The government social housing agency Kainga Ora said six people who had lived in tents at the Oval had been placed in its Dunedin homes.
The agency’s regional director, Kerrie Young, said the housed people had all been on the housing register.
Homes had been found for them by the agency working "proactively with other government agencies including the Ministry of Social Development."
A Dunedin City Council spokesperson said some people from the Oval had gone into DCC-owned social homes.
However, other homeless people previously living at the Oval may have not received housing from Kainga Ora or the council and instead gone elsewhere due to the "ongoing transient nature of homelessness".
In May, the Otago Daily Times reported that MSD and Kainga Ora had visited the Oval in a joint effort, with police also in attendance, to communicate with people about their housing needs. Homeless people told officials that they had repeatedly been declined housing and were sceptical about getting it.
Charities now say an ongoing, co-ordinated outreach service is needed that seeks out homeless people living in bushes, cars and other inhumane circumstances. The service should provide a pathway into supported living — a home plus support for complex challenges such as mental illness and addiction.
Last week had been a "terrible" week at the shelter, he said.
Three or four people had been turned away each night and for the first time ever the shelter had a weekend when everyone in the shelter was female. Usually, most were male.
Mr McKenzie pointed to mental illness, and a seemingly high threshold for access to mental health services, as a particularly pressing problem that could mean"desperate" people ended up homeless.
Due to an ongoing renovation of its main building, the shelter — which provides emergency accommodation for a few nights only — is currently being run from a different, smaller building on the same site with reduced capacity of only six beds. When it reopens, which is expected before Christmas, it will have twice the capacity.
Janine Walker from the Dunedin Bedding Bank, which provides tents and sleeping bags to homeless people, said she had two new cases she had to go and help yesterday and was as busy as ever helping the homeless, some of whom were "hiding in fear" rather than feeling able to seek assistence.
Cr Sophie Barker said homelessness was a "harsh reality".
"We know the system is broken and we are picking up tiny pieces. This is a systemic issue that needs fixing."
