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Housing Is A Major Public Health Issue For Australians With Disability

It is no secret that housing is a major issue in Australia. Housing prices are constantly on the rise, and it can be difficult for many people to find an affordable place to live. This is especially true for individuals with disabilities, who often face significant barriers when trying to find accessible and affordable housing.

For people with disabilities, a lack of accessible and affordable housing is a significant barrier to independent living. Not being able to find an appropriate safe home environment can lead to poor health outcomes, social isolation, and difficulties accessing healthcare and support services.

Here at ANC we’re an experienced disability service provider who is committed to improving the well-being of people under our care. We offer a variety of support services to better meet the specific needs of our clients and strive to provide a supportive home environment where individuals can live independently and up to their potential.

To better help our clients, we’ve composed this blog to discuss some of the challenges faced when trying to access suitable housing, what housing assistance is available, and finally how the NDIS can help individuals find housing that’s appropriate to their needs.

Difficulties Encountered

Safe affordable housing is an underlying human right that should be easily accessible to everyone, but for people with disabilities, finding accessible and affordable housing can be a challenge.

People with disabilities face a number of hurdles that can make it harder to find suitable housing. Some of these hurdles include:

Fixed Income

People with disabilities are often on a fixed income with limited government support. This severely limits what housing options they can afford. Even when accessible housing does exist, it is often prohibitively expensive. As a result, many people with disabilities find themselves struggling to find a place to call home.

Specific Housing Needs

Unlike the general population, people with disabilities often have specific housing needs that must be met in order to maintain their independence.

For example, people who use wheelchairs may need wider doors and hallways, and people who are deaf or hard of hearing may need visual alarms. These accommodations can be expensive to install, and many landlords are unwilling to make them.

Limited Supply of Appropriate Housing

With only a limited supply available there is a recognised shortage of secure, affordable and accessible housing for people with disabilities. This has forced individuals to seek housing arrangements that may not be appropriate for their specific needs.

For example many people with disabilities live in institutions or group homes, young people with disabilities continue to live in nursing homes, and many live with family members because of ongoing reliance on parents as informal carers.

The lack of affordable housing options can have a number of negative consequences for people with disabilities. It can lead to increased financial instability, social isolation, and health problems. In some cases, it can even contribute to homelessness.

When housing is inaccessible or unaffordable, it creates barriers to opportunity and independent living for people with disabilities.

What Housing Assistance Am I Entitled To?

For people with disabilities, housing is often one of the biggest expenses. This can pose a real challenge for those who live in a household that cannot meet the costs of accessing or maintaining housing.

Fortunately, there are a number of housing assistance programs available that can provide vital support. This can take the form of short or long term support and can vary depending on the needs of the person and/or household. Housing assistance programs are generally provided through:

Subsidised Rental Housing

Social housing programs play an important role in helping low-income Australians to access affordable, safe and secure housing. These programs provide essential support to families who are struggling to meet rent payments, and they can help to prevent homelessness.

While historically this type of support was originally made available to working families on low to moderately low incomes, in more recent times, it has increasingly focused on assisting families in greatest need, especially those experiencing homelessness.

These rental properties are owned and managed by government and/or non–government organisations. Social housing programs include:

Public Housing	Rental housing that state and territory governments provide and manage. Ownership models range, including dwellings owned by the housing authority; or leased from the private sector or other housing program areas and used to provide public rental housing; or leased to public housing occupants.
Community Housing	Housing managed by community-based organisations, available to low to moderate income or special needs households.
State Owned and Managed Indigenous Housing (SOMIH)	Housing that state and territory governments provide and manage. This is available to low to moderate–income households that have at least one member who identifies as being of Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander origin. This type of support is currently available in New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania and the Northern Territory.
Indigenous Community Housing	Housing that Indigenous communities own and/or manage to provide housing services to Indigenous Australians.

It’s important to note that there are waiting periods associated with this type of support, but housing assistance has shifted to target specific vulnerable groups, such as people experiencing homelessness or those at imminent risk of homelessness.

Financial Payments

Rent assistance programs can help people with disabilities access affordable housing by providing financial assistance with rent payments. These programs can make a big difference in the lives of people with disabilities, giving them the stability and independence that they need to live full and productive lives.

This type of support comes in two forms:

Commonwealth Rent Assistance (CRA)

CRA is a non-taxable Australian Government income supplement made to eligible people renting in the private housing market or community housing to assist with their cost of housing.

Pensioners, allowees and those receiving more than the base rate of Family Tax Benefit Part A may be eligible for Rent Assistance, with eligibility conditions needed to be met.

Overall, this is the most common form of housing assistance received by Australian households.

Private Rent Assistance (PRA)

PRA is financial assistance provided directly by all state and territory governments to low‑income households experiencing difficulty in securing or maintaining private rental accommodation.

