No. 31 
New services funded for ACT homeless

The ACT Minister for Housing, John Hargreaves has today announced a range of new services aimed at breaking the cycle of homelessness and helping people obtain and maintain safe and secure housing. 

The Homelessness National Partnership Agreement with the Australian Government will provide significant funding opportunities for the ACT to establish additional dwellings and targeted service responses for those who are most in need. 

Mr Hargreaves said there would be $20 million over the life of the Agreement to address homelessness in the ACT.

“The ACT will receive an additional $5.064 million from the Commonwealth under the Homelessness National Partnership,” Mr Hargreaves said.

“This is over and above the $5 million capital funding received under A Place to Call Home for the period 2008-09 to 2012-13.

“The reforms already undertaken in the ACT to develop a “housing continuum” are consistent with where the Commonwealth Government is headed in its Homelessness White Paper – The Road Home. This new funding agreement gives us the opportunity to put new services on the ground where they are needed most.”

Mr Hargreaves said the new services to be funded in the ACT include: 

•	A Place to Call Home initiative: $10 million over 5 years. The ACT will provide 20 additional properties over the 5 years to house homeless families and provide those families with the necessary supports to sustain their tenancies; 
•	“Street to Home”: $898,000 over 4 years. This is an initiative to address chronic homelessness (rough sleepers) who will receive community outreach to assist them in to housing and to maintain that housing; 
•	Support for public housing tenants: $948,000 over 4 years. This will be a targeted program to assist vulnerable families, youth and older people, and Indigenous families to sustain their tenancies and break cycles of homelessness;
•	The Foyer Model:  $1.113 million over 3 years. This will establish a service for young people aged 16 to 25 to maintain stable housing and engage with education and employment services; 

•	Housing and Accommodation Support Initiative (HASI):  $1.2 million over 4 years. This provides support for people with mental health issues and disorders requiring accommodation support to participate in the community and maintain successful tenancies;
•	A Central Homelessness Intake Service:  $497,000 over 4 years. The Intake Service would be incorporated into a centralised access point for housing and homelessness that would include a common waiting list for public and community housing; 
•	Supporting Victims of Domestic Violence: $100,000. To establish a program in partnership with Housing ACT and the Domestic Violence Crisis Service to enable women and children who are victims of domestic violence to retain their housing by removing the perpetrator from the lease where a final Domestic Violence Order is in place; and
•	Expanded Stairwell Model: $292,000 over 4 years. This will expand the existing program by 10 places, and provide exit points from homelessness services with support in public housing.

The funding is subject to final agreement from the Commonwealth.

“I welcome these much need services that are required to address the scourge of homelessness and to give the neediest a real chance in life,” Mr Hargreaves said.

“This funding is on top of the $19 million already provided annually by the ACT and Commonwealth Governments for homelessness services.”

5 May 2009
Media Contact: 	Kim Fischer 	6205 0300(w)     0434 020 498(m)