• Table of Contents
• Disability Investment Group
• Executive Summary
• National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) – A Possible Model
• Principal Recommendation
• Summary of Other Recommendations
• Section I
• Part 1: Experience of Disability in Australia
• Part 2: Need for Change
• Section II
• Part 3: Establishing a New National Disability Insurance Scheme
• Part 4: Ensuring Income Support is Adequate
• Part 5: Improving savings and taxation incentives for privately - funded services
• Section III
• Part 6: Providing More Housing for People with Disability
• Part 7: Offering Better Employment Opportunities
• Part 8: Building Research and Best Practice
• Appendices
• Appendix A
• Appendix B
• Appendix C
• Appendix D
• Appendix E
• Appendix F
• Appendix G
• Appendix H
• Appendix I
• Appendix J

The Way Forward – A New Disability Policy Framework For Australia

• Previous: Appendix H
• Next: Appendix J

Appendix I: Summaries of Hope Villages Australia Urban Village Model and Foresters Community Finance (Foresters) and Parent to Parent Association QLD Key Housing Solutions Model

Urban Village Model

The summary contained herein is derived from information provided by Hope Villages Australia and has been verified by Mr Geoff McKeich of Hope Villages Australia. Claims about the proposed model and the legal implication of this model are those made by Hope Villages Australia not the Disability Investment Group (DIG) or the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs.

Background

1. Hope Villages Australia (Hope) made a submission to the DIG, detailing their Urban Village Model for supported accommodation for people with severe intellectual disability.

Hope Villages Australia

2. Hope is a not-for-profit organisation established to provide home ownership and supported life style options to people with severe intellectual disabilities currently living with ageing parents.

Housing Model

3. Under the Urban Village Model, Hope would establish a Unit Trust to enable a group of adults with intellectual disabilities to own property in a single name.
4. Present Hope modelling states that a unit in the Trust would cost $170,000.00⁵ and would entitle each member of the trust to an equal share of the total property of the Trust and a Lifetime License to occupy a home in the village.
5. The model does not seek capital funding or additional benefits from the Government for the provision of accommodation.

Accommodation

6. Under the Urban Village Model, accommodation infrastructure would be funded by the purchase of units in the Trust established and managed by Hope.
7. Hope would be the trustee of the Trust and would therefore be the legal owner of all assets held by the Trust. The Unit Holders would be beneficial owners, in that they have the right to the benefit of the assets held by the Trust.
8. Each Unit Holder is entitled to an equal share of the Trust’s assets and the right to nominate a qualified person to reside in the Trusts Village for the whole of their lives, subject to the Unit Holders and Residents Agreement.⁶
9. Each Urban Village would be established under a separate Unit Trust.
10. Each Village would consist of normal residential dwellings specifically designed to meet the need of people with disability. One bedroom, two bedroom and four bedroom homes set in fully landscaped gardens will centre on a community centre, swimming pool and BBQ area.
11. Villages will be designed to accommodate around 100 residents. Four to eight residents in each village will have very high needs, with the remainder of the residents with care needs across the spectrum of need.
12. The demographics of the Village would be achieved via a thorough assessment process. Each Village would be made up of adult male and female residents of varying degrees of disability and age.
13. Right of transfer to any of the Hope developments, urban or rural, is automatically confirmed through the Unit Holders and Residents Agreements.
14. The value of the Trust Unit provides security for the Unit Holder against unexpected costs throughout their life, as provision is made within the Unit Holders and Residents Agreement for nominated expenses to be accrued against the Exit Entitlement of the Unit Holder.
15. The model has been designed to provide for the accommodation needs of the resident for the whole of their lives. As the residents age their compatibility with other residents may change, or through sickness they may need a different level of care. To accommodate these changes throughout the residents’ lifetime Hope offers all residents the full range of accommodation options and the option to transfer without any additional capital cost to the Unit Holder.
16. When a resident no longer resides in the unit, the Trust will offer the unit at the current market value to a new resident. The ‘outgoing’ Unit Holder would receive an Exit Entitlement less deductions identified in the Unit Holders and Residents Agreement.

Financing

17. Hope proposes that the parents of the adult with disability could finance the purchase of the unit in the Trust using a special mortgage secured over their own property. This would enable parents to secure funds to purchase the unit and obtain accommodation without having to make monthly repayments. The mortgage is only repayable subject to a defined event occurring including the parents selling the property.
18. On disposal of the parents’ property, the mortgage debt is settled according to the current market value of the property and the equity percentage each party holds in the property created at the establishment of the mortgage.
19. The Unit Trust Holders (the parents) have the right to upgrade or downgrade their principal place of residence provided that the new property provides the mortgagee with the same or greater level of security.

Support Services

20. Whilst the management of the Village would be undertaken by Hope, an independent service provider would be contracted to provide the daily care requirements. Each resident would have an individual care management agreement setting out their care needs.
21. Under the model the Government would redirect the existing benefits currently received by the parent/carer, namely Carer Payment, Carer Allowance and associated respite program funding estimated at $68,500 per annum.
22. Each resident will have an individual care management program including the specific requirements of the parents/carers across all areas of personal care and support. The Village carers will be required to maintain the standards set down as part of the service providers contractual obligations.
23. Modelling undertaken by Hope, in conjunction with House with No Steps, estimates that the average cost of support services would be $50,000 per annum per person.
24. Residents, the cost of whose individual care management program exceeds the value of the redirected Government funding, would be required to make additional ‘top-up contributions’ to meet the cost of the care and support services.
25. Additional contributions and any other discretionary spending would most likely be funded by benefits, such as Disability Support Pension, Rent Assistance and Mobility Allowance, which would be payable to the resident.

