Uniting Ballarat's Street 2 Home team is supporting more than 100 clients through the program, including 55 who are supported to maintain housing and around 60 people who are sleeping rough in the Central Highlands.

Uniting Ballarat acting co-ordinator housing and homelessness Adam Liversage said he had seen an 'influx' of rough sleepers to the Central Highlands region since November.

"There are around 60 rough sleepers in Central Highlands now. We were down to about 17 eight to 12 months ago," he said.

"This is probably the biggest spike we have had in the last three years."

The Street 2 Home program began in Ballarat in 2016.

READ MORE: A pathway out of homelessness for people struggling in Ballarat

The program's staff is split into two teams that provide outreach to people who are sleeping rough and ongoing support to those who have been placed in housing.

Mr Liversage said he was unsure what had caused the spike in rough sleepers in the region throughout the past few months.

"Most of them have significant mental health issues and many have come from other areas, from all over the state," he said.

"Many have run out of options in other areas and may have been sleeping rough for 10 or 15 years."

The Street 2 Home team covers a large area, including Bacchus Marsh, Ballarat, Daylesford, Trentham, Maryborough and forest areas like Lerderderg State Park.

Mr Liversage said the program was up for re-funding later this year, but would need additional resources and staff to maintain intensive support for those already in housing and support for those sleeping rough.

"At the end of the day the government saves money by maintaining tenancies. It is a small price to pay to maintain tenancies compared to the resources needed to support people sleeping rough," he said.

"Once rough sleepers are housed and we have teams linked in and providing mental health support, it also decreases the number of people accessing hospitals and emergency wards."

READ MORE: Leyton's housing struggle highlights the need for investment to politicians

The lack of available appropriate and affordable housing stock remains a major challenge to transition people into long-term housing options and crisis accommodation at Reid's Guest House is almost full every day.

"We need more properties right across the board, but for rough sleepers it is primarily one bedroom stock that is needed," Mr Liversage said.

Mr Liversage said mental health issues were prevalent among people sleeping rough and experiencing homelessness.

New research shows having access to safe, secure, affordable and appropriate housing is the foundation to recovering from mental ill-health.

Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute and Mind Australia research found people who experienced severe psychological distress were 89 per cent more likely to experience financial hardship within one year and were 28 per cent more likely to be forced to move from their existing accommodation.

Mental ill-health directly impacts housing stability and housing instability directly impacts mental health.

It is a vicious cycle Mr Liversage said can only be broken by supporting people into appropriate housing and once they are housed, continuing to support them holistically to maintain that housing.

The Street 2 Home program includes mental health clinicians, occupational therapists and drug and alcohol counsellors who do proactive and reactive work, both to prepare someone for independent living, meeting their immediate needs if they are sleeping rough and continuing support once they are housed.

"It is the only answer our team can see in addressing mental health and homelessness," Mr Liversage said.

"Without that support, we have seen homelessness be a revolving door for people. They can get into housing and it breaks down straight away and they are back on the streets again.

"With support, our workers can stay linked in as long as necessary to maintain that housing. We have about a 95 per cent success rate at the moment for people maintaining their housing with wrap around support.

"That is what state and federal governments need to be looking at. This is the answer to maintaining housing."

READ MORE: Ballarat needs more affordable homes, urgently

The report, Trajectories: the interplay between mental health and housing pathways, found people with a diagnosed mental health condition had a 39 per cent increased likelihood of experiencing a forced move within one year due to financial difficulty.

People who had deteriorating mental health and who did not access health services were 58 per cent more likely to experience a forced move within the next two years.

Social support reduced the likelihood that a person would experience deteriorating mental health to the point where a they had symptoms by 33 per cent.

The report found people needed connection to a trusted worker to assist in navigating services and who can provide advocacy and support when challenges arise to get well and stay well.

It found people also needed timely access to support and holistic support that meets the level of need, integrating housing and mental health support with social support, healthcare and financial support, and effective early intervention.

Have you signed up to The Courier's variety of news emails? You can register below and make sure you are up to date with everything that's happening in Ballarat.