Contents
- Part 1 Executive Summary
- Part 2 Performance reporting
- Part 3 Corporate governance and accountability
- Part 4 Appendices
- Part 5 Financial Management
Annual Report 2008–2009
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Annual Report 2008–2009
Annual Report 2008–2009 » Chapter 9: Outcome 4
Services and assistance that: help homeless people and low-income households to gain affordable and appropriate housing; promote community partnerships; and encourage participation in the local community by individuals, families, business and government.
Outcome 4 has four contributing output groups:
The services and assistance provided through Outcome 4 during 2008–09 were pivotal in helping the Department to support individuals and communities affected by the rapid deterioration of global financial conditions and the disasters that occurred in Australia and overseas.
During 2008–09 the Department began implementing the Government's $5.64 billion Social Housing Initiative. We worked closely with state and territory governments, and central agencies, to develop and implement the National Affordable Housing Agreement and its supporting national partnership agreements. The Department contributed research for the National Housing Supply Council's first annual State of Supply Report, which increased awareness across the sector of the current and future state of housing supply. Under the Housing Affordability Fund, financial incentives were provided to developers and local government to reduce the impact of infrastructure charges on new homes.
FaHCSIA drafted the Government's White Paper on homelessness, The Road Home: A National Approach to Homelessness, which sets out a plan to reduce homelessness in Australia by 2020. Specific goals are to halve overall homelessness and to provide supported accommodation to all rough sleepers who seek it by 2020. Progress will be monitored through agreed interim goals and targets.
We worked closely with state and territory governments to build the White Paper strategies into the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness.
During 2008–09 FaHCSIA implemented several disaster recovery assistance packages to support Australians adversely affected by disasters occurring in Australia and overseas. These disasters included the Mumbai terrorist attacks, the south-east Queensland storms, flooding in Queensland and northern New South Wales, and bushfires in Victoria.
The global financial crisis has led to an increased demand on services provided by the community sector, including from those not traditionally requiring assistance. In light of this, the Government announced additional funding of $80.4 million to extend FaHCSIA's emergency relief and financial counselling services.
The Department also provided discretionary grants to 7,200 volunteering organisations to assist them with small equipment and fuel costs. During 2008–09, we continued work on developing a national compact with the non-profit sector, local government and the Australian Council of Trade Unions. This initiative aims to facilitate collaborative and effective policy solutions for problems facing the Australian community.
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This section outlines the specific achievements that contributed towards achieving FaHCSIA's goals for Outcome 4, as well as the challenges we encountered along the way. It also reports on the Department's performance against the measures set out in our 2008–09 Portfolio Budget Statements and related budget documents.
FaHCSIA assists low- and moderate-income households to access affordable housing and provides support services to people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. In 2008–09 we delivered a number of significant and comprehensive initiatives to improve housing affordability and address homelessness.
FaHCSIA's key achievements in 2008–09 in supporting housing and homelessness reform are outlined below.
In 2008–09 the Commonwealth and state and territory governments agreed to nearly $10 billion in funding for the National Affordable Housing Agreement, which commenced on 1 January 2009, and its associated national partnership agreements (including the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness, the National Partnership Agreement on Remote Indigenous Housing and the National Partnership Agreement on Social Housing).
The agreements demonstrate the Australian Government's leadership role in helping Australians into secure and affordable housing, which assists them to participate socially and economically. The National Affordable Housing Agreement encompasses housing assistance provided by all governments in Australia, including Commonwealth Rent Assistance, funding for specialist homeless services and other housing affordability programs.
The National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness was agreed in 2008–09. Under the agreement, Commonwealth and state and territory governments will work together to significantly reduce homelessness by 2013. This will be achieved through a national strategic approach focused on prevention and early intervention, breaking the cycle of homelessness and creating a new outcomes-focused service model.
The National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness sets out to ensure that:
Implementation plans for the agreement have been finalised in collaboration with state and territory governments.
The National Partnership Agreement on Social Housing was agreed in 2008–09. Under the agreement, the Commonwealth, state and territory governments will work together to increase the supply of social housing. In particular, the agreement will provide capital funding to support projects that enhance the ability of people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness, including Indigenous people and pensioners, to secure safe and long-term housing that meets their needs.
