Things are shaping up for another big year of change and growth for South Port Community Housing.
As the Federal election campaigns get underway, it appears housing remains the single biggest issue on peoples minds alongside cost of living pressures. We maintain housing as a fundamental human right and critical to achieving a fair and equitable Australian society. Let’s hope for sensible commitments from our elected officials to address this urgent need in our communities.
We have been pleased to see early results from some key changes we have made to our supportive housing model of tenancy management late last year. With a growing team and increasingly complex cohort, new ways of working with our partner agencies has led us to create a new case management position within our housing program team. By integrating this approach we seeing improvements in the quality of Intake Assessment Plan’s which in turn, improve more appropriate allocations and ability to support renters in the crucial first months of tenancies. It’s incredibly challenging work, helped only by the important relationships our workers build and sustain in the community.
Along with St Kilda Community Housing we are busy planning for a joint homelessness and supportive housing forum, which will provide an opportunity for local agencies to come together and consider practical initiatives needed over the short to medium term in South Port. The forum is planned for late April and is being supported by the newly formed Southside Community Foundation.
Our focus for 2025, remains to continue to deliver excellent services for renters, identify and expand our offer for housing locally, and to fortify and improve our conditions for staff. We’ve been greatly encouraged by recent financial and in-kind support to strengthen our programs of support for vulnerable renters from Saward Dawson Foundation, Rotary Chadstone/East Malvern, Rotary Malvern, Bendigo Bank, JGJ Ripple Effect Fund, Morris Family Foundation, Slater & Gordon Lawyers, City of Port Phillip, Street Smart Australia, Gadens Lawyers, Southside Community Foundation, Partners in Progress Foundation, and other generous individual donors.
Thank you for your ongoing support for our work in the community.
Read more about our activities here in our latest newsletter.