Private rent assistance is usually provided as a one-off form of support and includes bond loans, rental grants, rental subsidies and relief, and payment of relocation expenses.

Specialist Homelessness Services

People with disabilities who are homeless or at risk of homelessness can use specialist homelessness services (SHS). These services are funded by governments to:

• Provide accommodation support to people in need
• Support at-risk clients to remain housed
• Provide services intended to support stable living conditions, such as counselling, employment or financial services

Specialist homelessness services work in partnership with housing providers and other service providers, such as those delivering other types of support covering mental health, domestic violence, and drug and alcohol programs.

These collaborations between services help people at risk of becoming homeless to stay housed and those already homeless to find and keep a home.

Will The NDIS Help?

A lack of accessible and affordable housing is a significant barrier to independent living for people with disabilities. Accessible housing enables people with disabilities to live independently, participate in the community and maintain their health and wellbeing.

The Australian Government is committed to improving housing options for people with disability through the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). The NDIS provides funding for supported accommodation and other housing-related supports that meet the needs of people with disability.

The NDIS also funds a range of other support that can help people with disability to maintain their independence, including personal care, transport and community access services.

The two most relevant forms of housing support that the NDIS provides is Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA) and home modifications.

Specialist Disability Accommodation (SDA)

SDA is purpose-built housing designed to meet the needs of people with high support needs. It is usually provided through a registered provider and can be delivered as part of a supported living arrangement, or as standalone accommodation.

Importantly SDA is designed to promote independence, safety, and wellbeing. People who live in SDA have the opportunity to live in an environment that is specifically tailored to their needs. This can provide them with a greatly improved quality of life. In addition, SDA can help to reduce the reliance on institutional care and support people to live in the community. As a result, SDA plays an important role in promoting inclusion and social participation.

It’s important to note that SDA funding is provided to only a small proportion of NDIS participants who meet specific eligibility criteria and have an extreme functional impairment or very high support needs.

Although the National Disability Insurance Agency plans to stimulate new housing supply for people with disabilities who are eligible for SDA, there will still be a shortfall in supply. The remaining NDIS recipients will need to find suitable accommodation in the mainstream housing market.

Home Modifications

The NDIS provides funding for a range of services and support for people with disabilities. One of the areas of support covered by the NDIS is home modifications. Home modifications can include anything from installing ramps and grab rails to modifying doorways and hallways to make them wheelchair accessible. In addition, modifications such as raised power outlets and lever-handle taps can help people with physical disabilities to carry out daily tasks more independently.

Supported home modifications generally fall into the three below categories:

• Design and construction
• Installation of fixtures or fittings
• Changes to structural and non-structural components of the home

Home modifications can make a big difference in the life of someone with a disability, allowing them to live independently and move around their home with ease.

ANC Can Help

Finding suitable housing that matches an individual’s goals can have a profoundly positive effect on their lives, enabling them to live comfortably and enjoy life to the fullest.

Here at ANC we’re passionate about helping individuals with disabilities find a safe comfortable environment that matches their living aspirations. We provide a range of shared, short term, and long term accommodation services where individuals have the independence and flexibility to live their life to the fullest, while still receiving a helping hand when they need it.

Our experienced consultants will spend the time and effort to get to know their specific needs and goals. We’ll then work to find the most appropriate housing solution where they’ll be able to fit in a thriving environment. We’ll then continue to provide ongoing support ensuring the participant is getting the most out of their living arrangements and everything is running smoothly.

In addition we understand that NDIS funded home modifications can play a vital role in improving the lives of people with disabilities. That’s why we’re proud to offer a wide range of home modification services, designed to suit the specific needs of our clients. From installing wheelchair ramps and grab rails to widening doorways and fitting accessible kitchens, we can help make your home more comfortable and safe.

Housing is a basic human need, and yet for people with disabilities, finding appropriate housing can be a major challenge. The lack of appropriate housing can lead to a number of problems, including health issues, social isolation, and financial insecurity. In addition, inaccessible housing can make it difficult for people with disabilities to receive necessary medical care or assistance from caregivers.

It’s vitally important to ensure that people with disabilities have access to safe, decent, and affordable housing. Fortunately there are some vital housing assistance that is available including; subsidised rental housing, financial payments assistance, and specialist homelessness services.

Further the NDIS provides funding for supported accommodation and other housing-related supports that meet the needs of people with disability. In particular specialist disability accommodation and home modifications provide vital support to help individuals live more independently and reach their personal goals.

Here at ANC we’re passionate about creating a safe home environment where an individual can lead a full life. We offer a range of home modification support services, along with both short term and long term accommodation solutions where our experienced staff can provide vital ongoing support services.

We understand that every client has different needs, so we work closely with them to tailor our services to their specific requirements. Throughout their stay, we’ll monitor their progress to make sure their living arrangement is providing exactly the type of support they need.

For any of your Accommodation Support needs, why not contact us today.

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