The Department has made significant progress in delivering the objectives and outcomes identified in the agreement. Implementation plans for the agreement were finalised in collaboration with state and territory governments in 2008–09.
The National Rental Affordability Scheme commenced on 1 July 2008. The scheme aims to increase the supply of affordable, safe rental dwellings by payments to contracted organisations to assist Australians with low and medium incomes to access affordable, safe and sustainable housing. Two application rounds were conducted and 3,799 offers of scheme incentives and 2,250 affordable rental dwellings were made available by 30 June 2009.
The Department also put in place a strategy to help develop the capacity of the not-for-profit community housing sector to participate in the scheme.
The Housing Affordability Fund provides developers and local government with a financial incentive to reform development and planning systems and to reduce the impact of infrastructure charges on new homes. A total of 33 funding agreements were signed in 2008–09, including nine agreements for the development of electronic development assessment (eDA) systems, which enable development applications to be lodged and assessed electronically.
Funding has been provided for a National eDA Co-ordination Office in Western Australia, hosted by the WA Department of Planning and Infrastructure, to implement the software that will enable eDA systems to interact and exchange information. Each state and territory is implementing the eDA processes and related information technology infrastructure proposals to speed up handling of development applications.
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The National Rental Affordability Scheme provides National Rental Incentives to commercial investors and community housing providers to increase the supply of affordable rental housing.
The incentive is currently valued at $8,762 for each dwelling and is paid annually for a 10-year period. To qualify, the home must be rented at least 20 per cent below market value to eligible tenants on low to moderate incomes.
St George Community Housing was offered 100 incentives in December 2009 under the scheme's first application round. The units are rented for between $191 and $274, providing a weekly saving to tenants of up to $95. Tenants are from a variety of socio-economic backgrounds, including students, people with disability, and key workers and their families, such as hospitality and childcare workers and apprentices.
St George Community Housing purchased the 100 dwellings directly from developers at wholesale rates, generating considerable savings across the project. The units are located in two different residential developments in Sydney, with half in Leumeah in south-western Sydney and the remainder in Bankstown. All units are within 150 metres of transport, a major shopping centre, community amenities, employment opportunities and schools.
St George Community Housing intends to hold all the homes as affordable rental housing stock over the long term, even after the incentives expire.
St George Community Housing has stated that these 100 dwellings would not have become available to tenants if it were not for the incentives available under the National Rental Affordability Scheme.
The Department drafted the Government's White Paper on homelessness, The Road Home: A National Approach to Homelessness, which was released by the Prime Minister, the Hon. Kevin Rudd, MP, and the Minister for Housing, the Hon. Tanya Plibersek, MP, on 21 December 2008. The White Paper sets out a plan to reduce homelessness in Australia by 2020. Specific goals are to halve overall homelessness and to provide supported accommodation to all rough sleepers who seek it by 2020. Progress will be monitored through agreed interim goals and targets.
The Department worked closely with state and territory governments to embed the strategies in the White Paper initiatives into the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness.
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In January 2008, the Prime Minister, the Hon. Kevin Rudd, MP, and the Minister for Housing, the Hon. Tanya Plibersek, MP, announced the development of a comprehensive, long-term plan to tackle homelessness.
Following public consultations in all states and territories, the Prime Minister and the Minister for Housing launched the White Paper, The Road Home: A National Approach to Homelessness, in December 2008.
The White Paper sets out two headline goals, to be achieved by 2020, which will guide our long-term response to homelessness: halving overall homelessness; and offering supported accommodation to all rough sleepers who seek it.
Representatives of the homelessness sector congratulated the Government for delivering on its election promise. Kevin Crowe, President of the Youth Accommodation Association, commented: ‘The White Paper sets up a strong vision and a long-term plan to end homelessness in Australia. It is the beginning of a new era where we take steps to address the social inequities in this country.'
Stephen Nash, the Chief Executive Officer of HomeGround, a large Victorian housing and homelessness organisation, said: ‘I would characterise the White Paper and the National Partnership on Homelessness as [providing] the most leadership on this issue in our history. The Rudd Government deserves credit for trying to move away from managing homelessness towards ending it.'
