Rooming Houses
Women’s Housing Ltd
and Wombat Housing and Support Services
Partnership
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
wombat
housing and support services
Wombat Housing and Support
Services
WHSS provides services to
people who are homeless or at
risk of becoming homeless in
the West of Melbourne.
Programs are provided for
young people, older adults,
families, single adults, people
in public and community/social
housing and people seeking
asylum.
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Women’s Housing Ltd Women’s Housing Limited is a
registered Housing Provider.
We are a state wide service.
We manage:
• 108 Transitional Properties
• 96 Community Housing
Properties
• 181 Housing Provider
Framework Tenancies
• Housing Information
• Outreach to the Women’s
prison
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Rooming House Program
Women’s Housing Ltd manages
Rooming Houses:
• Ascot Vale
• Berwick
• Brighton
• Mt Martha
• Sunshine
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
WHL/WOMBAT partnership
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Housing Number of
Rooms/Units
Gender
Altona Meadows 12 Mixed Gender
Ascot Vale 13 Men only
Footscray 10 Women only
Kensington 16 Women only
Sunshine 31 Men only
The Partnership
In 2008, Women’s Housing Ltd and WOMBAT entered
into a partnership, where WHL agreed to fund the
Community Support Program through the Community
Capacity Building Fund.
Wombat previously provided the tenancy management
of the Kensington, Footscray, Ascot Vale and Sunshine
sites and these were transferred to WHL stock in 2008
as Wombat’s core business is the provision of housing
support services.
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Partnership Agreement Objectives
The overall objective of this Agreement is to collaboratively:
• improve the quality and delivery of services to tenants in
the identified properties,
• enhance the nature and extent of service outputs and
service-user outcomes in close consultation with tenants
of the identified properties, and
• ensure maintenance of existing – and improving/building
on – high standards in Rooming Houses in terms of
amenity.
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Responsibilities
Women’s Housing Ltd:
• Property management
• Tenancy management
– Rental management
– Dispute management
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
WOMBAT:
• Community Development
• Sustaining Tenancies
• Short term Case
Management Support
• SAAP Singles Support
Worker
Partnership Meetings
WHL and WOMBAT meet at regular intervals so that we
can assess the partnership.
• Tenancies that require additional support
• Community development program
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Rooming House Meetings
• Regular Meetings are
held with the tenants at
each site.
• Staff from both WHL and
WOMBAT attend these
meetings.
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Purpose of Rooming House Meetings
• Allow residents a voice
• Raise issues
• Seek input into community
developments activities
• Discuss community
development activities planned
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
The Community Support
Program Aims:
• Reduce Social Isolation
• Enhance Living Skills
• Improve connectedness
between residents
• Provide social/recreational
activities
• Engage/improve access with
local services and community
• Improve Amenity
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
CSP Projects
• Photography
• Art Therapy, Ceramics, Skill
Sharing
• Health and Wellbeing
• Gardening Projects
• Tenant Newsletter
• Internet Access
• Linkages to local services
• Cooking Classes &Social
Meals
• Outings & excursions Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Gardening Project
• Partnership with Matchworks Employment Services
• Provided a project for their clients who needed a Work
Experience Activity
• Matchworks contributed the co-ordinator, and job
seekers with opportunity to develop landscaping and
gardening skill
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Rooming House received a
Community Garden, fruit trees and
landscaped outdoor area which
improved the amenity of the Ridley
St Rooming House
Gardening Project...
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Photography Projects
• Housing Week Grant – Portraits of
Rooming House – residents took photos of
each other
• Arts Victoria – “Everyday Treasures” –
exhibition as part of Big West Festival
• Equipment/Cameras are lent to residents
to further develop their love for
photography
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Photography projects
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Outings/Excursions
• International Garden Show, Tulip
Festival
• Tim Burton and Titanic Exhibition
• Musicals Annie, Hairspray, Wicked
• Fishing Group and Charter
• AFL, Cricket, Ten Pin Bowling
• Go Carting, Movies
• Luna Park, Bellarine Peninsular,
Heidi Museum
• Peninsular Hot Springs, Maulden
Spa
• Mostly Mozart Recitals
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
How do we afford these
activities? GRANTS GRANTS
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Tenant Newsletter
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Tenants write articles,
crosswords, recipes, movie
reviews, poems or contribute
photographs and
artwork........
Future directions...
For tenants to learn
publishing and
editing skills to take
more ownership of
co-ordinating the
creation of the
quarterly newsletter
Welcome Packs
We provide welcome packs
to all new Rooming
House residents. This is
thanks to a partnership
that we have formed with
Rotary.
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Fresh Food
Thanks to the generosity of Second Bite we
are able to provide tenants with some fresh
fruit and vegetables on a weekly basis
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Books, books and more books
A very successful
partnership with
Benjamin Andrew
Footpath Library
allows us to supply
new books to all
Rooming Houses.
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Internet Access
• Ascot Vale Men’s Only Rooming House
• Small house of 15 residents
• Residents advocated to us that access to the
internet should be seen as a way of reducing
social isolation because of the increased
popularity of social media
• Local Government grant to purchase equipment
• WIFI is now self funded by tenants, though still
co-ordinated through Wombat
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Green Renting Exhibition
We partnered with the “Green
Renters” to host a “Green
Renting Exhibition:” at the
Richmond Town Hall.
Many residents were
transported in by bus.
The aim was to seek to reduce
operating costs at the
Rooming Houses.
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Challenges and Successes
Challenges
• Engaging with residents
• Motivating residents
• Targeting residents
• Providing relevant activities
• Confusion between roles of
WHL and WOMBAT
Successes
• Builds self esteem
• Providing opportunities
• Develops friendships
• Linking to wider community
• Encourages independence
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Future Directions
Review of Program
WHL and Wombat have auspiced
the services of a volunteer to
review our program.
• Written surveys
• Face to face interviews
• Focus Groups
This will help develop our
planning for the future.
Future Projects
• Continuation of photography
workshops
• Applied for a men’s health
grant
• Applied for a women’s health,
well-being and art grant
• Considering a grant involving
film – telling the story of our
tenants
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Client Comments
Some of the comments from women that WHL have assisted over the
years:
“My home is important for my ongoing happiness and peace.”
“The staff of Women’s Housing treat me like a person – thank you.”
“Your services gave me the breathing space to focus and move forward
despite the uncertainty of my future at that time. I could relax and feel safe
in having Women’s Housing as my landlord. It was a huge sense of relief
to feel safe and secure. Thank-you for your personal, kind and
understanding approach. Rock solid rendering of services.”
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13
Some feedback from some of our art projects......
"Great pieces of art, fun ,being creative helps my depression heaps and my
self esteem.“
"I got to do something new, meet new people, make new friends and
socialise. I also found that I really like working with clay and making things
that I can give as gift to my family. I found that I'm able to successfully
make things in clay which helped me feel better about myself and showed
me that I can do anything if I only try.”
" A sense of togetherness, satisfaction of seeing
a job through to completion.“
“Yes I have got to know the women better and
gets me out of my room once a week to do
something fun instead of just health
appointments.”
Katrina O’Sullivan
Community Support Worker
WOMBAT Housing and Support Services
191 Melrose Street
North Melbourne 3051
Ph: 8327 2222
Lindy Parker
Operations Manager
Women’s Housing Ltd
Suite 1, 21 Cremorne Street
Cremorne, Victoria, 3121
Ph: 9412 6868
Women's Housing Limited and
Wombat Partnership 27/03/13