Unity Housing

The Hon. J.S. LEE (14:57): Mr President, I have a very important question to ask to the Minister for Human Services about community housing. Can the minister please update the chamber about the work of Unity Housing in the western region of Adelaide, and the importance of community housing providers in the South Australian social housing system? Thank you, minister.

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK (Minister for Human Services) (14:57): I thank the honourable member for her question. Community housing providers have been operating in South Australia for some time. It has been a bipartisan policy that community housing providers—in fact I think it was in 2009 that there was a national decision that up to 35 per cent of public housing stock would be transferred to the non-government sector.

In South Australia, we have some 5,000 properties under two tranches that have been transferred to the community housing sector. According to all their KPIs, they are doing a terrific job. Unity Housing recently opened a new office, which I was privileged to attend. It is in Port Adelaide, to service their clients in the western region. It's one of the five tier 1 organisations that operate in South Australia, and it is the largest community housing provider in South Australia in terms of property portfolio, management and development. As part of the September 2017 Renewing Our Streets and Suburbs (ROSAS) property transfers, Unity received close to 1,100 properties located in western Adelaide (Seaton, Findon, Grange, Woodville West and surrounds) and the Limestone Coast.

Currently managing around 3,000 properties across South Australia, Unity were founded in 2008 following the merging of several community housing providers. Along with the transfer of 1,100 ROSAS properties, Unity also has 779 South Australian Community Housing Authority (debentured) funded properties, 245 affordable properties, and 129 funded through the stimulus program. They lease 402 properties from the South Australian Housing Trust for a range of purposes, including transitional housing, boarding houses and disability housing.

Unity has a tenant-focused culture, seeking to provide safe, appropriate and affordable homes for people who are living on low incomes, particularly those living with disabilities and/or experiencing homelessness or are at risk of being homeless. Unity's culture reflects their role as a social landlord, building on the 25 years of service provided by Unity and founding organisations.

They manage more than $800 million worth of housing, with a staff of more than 100 operating out of seven regional offices across South Australia. To support their tenants, Unity provides a range of community development and community connect programs to encourage social and economic participation. In addition, they have memoranda of understanding in place with over 30 support agencies to enable the provision of a broad range of services.

With a growing presence in the western suburbs, Unity have made the decision to invest in a larger physical presence in Port Adelaide, and they are to be congratulated. Community housing providers are a great example of the partnerships that the new Liberal government wants to see going forward so that we can provide additional accommodation for people in our community.