FaHCSIA, in conjunction with each relevant state and territory department, has held information sessions about the White Paper and its implementation in capital cities. The Government continues to engage the homelessness sector and to work with states and territories to reduce homelessness.
Photo above: The Prime Minister, the Hon. Kevin Rudd, MP, and Minister for Housing, the Hon. Tanya Plibersek, MP, speak with a Mission Australia resident at the Homelessness White Paper launch.
The National Housing Supply Council released its first annual State of Supply Report, which analyses housing needs and construction levels in Australia up to 20 years into the future, in March 2009. The Department commissioned and undertook research that provided input to the report, drafted the report in accordance with the views of the Council, and provided secretariat support to the Council.
The Department was involved in the development of the new Guidelines for Release of Surplus Commonwealth Land announced by Lindsay Tanner, Minister for Finance and Deregulation, and Tanya Plibersek, Minister for Housing and the Status of Women, on 25 February 2009. Under the new guidelines, surplus Commonwealth land suitable for housing will be disposed of to support the construction of new houses, improve community amenity and support the creation of new jobs.
FaHCSIA manages the Rent Assistance program, which contributes to improving housing affordability and complements broader income-support objectives by helping individuals and families with the costs of renting in the private housing market.
During 2008–09, the Department provided a range of Rent Assistance policy advice to Centrelink, which delivered $2.6 billion in Commonwealth Rent Assistance to 1,113,575 families and individuals.
The Government has an increased policy focus on the community housing sector as a mechanism for increasing the supply of affordable rental housing. During 2008–09 the Department undertook work to develop strategies to build the capability of the community housing sector to manage this growth.
This includes the funding, business and delivery models needed to develop a mature and high-functioning not-for-profit community housing sector in Australia that improves choice for tenants, delivers quality rental housing at affordable cost for those in lower income brackets and promotes competition in housing delivery.
Funding was also provided to the Community Housing Federation of Australia as the peak body for the community housing sector.
As part of the Social Housing National Partnership Agreement, COAG agreed to the implementation of a Social Housing Initiative over three and a half years.
The Social Housing Initiative represents a commitment by the Commonwealth Government and state and territory governments to significantly increase the supply of social housing throughout Australia and provide much-needed accommodation to many disadvantaged Australians, particularly those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. Governments have agreed to specific targets for the construction of new social housing dwellings and the repair and maintenance of existing properties.
The initiative will also support existing agreements that were previously endorsed by COAG in November 2008 to boost the supply of social housing and reduce homelessness. A number of the objectives and reform elements from these existing agreements have been incorporated into the guidelines in the Social Housing Initiative to ensure that all of the Commonwealth's housing programs are closely aligned.
The guidelines include a number of requirements and criteria that relate to agreements that were reached during the passing of the Appropriation (Nation Building and Jobs) (No. 1) 2008–2009 (No. 2) Bill through Parliament. This includes the specific environmental requirements that dwellings constructed through the initiative will be required to meet.
Through the initiative, the Commonwealth will commit funding of up to $5.64 billion over the next three and a half years. With the assistance of the not-for-profit housing sector, up to 19,200 new social housing dwellings will be built and 60,000 existing public and community housing dwellings refurbished.
Funding will generally be allocated to states on a per capita basis, subject to jurisdictions submitting suitable proposals that meet the requirements of the initiative.
The Social Housing Initiative comprises two elements. The first provides funding for new construction while the second provides funding to support the repair of existing social housing dwellings.
Element 1 will consist of two stages. Stage 1 will provide funding for social housing projects that are already in the development pipeline and can be brought forward to commence in 2009 and be completed before 30 June 2010. Stage 2 will provide funding for social housing projects following the completion of a competitive process to be conducted by each jurisdiction to identify suitable projects in the market.
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In February 2009, the Commonwealth Government announced funding for the Social Housing Initiative under the Nation Building—Economic Stimulus Plan. The Social Housing Initiative is being delivered in partnership with state and territory governments. It will provide a boost to public housing and is designed to assist low-income Australians who are homeless or struggling to secure housing in the private rental market.
