Page 4520 - Week 13 - Tuesday, 26 November 2019
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The ACT government is continuing to build strong partnerships with the community sector to effectively address homelessness in the ACT. Earlier this year the government released the findings of a study into the support requirements and accommodation options for people in the ACT with high and complex service needs, to inform progress against goal 2 of the housing strategy. The findings of the study have supported the progress of several initiatives and are being used to inform future planning across the specialist homelessness sector. The government has also directed significant funding towards helping people who are falling through the gaps or who are emerging as priority groups at risk of homelessness.
The 2018-19 budget included $6.5 million in additional funding to support frontline homelessness services, particularly focusing on women and children escaping domestic and family violence, older women, and asylum seekers. This funding also includes expanding the reach of the ACT’s central intake point, OneLink.
Part of this funding established a new $1.9 million service to support older women who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, run by the YWCA. The service, known as NextDoor, provides dedicated early intervention support for older women at risk of homelessness and is targeted towards women over the age of 50, or 45 for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander women.
Earlier this month I announced a new partnership with CatholicCare and St Vincent de Paul to support 20 individuals with high and complex needs who are sleeping rough into permanent housing. This new program, called axial housing, will take a housing-first approach and provide a home to people who are sleeping rough and bring the supports they need to stay housed long term. This model has been very successful overseas and I am looking forward to seeing the results of this new approach.
Supporting the third goal of the ACT housing strategy is the ACT government’s plan for growing and renewing public housing. This plan details how the public housing portfolio will be managed over the next five years. The plan guides investment of $100 million—a record, nation-leading funding commitment to public housing—and includes targets to grow and renew public housing so that the portfolio meets current and future tenant needs. The ACT government is committed to renewing and growing public housing, with 1,200 new homes to be delivered under the plan, with an extra 200 homes for people in need of housing.
The fourth goal of the housing strategy, to increase affordable rental housing, has also seen significant progress, with the commencement of the land tax exemption pilot scheme in March this year. Under the scheme, eligible landlords may apply for a land tax exemption when they enter into an agreement with a registered housing provider to rent their property at 25 per cent less than market value.
One of the barriers for low to moderate income earners trying to enter the rental market is the up-front costs associated with commencing a new rental tenancy. In December last year the government established a new digital service, known as rental bond help, to assist low to moderate income earners with an interest-free loan to help
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