Congratulations to the Coffs Harbour Department of Housing Office! Terry Wilson, Team Leader and Diana Wilson, Project Officer, joined Paul Vevers, Executive Director for Northern NSW, to collect a Gold Award for Services to Rural NSW at the 2004 NSW Premier’s Public Sector Awards.
As co-ordinator of the project Private Rental Brokerage Service for People with Complex Needs, Diana Wilson, from the Department’s Coffs Harbour office, works closely with project partners Coffs Harbour Care, Streetside Oasis, and local real estate agents, such as Koops Martin Property Management.
The project facilitates access to private sector housing in the Coffs Harbour area for clients with complex needs who may otherwise be unable to gain such access. The project aims to reduce the number of people seeking public housing in an area with high levels of homelessness and subsequent high demand for public housing.
The clients involved to date have a range of complex needs including mental illness, domestic violence, disabilities associated with ageing, and drug and alcohol issues.
To date, over one hundred clients have been assisted at a cost of $890 per client in project costs (plus rental assistance). This compares to an annual average cost of $4,800 for a public housing tenancy. As these clients would have otherwise been eligible for public housing, their placement in the private sector means that demand for public housing in the area is reduced.
The project has experienced only a small drop out rate (7%), due to the initial careful assessment of clients and the support provided by partners in the project. The low drop-out rate is essential in building up the confidence of real estate agents that tenants received through the scheme can actually sustain a tenancy.
In addition to the obvious benefits to clients, who are placed in a tenancy with an agreed level of support, there are many benefits to the general community, including a reduction in the number of clients experiencing homelessness.
The Department has plans to replicate the project in four other non metropolitan locations. As accommodation is often more affordable in rural areas, the project will function best in such areas. The project will be extended to Newcastle, West Lake Macquarie and two other locations in Western and Southern NSW.
Congratulations also go to the other worthy nominees from the Department of Housing.
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