Page 1434 - Week 05 - Thursday, 18 June 2020
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(4) Is it sometimes necessary to allocate public housing configured for people with disabilities to tenants who do not have a disability.
(5) If it is necessary to allocate housing for disabled to tenants without disabilities, do such allocations become permanent.
(6) If such allocations referred to in part (5) are temporary, what is the approximate duration of such allocations.
(7) What proportion of occupied dwellings configured for disabled tenants are actually occupied by disabled tenants.
Ms Berry: The answer to the member’s question is as follows:
1. There was a total of 11,019 Housing ACT residential properties in the public housing stock as of 9 June 2020.
2. Of these properties, 10,574 were occupied and 445 were vacant. Of the vacant properties, 111 were ready to be allocated, and 31 were under offer, that is, waiting for the applicant to respond.
The remaining 303 properties are part of the usual churn of stock through routine maintenance, up-grade maintenance, or identified as part of the growth and renewal program. The dwelling occupancy rate is currently 95.8%. This is just below the accountability indicators of between 96%-97% of the previous years, mostly due to the impacts of the events of 2020 which have made moving to a house more challenging than usual.
3. Of the occupied public housing properties;
a. 1,990 properties have received one or more modifications for disabled tenants, including 183 that meet the requirements of Class C adaptable housing under the Australian Standard for Adaptable Housing AS4299; and
b. There are 509 properties that have not required modification to better suit a tenant’s specific disability as they have been built to meet the requirements of Class C adaptable housing.
4. Yes, with a focus on ageing in place and building homes for long term tenancies, wherever possible, all new public housing is designed to meet Class C Adaptable housing standards. Adaptable housing ensures people of all ages and abilities can live within the home and it can be easily adapted to meet changing household needs without requiring costly or substantial modifications. Class C housing must include all essential features of the Australian Standard for Adaptable Housing (AS4299-1995). These homes are prioritised for allocation to clients with a disability in the first instance. If a suitable tenant is not identified, then offers are made to clients from across the housing registers.
5. Yes, as with all public housing tenancies, Housing ACT tenants have security of tenure to live in their homes for as long as they comply with their tenancy agreement.
6. See 5.
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