News - Homelessness NSW

2012 Closing the Gap report

Fri, 17 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -1100

The Commonwealth Government has released its 2012 Closing the Gap report. The report shows that some progress is being made in key areas of indigenous inequality compared to non-indigenous Australians, including mortality rates for under 5s and school performance. The Commonwealth has also provided additional funds for building public awareness about, and community support for, constitutional recognition of Australian indigenous people, through a process to be led by Reconciliation Australia

No Interest Loans Schemes booming No Interest Loans Schemes Booming

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -1100

Low income Australians under financial pressure are gaining greater access to affordable loans to provide household essentials through the national network of No Interest Loans Schemes (NILS). Figures released by the Commonwealth indicate that in 2011, the total value of loans under NILS was $13.1 million which is a 49% increase from 2012. In NSW, more information about NILS can be obtained at www.nilsnsw.org.au

More Asylum Seekers in the Community

Tue, 14 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -1100

A Senate Committee has been told by Commonwealth Immigration Department senior officers that a third of asylum seekers arriving by boat will be living in the community on bridging visas in 2013. By the end of 2012-13, the Department expects 20% of asylum seekers will be in community detention where the Department provides housing and support and 30% would be released on bridging visas. The lack of any Commonwealth income support payments and State based assistance as well as the stretched fiscal resources of charitable donations spells extreme hardship for many of these people and the community organisations attempting to work with them.

Shelter NSW Conference

Thu, 09 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -1100

Explorations in nonprofit housing: models vicissitudes resurgence
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A Shelter NSW conference

·    When: Thursday, 14 June 2012.
·    Where: Auditorium, NSW Teachers Federation Conference Centre, 37 Reservoir Street, Surry Hills, Sydney.

Does ‘one size fit all’? For decades we had one model of affordable rental housing — the public housing provided by the Housing Commission and its successors, the Department of Housing and now Housing NSW. In the 1980s, the Community Tenancy Scheme allowed for new organizations to emerge, which are the ancestors of many of today’s housing associations. By the 2000s, the term ‘social housing’ came into general use, in recognition that public housing was not the only model of affordable rental housing around.

Today there is greater diversity in the models of affordable rental housing being developed and provided by nonprofit nongovernment organizations:
·    Eligibility — Some nonprofits might have more liberal criteria for who is eligible to apply for their housing, than is the case for public housing and the mainstream community housing regulated by Housing NSW. They might they want to increase their rent revenue, they might be providing or managing housing under a scheme like the National Rental Affordability Scheme (NRAS) where this approach is a program requirement, or they might think that it is better to have some ‘social mix’ among their tenants for reasons linked to social inclusion. In some cases, eligibility for the housing might be linked to the tenant having had an association with the local area, or being in a certain occupational group (e.g. ‘key workers’), or being in a certain population group (e.g. seniors).
·    Rents — Some nonprofits no longer charge rents according to an income-based rent-setting formula, for example, capped at 25% of the household’s income. They charge rents according to a discount to the prevailing market rent, for example, at 75% of the market rent. This might be because they want to increase their rent revenue, or they might be providing or managing housing under a scheme like the NRAS.
·    Length of tenancy — Some nonprofits do not promise a continuous tenancy as is normally the case in mainstream community housing. For example, a community housing association may manage dwellings owned by a council which may have a policy that tenancies be for a fixed duration with no extension.
·    Links to support services — Some nonprofits link their housing to specific support services in a ‘wrap around’ sort of way, such as the Housing First approach to address chronic homelessness.
·    Intentional communities — The affordable rental housing might be a component of a larger, mixed-income development that is an ‘intentional community’, as is the case of some eco-villages.