The Department established the Social Housing Initiative Group in 2008–09. The group has an overarching role in the coordination, development and implementation of the initiative, while the Treasury has primary responsibility for payments to state and territory governments.
As part of Stage 1 of the Social Housing Initiative, a local development company is building a $5.5 million development with 16 new social housing dwellings on a site in the outer suburbs of Adelaide.
The development consists of 13 three-bedroom houses and three two-bedroom houses to be managed by a community provider.
Before the announcement of funding, the construction of these dwellings had been on hold indefinitely due to a lack of finance. The company was also facing the prospect of several retrenchments due to the effects of the global financial crisis.
This project helped the company avoid expected redundancies, employ two new employees and expand its contractor base to support the renewed activity.
The new dwellings will provide accommodation for 16 families who were facing uncertainty about their future accommodation.
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A house in Narrabundah in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) was the first to be completed as part of the Government's Nation Building – Economic Stimulus Plan. The property is the first of 243 social housing dwellings in the ACT to be upgraded as a result of the $400 million repair and maintenance component of the plan.
The 52-year-old house had been vacant and was in very poor condition. Without the funding provided under the Economic Stimulus Plan, this house would have remained uninhabitable. As a result of the renovations, it is tenanted again and meets the needs of the community.
Work on the house was completed in just 16 days by a local company who employed 19 people to undertake the work. The renovation included a refurbishment of the kitchen and wet areas, internal and external painting, new floor coverings, and other general repairs.
The dwelling will now be occupied by a man who was previously homeless. Having this safe and secure place to live will help him get his life back together. He has access to his two children but hasn't been able to take advantage of it because he did not have appropriate accommodation. Having this house will provide him with the opportunity to re-engage with his family.
Photo above: Minister for Housing, the Hon. Tanya Plibersek, MP, and John Hargreaves MLA, Minister for Disability and Housing, ACT Legislative Assembly, at the first property to be upgraded as part of the Government’s Nation Building—Economic Stimulus Plan.
FaHCSIA provides support to people who are in financial crisis and assists people in finding ways to reduce problem gambling. In 2008–09 we played a significant role in supporting people affected by the global financial crisis by providing emergency relief and financial counselling services and through the Community Response Taskforce.
FaHCSIA's key achievements in 2008–09 in supporting financial management are outlined below.
During 2008–09 community organisations reported increased demand for emergency relief from both low- and middle-income families, including people experiencing housing stress and small business owners. In response, the Government invested $130.4 million to double funding for emergency relief and expand innovative money management projects to help low-income earners. The Department worked closely with service providers to inform policy and program responses and to implement the additional funding.
We also delivered on the Government's commitment to fund extra financial support services, in response to the global recession. These included:
Under the Financial Management Program, FaHCSIA engaged Cultural and Indigenous Research Centre Australia to conduct an evaluation of Family Income Management and MoneyBusiness. MoneyBusiness is an initiative launched in July 2005 by the ANZ Bank and the Australian Government to assist Indigenous people to develop money management skills and to encourage a stronger savings culture. The evaluation included data analysis, a literature review and measurement of program outcomes. The evaluation was informed by site visits and consultations with service providers and Indigenous community members receiving the services.
In addition, the Department has supported the work of the Community Response Taskforce announced on 27 January 2009. The Deputy Prime Minister, Julia Gillard, the Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, the Hon. Jenny Macklin and the Parliamentary Secretary for Social Inclusion and the Voluntary Sector, Senator Ursula Stephens established the Community Response Taskforce to allow the non-profit sector to deal directly with the Government about the impact of the global financial crisis on vulnerable Australians.
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Under FaHCSIA's Financial Management Program, emergency relief and financial counselling services provide free confidential support to people in financial difficulty. These community organisations help people across Australia, including income management participants in Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
Jacaranda Community Centre is one of the organisations funded under the program in Western Australia. The centre works closely with Centrelink to ensure that people needing assistance are referred for help. When Centrelink discovered that a single mother with three children, Pam,* was in financial hardship, a meeting was arranged for her with a financial counsellor from the centre.
