Community Housing Aotearoa

Background

The Family Violence (Amendments) Act 2018 and the Family Violence Act 2018 improve the legislative framework for addressing family violence by giving priority to the safety of victims, including children, and preventing perpetrators from inflicting family violence. The Family Violence Act 2018 replaces the Domestic Violence Act 1995.

The Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity, Housing Foundation and Community Housing Aotearoa are today welcoming the Green Party’s support for a government-backed rent to own programme, a pathway to home ownership already operated by Community Organisations and advocated for by the affordable home ownership initiative KiwiBuy.

Community Housing Aotearoa (CHA) is the peak body for the community housing sector that provides emergency, transitional, social and affordable housing as well as delivering the Housing First programme throughout New Zealand. We thank you for the opportunity to provide comment on the Bill.

The Minister of Māori Development Nanaia Mahuta was visiting whānau in Te Tai Tokerau this week to hear about positive impacts on whānau from their essential housing repairs programmes.

While welcoming the appointment of new Housing Minister Megan Woods as part of an expanded team of Ministers addressing the housing crisis, Community Housing Aotearoa hopes that the rhetoric will now be backed up with practical action.

Budget 2019 will turn around the lives of more than a 1,000 long-term homeless people by helping them into permanent homes – the largest government investment ever in addressing chronic homelessness, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and Housing and Urban Development Minister Phil Twyford announced today.

The Winter Energy Payment is back and now available for 22 weeks from 1 May to 1 October.

In May 2018 the Government established the Welfare Expert Advisory Group (WEAG) to advise them on the future of New Zealand’s social security system.

More New Zealanders could be owning their own home if only the Government adopted and scaled up hugely successful non-government homeownership programmes says The Salvation Army, Habitat for Humanity, New Zealand Housing Foundation and Community Housing Aotearoa.

The Aotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers (ANZASW) is concerned about reports of a housing crisis in the Hawke’s Bay area that has affected hundreds of children / tamariki and young people / rangitahi.