Differences, continuity and change. What are the implications of these developments, for example, for ‘traditional’ social housing providers and for tenants?
Who should attend? Providers and managers of social housing and other affordable housing, providers of specialist homelessness services and other welfare services to low-income households, social housing tenants, and policymakers are encouraged to attend.
More information:
·    Download a conference leaflet: http://www.shelternsw.org.au/docs/fly12conference.pdf
·    Conference program details will be available soon from our website: http://www.shelternsw.org.au/docs/fly12conference-about.html
·    For registration queries, please contact Yana Myronenko on (02) 9267 5733 ext. 13 or email: admin@shelternsw.org.au.

Easing Housing Stress - budget Statement 12/13

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -1100

Australians for Affordable Housing has released its Commonwealth pre Budget submission, Easing Housing Stress. One key measure that is argues the Commonwealth Government to adopt in the May Budget is the establishment of an Affordable Housing Growth Fund which would generate a rolling investment of 100,000 properties across Australia over 10 years. A second key measure is to increase Commonwealth rent assistance by 30% which would assist more than 74% of recipients. The full statement is available at www.housingstressed.org.au

Reconciliation Action provides jobs

Wed, 08 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -1100

A new report shows nearly 14,000 indigenous Australians have gained jobs in the past 18 months with support from a program run jointly by Reconciliation Australia and the Commonwealth Government. Using Reconciliation Action Plans, 280 organisations including major firms such as Rio Tinto, BHP Billiton, Qantas, News Ltd and KPMG along with 50 Australian Government organisations had filled nearly 1000 indigenous apprenticeship and traineeship positions as part of the total. The report is available at www.reconciliation.org.au

Fair Work Australia - Equal Pay Decision

Thu, 02 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -1100

As many of you will know, Fair Work Australia handed down its decision on the ASU's equal pay application for social and community services workers yesterday.

The key points of the decision are:

The equal pay case arguments are re confirmed (as in the May 2011 judgement); there will be pay increases ranging from 19% to 41% as sought in the joint submission by the ASU and the Commonwealth in November 2011; these increases will be phased in via 9 payments over an eight year period, commencing on 1 December 2012; and there will be an additional 4% increase payable also over 8 years to recognise impediments to bargaining in the social and community services sector and keeping the decision in line with the 2009 Queensland decision, so as to maintain national consistency.

In addition, FWA has directed that any amounts payable under the equal remuneration order can be subject to salary packaging. The order also provides for the absorption of over award payments.

The full decision and the accompanying determination can be found at www.fwa.gov.au

Homelessness NSW will provide further updates on this decision and any implementation information as it becomes available.

Along with many other peak organisations, we will be seeking assurances from the NSW Government that it will match the Commonwealth Government's commitments and provide its fair share of additional funding to assist organisations meet these new salary costs

Parramatta City Council Homelessness Policy

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -1100

Released in late 2011, Parramatta Council has committed, through this policy to contribute to preventing homelessness, support and work with the local homelessness sector, maintain and promote the use of public space and assets for the whole community and champion regional planning and partnerships that encourage evidence based collaborations to reduce and prevent homelessness. More information from www.paracity.nsw.gov.au

Gender based violence - mental disorders, disability and suicide

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -1100

A recent Australian study has found that women may be considerably more likely to develop one of the common forms of mental disorder at some point in their lives if they have experienced gender based violence (GBV). The study is the first of its kind to comprehensively apply indices of GBV in a large, representative, population based sample in order to examine links with mental disorder and related disability. More information about the study can be obtained by contacting co-author, Susan Rees at s.j.rees@unsw.edu.au (from article in Health Impacts, Summer 2012, Australian Domestic and Family Violence Clearinghouse)

Mixed Communities research paper

Wed, 01 Feb 2012 00:00:00 -1100

Shelter NSW has released a discussion paper on Mixed Communities. The paper, prepared by Dr Tony Gilmour, places the debate about de-concentration of public housing estates in a broader context, looking at social mix across all locations and tenure types. In particular, it reviews the way planning policies are being and could be used to create a social mix of people in a neighbourhood. The research paper is available from Shelter NSW at www.shelternsw.org.au