The financial counsellor helped Pam look at her income, bills and arrangements with finance companies and other issues that were affecting her ability to manage her money. They also helped Pam make an application for a no-interest loan to get a washing machine so she didn't have the expense of travelling to a laundromat several times a week.
The financial counsellor talked to Pam about how participating in income management could help her budget her money. This is now helping her to save for maintenance to the family home and to buy clothes so that she and the children don't have to wear hand-me-downs from relatives.
* Name changed to protect privacy.
FaHCSIA contributes to addressing the social and community impacts of disasters and critical incidents. In 2008–09 we played a significant role in this area, including through significant efforts in supporting people affected by the Mumbai terrorist attacks, the storms in Queensland and floods in Queensland and northern New South Wales, and the devastating Victorian bushfires.
FaHCSIA's key achievements in 2008–09 in addressing the social and community impacts of disasters are outlined below.
During 2008–09, the Government provided disaster recovery assistance packages to support 114,000 Australians adversely affected by disasters occurring in Australia and overseas, through the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment. These included the Mumbai terrorist attacks in November 2008, the south-east Queensland storms in November 2008, flooding in north and north-western Queensland in January and February 2009, the Victorian bushfires in February 2009, and flooding in south-east Queensland and northern New South Wales in May 2009.
FaHCSIA delivered a comprehensive assistance package for those adversely affected by the devastating bushfires in Victoria in February 2009. To facilitate and coordinate the delivery of this package, the Prime Minister initially established and chaired the Commonwealth Victorian Bushfires Ministerial Taskforce. He later delegated the role of chair to the Hon. Jenny Macklin, MP. The Minister is supported by the Parliamentary Secretary for Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction, the Hon. Bill Shorten, MP, who was appointed to help with the rebuilding of the lives, homes and communities that were devastated by these tragic fires.
FaHCSIA has provided more than $78 million through the package, which includes the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment, Income Recovery Subsidy and Funeral/Memorial Assistance, to those affected by the Victorian bushfires. In addition, FaHCSIA provided an additional $6 million under the Emergency Relief Program, $900,000 for Youth Outreach, and $440,000 in the Family Relationships Program to support additional services in bushfire-affected areas.
The Government also provided $2 million to the 2009 Victorian Bushfire Appeal Fund, established by the Victorian Premier in partnership with the Commonwealth Government and the Australian Red Cross.
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In May 2009, south-east Queensland and the north coast and Northern Rivers regions of New South Wales experienced severe weather, receiving over 400 millimetres of rain in 24 hours, and experiencing strong winds of up to 130 kilometres per hour and large waves that battered the coast. Across both states, 26 local government areas were declared natural disaster zones. Tragically, two lives were lost and many homes and businesses were damaged.
As part of the response to this event, the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment (AGDRP), administered by FaHCSIA and delivered by Centrelink, was made available. The payment provided $1,000 per eligible adult and $400 per child of immediate financial assistance to help individuals and families recover from this disaster. As at 30 June 2009, more than 3,500 individuals have received the payment.
One local resident was assisted after arriving at the mobile servicing unit on the point of exhaustion after spending several days removing flood debris and mud from their family's flooded home. When a Centrelink Social Worker explained that the customer was eligible to receive the AGDRP, the customer became very emotional. The customer had incorrectly assumed that their family was not eligible for assistance because they were not receiving Government assistance and that the AGDRP was means tested. Once the Social Worker explained that the family met the criteria the customer left the mobile servicing unit to share the good news with their family.
The customer later returned to tell the Social Worker that they had used the money to hire a back hoe to remove the mud, which they had previously been removing by hand. The customer thanked the Social Worker on behalf of the family for taking the time to listen during their time of need.
Through the Financial Management Program, FaHCSIA provides funding to a range of community and charitable organisations to provide emergency, financial and other assistance to individuals and families in financial crisis.
On Saturday 7 February 2009, Victoria was devastated by bushfires. By the time the bushfires burnt out, 173 people had died and many other people had lost their homes.
In response FaHCSIA's Emergency Relief Team in the Victorian State Office swung into action. Our team worked tirelessly to bring forward payments to approximately 150 service providers. As a result these payments to the value of $2.6 million were processed by 9 February 2009.
