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Supporting the tenancies of people with complex needs: applying best practice models in the Australian context

Summary

Project Number: 70311
Research Theme: Health_Ageing_and_Disability
Project Leader: Bleasdale, Michael
Funding Year: 2005
Research Centre: UNSW-UWS

Research & Policy Bulletin

Issue 090: Supporting the housing of people with complex needs

People with complex needs encounter additional barriers in accessing and maintaining stable housing. Good local partnerships and collaboration between housing and support providers create much better outcomes for people with complex needs, regardless of their type of disability.

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120 KB PDF Document

Description

The research comprised two elements:

• A review of literature on housing and support including key policy documents.
• Telephone interviews and follow-up of in-depth interviews with housing and disability/mental health service officials and other key stakeholders in the majority of states and territories of Australia during 2005 and 2006, looking at issues relating to the housing and support of people with intellectual disability, people with mental illness and people with physical disability. Telephone interviews with respondents from the United Kingdom to ascertain how the Supporting People Program was assisting people in the three target groups to access housing and support. Sixty-five interviews were undertaken.

The key findings of the research are:

• While all states and territories recognise a similar set of issues regarding housing and support for people with complex needs, there is currently no unified, national approach.
• Open market housing options, such as private rental and purchased housing, are less accessible and affordable for people with complex needs, and so there is increasing pressure on the public and community housing sectors to meet their housing needs.
• Provision of housing and support to people with intellectual disability can be facilitated by strong cooperation between housing and disability services providers local area arrangements and individualised support arrangements (e.g. Western Australia).
• The growth of a community housing sector can assist people with mental illness to obtain stable housing (e.g. Victoria), but rationalisation of scarce housing resources poses challenges to such arrangements.
• Housing that is accessible, affordable and located close to support services is in short supply for people with physical disability and there are few specific initiatives focused on widening the range of housing options for this group.
  

More Information

Positioning Paper: No. 089: Supporting the housing of people with complex needs
1.8 MB PDF Document

Final Report: No. 104: Supporting the housing of people with complex needs
406 KB PDF Document

Research and Policy Bulletin: Issue 090: Supporting the housing of people with complex needs
120 KB PDF Document