A few days ago there was an article in the papers about a "hidden" social housing waiting list. This is a list of people whose application for social housing have been suspended because they have not updated their contact details, and Housing Pathways do not know how to find them. If/when these applicants make contact again, Housing Pathways reinstates their application and they return to their rightful place in the queue. There are many good reasons why a person might not have updated their contact details, including homelessness or poor mental health.
This is all about to change. Soon applicants who do not stay in touch with Housing Pathways will have their applications closed.
Housing Pathways will check-in with applicants every so often, with a request to update details. If applicants don't respond in the required time, their application will be closed.
Anyone on the list who Housing Pathways can't find RIGHT NOW will be asked to come forward and update their details by May 1st 2012.
Those who do not will have their applications closed.
Former-applicants will be encouraged to reapply, but they will be sent to the bottom of the list.
This, as Minister Goward tells us, is to "reward and encourage personal responsibility".
We've been asked to spread the good word.
If you work with someone, live with someone, or know someone who is on the waiting list for social housing, urge them to check that their contact details are up-to-date in the Housing Pathways system. Let them know that if they move house, or get a new phone number, or find themselves couch-surfing for awhile, or living out of their car, or in hospital, or prison, etc... they should contact Housing Pathways to make sure they know all about it.
Shelter NSW has called for letters to Minister Goward to tell her what a bad idea this is. We're inclined to agree. More details are on Shelter's facebook page.
Thursday, March 1, 2012
5 comments:
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This has always been the case. Think about the time spent chasing applicants who's circumstances have changed. I once worked for an org where there were 800 people, I kid you not, who had not been touch for over 12 months. This meant that every time I went to the list valuable time was spent in chasing them when I could have housed someone else. Of course we would reinstate when the applicant turned up.
ReplyDeleteHi Ameli
ReplyDeleteI don't know that this change will save housing officers' valuable time - in fact I suspect it will be the opposite.
People will still drop out of contact: that's life when shuffling between private flats you can't afford, friends' houses, friends' garages, crisis accommodation, etc, etc.
But now they'll drop off the list altogether... unless they can show some exceptional circumstances and get reinstated - so that means getting evidence of the exceptional circumstances, statements from support workers, etc, etc, and more decision-making by housing officers as to whether the circumstances are exceptional enough, and then when those decisions go against people they'll ask for reviews, etc, etc. And if that doesn't work, they'll have to apply again, and have a really good crack at priority housing this time, so more evidence, more decision making, more work....
; ((
ReplyDeleteOh god , why does housing have to be so convoluted? The underlying assumption is always that applicants and tenants are dishonest ner do wells. No freedom when social housing is needed and wide open for little hitlers to strut their stuff. Is housing the most over-regulated public service in OZ?
Control and demonise to hide the massive anomalies in the system.
Hi amelinixon,
ReplyDeleteYou make an excellent point - but we need to be clear that we're frustrated by the service, not the people who work within it. After all, there are plenty of good people working for HNSW, many of whom are there because they thought they saw an opportunity to do good. It's not their fault they're all lost somewhere in the bureaucracy...
Cheers,
N.C.
When we say 'we only work here, we are not responsible for our actions' we support the system.
ReplyDeleteIf you are not part of the solution, you are part of the problem as they say.
The good that needs to be done is not in 'doing good' but recognising that people need a roof over their heads and in not patronising them with the cold charity approach to housing. Do we patronise the people who use negative gearing by saying oh you poor thing, let's give you a tax break? No, we don't. Contrast this with the hoops people have to go through to obtain what others take for granted. It is not the fault of none homeowners that they cannot afford a home in an overpriced housing market. When the system becomes a level playing field and everyone has an opportunity to house themselves perhaps the people who want to 'do good' can turn their attentions to people who need support. We lie to each other when we create services for tenants, they need us and therefore our existence matters. People need housing in the same way that they need food. It is simple really, it has been made complicated by a system that has to justify itself. The system makes paupers and beggers out of people who just need a roof over their heads