This immediate assistance helped ensure that these agencies had a sufficient balance of funds to provide food, clothing and other replacement items to people affected by the bushfires.
In response to the bushfires and the global financial crisis, Minister Macklin approved an additional allocation of $6 million to the existing 150 Emergency Relief providers and an additional 15 service providers. A special streamlined funding agreement enabled all funding agreements to be sent out to approximately 150 service providers within two days. Most of the subsequent payments were made within a week and the 15 additional services commenced in June 2009.
The response from the community agencies assisted in the bushfire-affected areas was very positive. Gavin Dufty of the St Vincent De Paul Society Victoria, thought that FaHCSIA's response had been ‘streets ahead of anyone else' in promptly preparing paperwork and processing payments.
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FaHCSIA's Reconnect program helps young people aged 12 to 18 who are homeless, or at risk of homelessness, to re-engage with their families, education, training, employment and the community.
The Victorian bushfires on 7 February 2009 required immediate responses from all levels of government and non-government organisations. Kildonan Child and Family Services helped staff the crisis response centre in Whittlesea and immediately recognised the impact of the tragedy on the area's young people. The Reconnect team in Kildonan worked with the young people and their families to help them address these issues.
Thirty per cent of the student population at Whittlesea Secondary College had been directly affected by the bushfires. Students who had been traumatised during the fires were beginning to display problem behaviours in the schoolyard. The college approached Kildonan Reconnect for support as they needed skilled assistance to manage these behaviours.
Kildonan Reconnect began to develop a longer-term response plan to support young people and their families to recover from the trauma of the bushfires. Additional funding was provided to allow the Reconnect team to continue to work with bushfire-affected families as well as their normal homeless clients.
Liaison with other Reconnect services in bushfire-affected areas led to similar concerns in relation to the wellbeing of young people. This resulted in the allocation of funding to Reconnect services in all bushfire-affected areas.
FaHCSIA supports the development of strong and resilient communities by promoting self-reliance and encouraging social participation and inclusion in the local community by individuals, families, volunteers, business and government. In 2008–09 FaHCSIA made significant contributions in this area, including through delivery of Volunteer Grants Program funding and the development of a national compact, as detailed below.
FaHCSIA's key achievements in 2008–09 in supporting the development of strong and resilient communities are outlined below.
The Government supported more than 800 community organisations through FaHCSIA's community investment funding. In addition, the Department funded 7,683 projects, which assisted more than 450,000 individuals/families in disadvantaged communities by supporting volunteering, funding case and place-based support, strengthening ties between business and the community, and helping community organisations function more effectively.
Volunteers make an immense contribution to our society by giving up their valuable time to help others. The Australian Government is committed to supporting volunteers in their important work. FaHCSIA provides grants of up to $5,000 each to enable organisations to purchase small equipment items to assist their volunteers and contribute to reimbursing fuel costs incurred by volunteers. In 2008–09 we supported Australian volunteers by providing $21 million in discretionary grants to more than 7,200 volunteering organisations under the program.
During 2008–09 the Department advanced the development of a national compact with the non-profit sector, which will provide a framework under which effective collaborative solutions can be developed to meet the policy challenges facing the Australian community. In May 2009 the Government established a National Compact Joint Taskforce, which is made up of representatives from not-for-profit organisations, local government, the Australian Council of Trade Unions and Commonwealth Government officials.
The National Compact Joint Taskforce is providing advice on the wording of the compact and is developing a consultation strategy and implementation plan including monitoring and reporting. This will inform a wider consultation leading to the development of a draft compact by December 2009.
The Register of Harm Prevention Charitable Institutions is a Commonwealth tax deductibility scheme for charities whose principal activity is to promote prevention or control of harmful behaviour such as substance abuse or harmful gambling. It was introduced on 1 July 2003 in response to the independent Inquiry into the Definition of Charities and Related Organisations.
The register is maintained by the Secretary of the Department in accordance with directions from the Minister for Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs and the Treasurer or his delegate.
Once entered onto the register, organisations are eligible to apply for endorsement as a deductible gift recipient. This status can assist charities to attract public support, as donations are tax deductible.
