Successful supportive community housing

The intention of this paper is to provide an overview of the factors that make a successful supportive community-housing program. Community housing associations were developed to provide an alternative and responsive social housing option to low-income earners and disadvantaged members of the community. Community housing providers aim to address the housing needs of people who face discrimination and prejudice in the private rental market and have neither the income nor resources to access home ownership. It is also worth noting that many tenants may have a public housing debt or can not access public housing until that debt is partially or totally repaid. Community housing provides low- income earners with an affordable, secure, long-term housing option and ensures they have a social housing choice.

Community housing encompasses a wide range of stock, tenure and accommodation types. Community housing organisations provide a variety of housing tenures from short-term crisis accommodation, domestic violence shelters, disability accommodation and supported and transitional housing options, to long-term housing for people with independent living skills, clients successfully exiting Specialist Homelessness Services (S HS) and applicants with low support needs or in need of long-term support.