Housing First Homelessness Initiative

An initiative that will provide accommodation and wrap around support to people sleeping rough in the Perth Metropolitan Area, Rockingham/Mandurah, Bunbury and Geraldton.
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Background

In November 2019, the Premier and the Minister for Community Services launched All Paths Lead to a Home: Western Australia’s 10-Year Strategy on Homelessness 2020–2030 (the Strategy). The Strategy seeks to introduce a Housing First approach to homelessness that prioritises getting people into permanent housing with flexible and tailored supports to follow. This is seen as a key foundation of the system change needed to end chronic homelessness.

There are five core principles of Housing First:

  1. Immediate access to permanent housing with no housing readiness requirements
  2. Consumer choice and self-determination
  3. Recovery orientation
  4. Individualised and client-driven supports
  5. Social and community integration.

Alongside the launch of the Strategy, funding of $34.5million was announced to deliver the Housing First Homelessness Initiative. The Housing First Homelessness Initiative is a discrete initiative under the Strategy that will provide accommodation and wrap around support to people sleeping rough in the Perth Metropolitan Area, Rockingham/Mandurah, Bunbury and Geraldton.

The Housing First Homelessness Initiative has been broken down into four discrete components:

  • The Housing First System Coordinator
  • The Housing First Support Services – Metropolitan and Regional
  • The Finding Home Program
  • An Evaluation of the Housing First Homelessness Initiative.

The Housing First System Coordinator

The Housing First System Coordinator is responsible for the overall coordination of the HFHI across the Identified Locations. The Housing First System Coordinator will develop information sharing protocols to ensure information is shared in a timely manner and includes the development of complimentary protocols to aid in service delivery. 

The Housing First Support Services

The Housing First Support Services (HFSS) seek to ensure people who are sleeping rough are linked into appropriate services that will help them find and maintain suitable accommodation. The HFSS will work closely with the Housing First System Coordinator and the Finding Home Program to ensure that appropriate accommodation is sought, and the right support services are in place to help people maintain their accommodation and do not cycle back into homelessness.

The Finding Home Program

The Finding Home Program is a component of the HFHI that will aim to provide suitable and flexible accommodation options for people who have been sleeping rough in the Identified Locations. The Finding Home Program will work closely with the Housing First System Coordinator and the Housing First Support Service to identify and allocate appropriate accommodation options to people engaged in the HFHI.


Regional Supportive Landlord Model

On 1 May 2023, the State Government announced the Regional Supportive Landlord Model (RSLM). The RSLM will deliver up to 100 social homes in regional locations for people sleeping rough, in line with the All Paths Lead to Home: Western Australia's 10-Year Strategy on Homelessness 2020-2030 (the Strategy).

As part of the State Government's homelessness reforms, $49 million is being provisioned for the program in partnership with community housing organisations, to provide 100 supportive landlord social homes for people experiencing rough sleeping in regional WA. To deliver the RSLM, $46 million is dedicated to purchasing and ensuring properties meet community living standards.

The remaining $3 million will be used to provide a subsidy to Community Housing Organisations to deliver the Regional Supportive Landlord Model for up to 100 properties across three selected locations over three years. Community Housing Organisations are invited to indicate which location(s) they have capacity to deliver in.

The intent is for community housing organisations to provide property and tenancy management for 100 social dwellings through a supportive landlord model together with intensive wrap-around support services.

The State Government via Department of Communities (Communities) will contribute up to 100 social housing properties via a combination of spot purchases, refurbishments, and new builds. These social homes will be prioritised for people who have experienced chronic homelessness or rough sleeping and are suitable for this model of support.

The RSLM was based on the long-term success of the mental health Independent Living model which assists people with severe and persistent mental health issues find and sustain housing.

The model is predicated on the pivotal role of housing providers, as landlords, in

sustaining tenancies based on the final decisions around sustaining or ending a tenancy being vested with a landlord. Under this model, social outcomes are prioritised over commercial objectives, with tenants linked to individualised supports to assist with their needs.

A supportive landlord model is a natural complement to Housing First principles and services, like the Housing First Homelessness Initiative.

Call for submissions to expand the successful Supportive Landlord Model for people sleeping rough in selected regional areas.

Communities - Office of Homelessness is undertaking a Registration of Interest (ROI) process to assist with the planning of the Community Housing Organisations to support RSLM.

A Registration of Interest is now open for Community Housing Organisations to partner with the State Government in delivering more regional social housing for people sleeping rough.

Community Housing Organisations, including Aboriginal Controlled Community Housing Organisations, in the following regional areas are encouraged to register their interest:

  • Albany/Denmark
  • Broome
  • Geraldton
  • Kalgoorlie
  • Port Hedland

Respondents must lodge an ROI in Electronic Form through Tenders WA by lodging it at: www.tenders.wa.gov.au. The ROI was released on Monday 27th November and will close on Wednesday 3rd January 2024.

An ROI is a short form to complete to indicate interest which will enable Communities to consider which locations to target and the potential organisations who may be interested in participating.

The boost to regional social housing builds on the success of the Djuripiny Mia Supportive Landlord Model, which assists complex tenancies and sustain long-term housing.

The model is being successfully piloted under a landmark partnership with Housing Choices WA to deliver 100 social homes across Perth, Peel and Bunbury.

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