In 2008–09, 12 applications were approved by the Minister and the Assistant Treasurer. There are currently 44 institutions listed on the register.
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The Community Kitchen project has been funded by FaHCSIA since 12 October 2004 under the Stronger Families and Communities Strategy—Local Answers. Funding to the end of June 2009 totalled $416,000, which has supported 16 kitchens. The funding has also been used to develop and produce instructional and promotional material, which has helped to showcase the success of the project at forums and conferences.
The model for the Community Kitchen was initially developed by the Frankston Community Health Service and based on a Canadian model. The kitchens operate in any venue with suitable and safe kitchen facilities, including church halls, school facilities and neighbourhood houses.
In the last four years, the Frankston Community Kitchen has assisted more than 500 people to improve their physical and mental wellbeing by promoting healthy eating and social participation. It offers an alternative approach to promoting healthy eating and the development of personal skills and social support networks within the local community.
A past participant of the Community Kitchen, a then newly arrived migrant, was a keen participant and very helpful to the whole group. He taught the other participants how to make sushi on many occasions. His family has purchased a shop in the local community and is operating a successful business. He wants to employ other members of the Community Kitchen in his business.
Participants commented that they felt the Community Kitchens was a wonderful program with many benefits and that the slogan ‘come for the food, stay for the friendships' said it all.
This section describes some of the challenges the Department met when delivering Outcome 4 initiatives and how we worked to overcome them.
The global financial crisis affected Australians in many ways, including their capacity to maintain affordable housing. Many more people are struggling with the cost of private rental accommodation. In 2008–09 the Government responded by committing significant amounts of funding to increase the supply of affordable housing, particularly social housing, through the Nation Building—Economic Stimulus Plan. The Social Housing Initiative also helped the building and construction industry by creating more jobs.
In recent times the experience of homelessness has changed. More families and low-income earners are coming to homelessness services seeking support and growing numbers of children are homeless or at risk of homelessness. A key challenge for the Department was ensuring sufficient services, and the right services, were available to meet the needs of a changing client group and, just as importantly, to stop the flow of people into homelessness. The global financial crisis compounded this challenge.
The impact of the global financial crisis resulted in increased demand for emergency relief and financial counselling. Many organisations reported at least 20 per cent more people seeking their help for more complex issues, and from people who had not traditionally sought help from their services. This placed a significant burden on the community sector's capacity to meet demand. In particular, there was an increased demand for financial support.
To help organisations respond, the Government provided an extra $11.1 million in 2008–09 to the 623 existing emergency relief providers. This gave providers the capacity to provide more substantial help to families and individuals in financial crisis. In April 2009, the Minister announced a further $1.75 million for training workers in community organisations to better equip them in their roles so they can offer basic budgeting help and more access to financial counselling for people in crisis.
This additional support made it easier for Australians in financial hardship to access financial support and increased their access to financial counsellors and trained volunteers at a time when they needed it most.
During 2008–09 the Department responded to multiple disasters—the Mumbai terrorist attacks, the south-east and north Queensland storms, the north-west Queensland floods, the Victorian bushfires and the northern New South Wales floods. The severity of the impact of the disasters was unprecedented.
The Victorian bushfires were the most significant natural disaster in Australia's history—173 people lost their lives as fire destroyed 2,092 homes, devastated 78 communities and burnt more than 400,000 hectares. The response to the devastation was a landmark moment for Australia, showcasing the courage, generosity and resilience of our people and the professionalism and resourcefulness of all levels of government and the Australian community as they worked with those affected.
In response to the bushfire disaster, the Prime Minister established the Commonwealth Victorian Bushfires (Ministerial) Taskforce, and appointed the Hon. Jenny Macklin, MP, as the chair, with support from the Parliamentary Secretary for Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction, the Hon. Bill Shorten, MP. FaHCSIA, as the lead Commonwealth agency responsible for disaster recovery, quickly convened its Australian Government Disaster Recovery Committee and established a departmental taskforce to support Minister Macklin and Parliamentary Secretary Shorten in their lead roles.
