Gunning is working with Uniting Ballarat's Homelessness Advocacy Reference Committee, comprising people with lived experience of homelessness, to identify and address service gaps in nearby Bacchus Marsh.
He plans to push for a similar free hygiene facility there.
