Page 1150 - Week 03 - Thursday, 18 March 2010
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of independent living. This enables better utilisation of Housing ACT stock which may be vacant for a period of time because it is awaiting redevelopment or is hard to let. This year Housing ACT has increased the number of properties available to the transitional housing program.
Building on the fine tradition of public housing in Canberra, the challenge for this era of public housing is to continue to work collaboratively to reform service delivery practices to improve responsiveness to those most in need. In this regard, the ACT government, in partnership with the commonwealth government, has embarked on a program of further reform for the homelessness sector that builds on the reforms that I have already outlined. The direction of these reforms is to provide for a shift from a high proportion of accommodation support periods to increased periods of outreach support to people to prevent them from becoming homeless or to support their tenancies once they have become housed after a period of homelessness.
In addition, there will be a significant shift to a “housing first” approach with “wraparound” support to ensure that long-term positive outcomes are achieved. A capacity for crisis accommodation will be retained to ensure that the safety and immediate support needs of vulnerable Canberrans such as women escaping domestic violence are met. Key reform directions are the central access point for homelessness services, which will streamline access to services and housing; assertive engagement and persistent support for rough sleepers; early intervention to prevent repeat cycles of homelessness and to sustain tenancies; and the breaking of cycles of poverty by building links to education and training, and ultimately employment. The buzz words for this are “social inclusion”.
The central access point will streamline service entry points into the homelessness service system and other support services, ensuring that clients do not have to negotiate multiple agencies to access services. The central access point will provide a one-stop shop. It will be more than just an information and “warm referral” service. It will have the ability to allocate clients to accommodation vacancies and provide access to other support mechanisms such as outreach and personal support.
The central access point has three components. The first one is a central intake. The second one is a common waiting list between public and community housing, which has already been progressed. And the third one is the combined housing and homelessness shopfront co-location, incorporating other government and community assistance programs such as Centrelink, ACT government service providers and community organisations. This is an important step to improve the integration of homelessness services, employment and training providers and Centrelink.
The central intake service is one of the ACT government’s commitments under the implementation plan for the national partnership agreement on homelessness. The key deliverable from this agreement is to offer more connected, integrated and responsive services for people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
It will be imperative to establish and expand partnerships between specialist homeless services and mainstream service systems if we are to achieve broader change in the lives of people affected by homelessness. The provision of stable housing will see
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