Page 4842 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 1 November 2017
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The discussion paper which framed this conversation identified four goals for a housing strategy: reducing homelessness, strengthening social housing assistance, increasing affordable rental housing, and increasing affordable home ownership. Through participation in the workshops, online surveys and submission period, a number of consistent areas of concern or opportunities for improvement for each of these goals were established. These included increasing the supply and resourcing of homelessness services and accommodation; greater volume of well-designed social housing, with diversity mirroring our community’s expectations; providing longer leases and greater security of tenure to low income households; and pursuing planning changes to allow greater diversity and quality of housing choices. These, and many other suggestions, were explored at the summit.
Bringing together all the participants taking part in the discussion and all of the ideas they contributed, the summit sought to collate the options available in a way that will inform the ACT housing strategy’s recommendations to the government. The government deliberately did not put specific proposals to the summit but rather sought to continue the conversation we had already been having with participants to further develop these ideas in a collaborative environment that supports the co-design of proposals.
With the release of the discussion paper, the minister challenged the community to generate these ideas for discussion at the summit. The community were asked to be creative and inventive in challenging the status quo with the housing sector and to consider how things might be done differently. It is important for any government to ask this question of itself and its electorate to ensure that we are not simply doing things a certain way because it is how we have done them in the past. The consultation process leading to the development of the ACT housing strategy has reached out to the community and stakeholders to raise awareness of the issues involved and encourage ownership of those challenges and opportunities for improvement. The process has been a true collaboration of government, business, the community sector and individuals.
I have spoken many times already in this chamber of the work being done in delivering a community park to the people of Giralang. A key reason for my insistence on discussing this project is a genuine commitment not just to public consultation but also to public engagement. While this may seem like an exercise in semantics, it always amazes me how a change in language can lead to a change in attitude. The process of community engagement followed in developing the ACT housing strategy is a shining example of what can be achieved when we actively encourage community involvement in the policy discussion. One only has to go to the your say website to see the lengths we have gone to in listening to the various interest groups involved.
The website contains extensive summaries of consultation undertaken with community sector groups such as ACT Shelter and ACTCOSS; academics from the ANU and University of Canberra; peak body groups such as the Planning Institute of Australia, the Real Estate Institute of the ACT and even the Master Builders Association; cultural groups representing those providing services to the Aboriginal
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