Additional Information

26. As part of each Village’s governance arrangements Hope will establish a Residents and Parents Council. This forum will be used to keep all concerned up to date and to plan forth coming events and interaction between the Village and the community at large.

Key Housing Solutions Model

The summary contained herein is derived from information provided by Foresters Community Finance and Parent to Parent Association QLD. Claims about the proposed model and the legal implication of this model are those made by Foresters Community Finance and Parent to Parent Association QLD not the Disability Investment Group or the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs.

Background

1. Foresters Community Finance (Foresters) and Parent to Parent Association QLD (P2P), made a joint submission to the DIG, detailing a community economic development model, Key Housing Solutions, to mobilise social investment to provide secure housing for people with disability.
2. The submission also outlined impediments, on both the supply and demand side, to raising private investment in the community sector.
3. Foresters also provided additional information on relevant investment projects they are involved with.

Foresters Community Finance

4. Foresters is a community finance institution providing community finance, social investment and education for the third (charities, community groups) and fourth (social business and enterprise) sectors.

Parent to Parent Association Queensland

5. P2P is a network of parents and family members who have a child with disability. P2P facilitates families to assist each other by providing peer support, skill enhancement opportunities and networking, via local groups of parents in 12 locations across Queensland.

Key Housing Solutions

6. Key Housing Solutions is currently led by a working party comprising P2P, Foresters, the former Deputy Mayor of the Maroochy Shire and A Key for Me Ltd, a family driven accommodation support agency.
7. To implement the Key Housing Solutions model Foresters and P2P are arranging the formation of a Community Economic Development Company which will be supported by administration services provided by Foresters and governed by a board of up to seven directors.

Housing Model

8. Key Housing Solutions is a community economic development model, being used to mobilise social investment in a trust structure to secure long-term affordable housing and support for people with a disability.
9. The model utilises a holistic approach, focusing on individualised planning, community strengths and social investment, to produce social innovation. The three components of this holistic approach are:
   • Person Centred Planning (Futures Planning and Essential Lifestyle Planning): a process of focusing effort and attention around one person’s individual needs to assist them to make plans for the future;
   • Asset Based Community Development (Community Facilitation and Community Development): a principle which advocates the use of skills and strengths of individuals within the community, rather than obtaining help from outside institutions; and
   • Community Economic Development: the practice of working with a community to develop and provide economic opportunities and improve social conditions in a sustainable manner.

Accommodation

10. In order to facilitate the provision of suitable affordable accommodation and other support for people with disability properties will be held by separate unit trusts.
11. The trustee of the unit trusts will be an associate company of Foresters.
12. In addition to being trustee of the unit trusts, the trustee will also provide services for Special Disability Trusts.
13. Properties will be rented to people with disability through formal rental agreements. The rental return will provide income to investors in the unit trust after the cost of rates, administration fees and maintenance has been deducted.
14. If the property meets the requirements of the National Rental Affordability Scheme it will be rented to an eligible person at a rate that is 20 per cent below market rate.

Financing

15. The model draws on integrated government funding, social investment and philanthropy:
    • government funding to provide support and to build community connectedness;
    • social investment to purchase accommodation; and
    • philanthropic funds to leverage the value of government funding and investment.

In the future, the application and value of earned income through social business activities will be explored.

16. It is expected that some capital will be invested in the Foresters Community Investment Fund and other capital will be invested directly in unit trusts.

Additional Information

17. Foresters and P2P initially intend to utilise the model to provide safe and secure accommodation to people with disability on the Sunshine Coast. Following this Foresters and P2P intend to duplicate the Key Housing Solutions structure for people with disability in Toowoomba and then in other areas.
18. A similar approach, to the Key Housing Solutions model, is also being developed by Foresters in conjunction with Wesley Mission and Mindcare Brisbane (an incorporated association that provides services to people with psychiatric illness).
19. The submission, made by Foresters and P2P, contends that the taxation and financial legislation and regulation of community economic development companies and community development finance institutions stunt the growth of such entities and consequently inhibit private investment in the community sector.
20. The submission also provided comment on impediments on both the supply and demand side to raising private investment in the community sector.
21. The submission identified 8 supply impediments to investment in the community sector. These are impediments internal to the community sector including structural considerations, low rates of return on investment and under funding.
22. The submission also identifies 18 demand impediments. Demand impediments are those external to the community sector, including the lack of metrics for social return on investment, regulation and compliance costs and limited government support.

5. The cost of a unit in a trust will vary across the States and Territories, $170,000.00 is the initial cost of a unit in a trust for an Urban Village in designated regions in Queensland.
6. The Unit Holders and Residents Agreement (sometimes referred to as a Unit Holders and Licence Agreement) is the contractual arrangement between the person funding the purchase of the unit in the Trust, the resident and Hope. It sets out the resident’s rights and entitlements pertaining to the Village within a life course framework.

• Previous: Appendix H
• Next: Appendix J

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