ISSUE 1 : JULY 2012
Playing Our Part
Reconciliation Australia developed the Reconciliation
Action Plan (RAP) to turn “good intentions into action”
by encouraging and supporting organisations,
large and small, to help close the 17-year gap in life
expectancy between Aboriginals and other Australians.
Director General Grahame Searle officially launched the
RAP for the Department of Housing in November 2011.
Achieving reconciliation involves raising awareness
and knowledge of Aboriginal history and culture,
changing attitudes that are often based on myths
and misunderstandings, and encouraging action
where everyone plays their part in building better
relationships.
The Department is committed to building relationships
to enable the provision of a safe, secure and
harmonious home environment for all Aboriginal and
Torres Strait Islander families.
The Department provides housing and infrastructure
for Aboriginal communities in many areas of the state.
Every effort is made to involve community members
in the design of their housing and to provide specific
training and employment opportunities associated
with the construction, repair and maintenance of these
dwellings.
In addition to this the Department of Housing provides
public housing, home loans, Government Regional
Officers Housing (GROH) and land and property sales.
The Department sees the RAP as a tool to assist in the
building of positive relationships between Aboriginal
and Torres Strait Islander and other staff and clients.
The RAP is aligned with the Department of Housing’s
strategic objective and values.
Values are of great importance to the Department as
they shape the way we make decisions and how we
treat each other.
Welcome To Our First
Newsletter
We plan to send out a newsletter every 3 months,
and hope what we say will help you enjoy your
home more.
This first issue is all about safety.
Over the past year Aboriginal Housing Services has
made sure all houses have RCDs and Smoke Alarms
installed.
RCDs protect you from electrical faults and smoke
alarms protect you against fire.
To keep your family safe, please check your smoke
alarms and RCDs regularly, page 4 of this newsletter
explains how you can do these checks.
Kalgoorlie-Boulder Short Stay Facility
places in and around Boulder. The facility is expected to
accommodate up to 51 visitors.
Work at the Kalgoorlie-Boulder Indigenous Visitors
Accommodation Facility is progressing well with only
landscaping activities to be completed.
Construction Project Manager Fred Holden said the
facility includes five hostel style accommodation
units, traditional campsite and shower facilities. Other
highlights include a children’s play area, barbecue and
yarning areas.
A new short term accommodation facility for
Aboriginal visitors to the Kalgoorlie area is on target for
completion by mid July.
The Kalgoorlie Indigenous Visitors Accommodation
project is a joint venture between Commonwealth,
State and Local Governments to address Aboriginal
homelessness in the Kalgoorlie-Boulder region.
The project aims to provide short term
accommodation and ancillary support services for
Aboriginal people who currently sleep rough in public
When completed, Aboriginal people from remote
towns and communities who need to travel to
Kalgoorlie-Boulder for family, health, business or
cultural purposes will have a safe and comfortable
place to stay during their short visits.
Kalgoorlie Regional Manager Dianne Blade said the
on-site community centre would enable facility
residents to tap into other services provided in the
area and would have a major positive impact on
homelessness.
Consultation with the key user group the Spinifex
people is continuing so that they can contribute to the
project by giving feedback on the design of the facility
and service model.
Looking After Your Home TOGETHER
As your landlord, we must keep your home in a safe condition. As a tenant, you share the responsibility for
looking after your home with us. You must keep your home clean, safe and secure.
If something breaks down or needs repairing, report it to your Regional Service Provider immediately.
For further information about your home please contact your Regional Service Provider or Housing Officer.
My Tenancy My Home
A new tenancy management support system (My
Tenancy My Home) introduced by the Department will
provide ongoing support and help to sustain Aboriginal
tenancies in remote communities with a Housing
Management Agreement (HMA).
People from the Woolah Community East Kimberley,
along with staff from Community Housing Limited
and Wunan, and Nirrumbuk Aboriginal Corporation
participated in workshops. Their early input, wisdom,
expertise and local knowledge was invaluable in the
development phase of My Tenancy My Home.
Monique Berkhout, Manager Aboriginal Housing Policy
led the development of the My Tenancy My Home.
“It was great to see that all participants and tenants
were enthusiastic with the new system and were
appreciative of a process that genuinely included their
input,” Monique said.
The matrices in the kit are used as a ‘storyboard’ to
identify the key elements of a tenancy, to clarify mutual
responsibilities and describe how the tenancy will be
supported if problems arise.