The Department worked tirelessly with other Commonwealth agencies and the Victorian Bushfire Reconstruction and Recovery Authority, and was responsible for the management and coordination of the Commonwealth's multi-agency response to the disaster. It oversaw the development of tailored disaster assistance to individuals and affected families at state and Commonwealth level, including FaHCSIA's assistance packages (the Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payment, the Income Recovery Subsidy and Funeral/Memorial Assistance).
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Ex gratia financial assistance was provided in 2007–08 for the non-medical costs associated with the medical treatment of the President of East Timor, who was evacuated to Australia on 11 February 2008. This assistance supported the recovery of the President of East Timor, meeting the costs of accommodation, meals and ground transport in Australia for the President and his party.
The Home in Queanbeyan Mental Health Service measure provides funding to contribute to Home in Queanbeyan, a charitable organisation that helps people living with chronic mental illness who cannot live independently or are homeless. This funding will be used to establish a facility providing 20 one-bedroom units to cater for 15 long-term residents and five respite care residents.
$150 million over five years is being provided under the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness to build or acquire at least 600 homes for people who would otherwise be homeless. These will be supported for the first 12 months, after which the house and tenancy will transfer to the general social housing pool. States and territories are required to match Commonwealth funding for this measure.
$512 million over five years through the Housing Affordability Fund will increase the supply of housing and reduce the purchase price of new homes, particularly entry-level or moderately priced homes, through the provision of infrastructure and planning reform.
An additional $10 million over four years for the Commonwealth Financial Counselling program has increased the capacity of existing services and funded 20 new financial counselling positions in high-need areas across Australia. The new positions include telephone financial counselling and specialist positions to assist with housing debt.
Under this scheme $623 million is being provided to deliver 50,000 additional affordable rental properties for low- to moderate-income households by June 2012.
Queensland floods assistance was provided through Australian Government Disaster Recovery Payments made to assist people adversely affected by the January and February 2009 floods in the Mackay, Emerald and Whitsunday Island regions of Queensland.
Payments of $1,000 per eligible adult and $400 per eligible child have been made available to people who, as a direct result of the flooding, were seriously injured and required hospitalisation for at least 48 hours or whose principal place of residence was destroyed or damaged.
The Volunteer Grants program supported the role of volunteers and the not-for-profit community sector through assisting volunteers to purchase small equipment and by reimbursing volunteers' fuel costs incurred while volunteering.
Volunteer Management Program funding assisted volunteer resource centres to continue to provide a range of services to support volunteers, including management and training services, and the provision of advice and information to volunteers.
This measure also applies to Outcome 3. See page 157, for details on this measure.
This measure also applies to Outcomes 2 and 3. See page 119, for details on this measure.
This measure also applies to Outcome 2. See page 119, for details on this measure.
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This measure also applies to Outcomes 1, 2 and 3. See pages 70–71, for details on this measure.
This measure also applies to Outcomes 2 and 3. See page 120, for details on this measure.
In February 2009, the Commonwealth announced funding for the Social Housing Initiative under the Nation Building—Economic Stimulus Plan. This initiative will provide funding of up to $5.64 billion over three and a half years from 2008–09 to 2011–12 for the construction of new social housing. This includes $400 million over two years for repairs and maintenance to existing public housing dwellings. It is being delivered in partnership with state and territory governments. It will provide a boost to public housing and housing administered by the not-for-profit community sector and is designed to assist low-income Australians who are homeless or are on public housing waiting lists and have high needs.
The Social Housing Initiative will significantly increase the supply of social housing throughout Australia and provide much-needed accommodation to many disadvantaged Australians, particularly those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
As a requirement of receiving funding through the initiative, states and territories have also agreed to a number of important reform directions in the social housing sector, which will improve housing outcomes for low-income renters and those with special needs. The Commonwealth will work with states and territories to address planning and housing supply issues, examine ways to grow and develop the social housing sector, improve performance monitoring, benchmarking, and accountability of social housing providers, and improve economic and social outcomes for social housing tenants.
In January 2009, in response to the global financial crisis, the Government announced it would double the funding for emergency relief from March 2009 to June 2011 to give agencies more capacity to help families and individuals in financial crisis and head off greater stress, including linking them to other services such as budgeting or financial counselling.
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