Police are trying to find three young children who may have been sleeping rough in a dumpster in the Hunter Valley, in NSW.
Two boys aged four and six and a nine-year-old girl were reported to police after they were found camping out in an industrial bin behind shops on High Street at Maitland.
The dumpster contains a mattress, pillows and colourful bedding as well as a makeshift curtain.
An empty potato chip packet and children's magazines are also inside.
The children were reported to police on Saturday, with one nearby shop worker saying the children were dirty, badly dressed and one had no shoes.
However, local police are playing down fears the children have been abandoned, despite them being seen at the bin a number of times over the past few weeks.
They say the children could simply be using the bin as a cubby house.
"There's been a suggestion that they've been in the vicinity, on and off, for a couple of weeks, but certainly no one's been seen sleeping in the bin or actually living in it," Maitland Police Inspector Trevor Shiels told AAP.
"When police investigated they found a few bedding items and living items. It's a bit hard to draw a conclusion."
There are scant details known about the children, however, the four-year-old boy has a shaved head and the six-year-old has a mullet hairstyle.
Police have contacted local waste companies to halt collections and have stepped up patrols in the hope of finding the children.
They have also reported the matter to the Department of Community Services (DoCS).
The case has raised questions over the full extent of the homelessness problem in NSW.
Shadow Community Services Minister Katrina Hodgkinson says this is just one of many situations plaguing the state.
“We don’t have the exact statistics in NSW, but we know it’s a very significant problem with nearly 10,000 children under the age of 12, homeless across the country.
“DoCS Minister Kevin Greene has had that warning on his desk for at least four months.”