The Tenant Matrix is used with tenants at the time of
signing a tenancy agreement, at various inspection
intervals and/or at the conclusion of a tenancy. At the
start of a tenancy, it is placed between the tenant and
the Housing Officer and guides the conversation about
rent, going away, home, yard, and visitors.
Housing Officers will work with tenants when there
is a problem with their tenancy such as rent arrears,
maintenance issues or disruptive behaviour, if necessary
an Action Plan is worked out to resolve any issues.
This process enables the Housing Officer to negotiate
an individualised contract which focuses on the
problem, defines a solution and negotiates a pathway
to ‘get back on track’.
My Tenancy My Home is being implemented via the
Social Housing Practice Implementation project (SHPI)
with training being delivered to all front line staff.
Managing houses in Aboriginal communities
Having somewhere to live that you can afford and is
the right size for your family can open the door to a
better life.
If you are a tenant in an Aboriginal community, you
might have heard there are some future changes being
made to the way your housing will be managed.
The Department of Housing is bringing in a set of
guidelines to help housing providers manage the
housing in all remote communities.
Manager Aboriginal Housing Services, Cheryl Wallace,
said we want to make sure the way our tenants and
houses are looked after is the same for everyone in
remote communities, so we need a much fairer way of
doing things.
“Across the state the Department manages its public
housing in accordance with the Residential Tenancies
Act,” Cheryl said.
“These rules show that both tenants and the
Department have rights and responsibilities when
living in a Government-owned or managed house.”
If you are a tenant, you might soon sign a new lease
with your Housing Officer and agree to do certain
things to look after your house. This lease will also say
what the Housing Officer will do to look after your
house to keep it safe and suitable for your family to live
in.
Responsible
Dog Owners
Some of the things you will agree to do include:
• Paying rent on time
• Keeping your house and yard clean and clear of
rubbish
• Not damaging your house on purpose
• Being a good neighbour
• Telling the Housing Officer when things are broken
or if you need to go away
Some of the things your Housing Officers will agree to
do include:
• Making sure your house is safe to live in
• Arrange to fix up things that get broken
• Telling you when they are coming to visit you in
your house
• Answering questions about your agreement
It is important these changes happen so that
communities continue to have houses available for
their members to live in.
Dogs are much loved family members, however if a
dog feels threatened in its home it may lash out and
bite.
Dog bites can cause serious injuries. If a dog attacks,
bites, harasses or chases any person the owner can be
charged.
The best way to reduce the risk of your dog attacking
anyone is to make sure the dog is kept in a secure area
and supervised when visitors enter your community.
As part of your tenancy conditions, officers are required
to visit your home. Your dog can feel threatened if a
stranger is visiting your home. Please remember it is
your responsibility to make sure your dog is properly
controlled at all times.
Having a dog
is a rewarding and
enjoyable experience.
There are sections of your tenancy agreement which
relate directly to your responsibility in ensuring no
employee or agent of the Department is injured. The
Department can also request that pets be removed if
there is a risk.
It’s essential your dog is controlled for the safety of your
family and any visitors to your home.
SAFETY DEVICES
RCD TESTING
The Department of Housing has installed a number
of safety devices in your home.
• Press the TEST button on the RCD; you should
hear a click.
These are Residual Current Devices (RCDs) and
Smoke Alarms.
• The lever will flip downwards in the ‘off’ position.
It is important for the safety of your family that you
know how to check these devices.
• If the RCD doesn’t flip downwards, you need to
contact your Housing Officer.
Residual Current Devices (RCDs)
In the past 17 years, 29 people including eight
children have been electrocuted in homes in Western
Australia. (Energy Safety WA)
• If the lever does flip downwards, then it works.
• Flip the lever upwards to ‘on’ and this will turn
the power on.
Most of these deaths could have been prevented if
Residual Current Devices (RCDs) had been fitted to
the power and lighting circuits.
An RCD is a safety device that disconnects a circuit
when it detects an imbalance of the electric circuit
which connects to your switchboard. To give an example: your child pops a couple of slices
of bread in the toaster; the bread curls over and gets
stuck. Your child uses a knife to poke into the toaster.
The knife touches the live elements, and in less than
one third of a second the RCD will switch the power
off preventing your child from being electrocuted.
DO YOUR PART - ONLY WORKING SMOKE ALARMS SAVE LIVES
do test
DO NOT REMOVE
OR COVER UP
For further information about your home please contact
your Regional Service Provider or Housing Officer.