What we currently do
ACC and the Ministry of Health are the main funders of modifications for tenants in Housing New Zealand properties. We:
- support tenants with their funding requests
- modify the property ourselves or provide a purpose-built property when we have asked the tenant to move; or
- modify the property ourselves or provide a purpose-built property when it is the only way to meet the tenant’s needs.
Housing New Zealand has a Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Health for modifications funding.
We know, for instance, that over the last five years, there were 2,075 modifications to social housing homes (including, but not limited to Housing New Zealand’s homes), at an estimated total cost of approximately $7.55 million to the Ministry of Health.
The most common reason for people to request a transfer from their current public housing situation is that their ‘current accommodation is inadequate or unsuitable’. This was 746 or 31 percent of applicants in the three months to December 2018. For 690 people or 29 percent of people requesting a transfer from their current public housing situation in the three months to December 2018, ‘medical or other special needs’[i] was the reason for their request to move.
Issues and opportunities
We know that the Ministry of Health’s housing modification funding is regularly oversubscribed. We know that there can be gaps in funding to sort out urgent unmet needs; issues with the length of time to deliver the needed modifications; and modifications and equipment constraints in funding approvals. There are some improvements that can be made to the way that we work with our funders to speed up the process and allow more flexibility and choice. Our disabled tenants and their families are telling us that the current funding processes and relationships between government agencies are not working well for them.
“That’s one of the hardest parts, that I find, is the waiting. You’ve got to sit and wait for A to B to C and D. And you also have to chase them. When you chase them they say nothing or, ‘you just have to wait’. But you don’t really even know what you’re waiting for.” A Housing New Zealand tenant’s experience of needing housing modifications.
More fundamentally, we recognise that we need to investigate policy options for funding some aspects of these modifications ourselves, and continue to work with funding and policy agencies on sustainable funding models.
Next steps
- Develop a business case for a policy and budget that will be used to meet tenants’ modifications needs where Housing New Zealand is best placed to do so.
- Work with funding and policy agencies on ways of improving current funding arrangements, including a new Memorandum of Understanding with the Ministry of Health that highlights an intention to work closely together to improve the efficiency of the process for funding for modifications.
We will know we are successfully delivering against this outcome when
- Housing New Zealand’s customers now and in the future know how and where to get the housing modifications they need.
- Housing New Zealand works with our customers to provide modifications in the right way when they’re needed.
- Housing New Zealand’s customer satisfaction measures improve.
What we currently do
Presently, Community Group Housing is our primary way of meeting the housing needs of people with a range of complex needs. Through Community Group Housing we work with a wide range of organisations that provide residential and non residential community housing for:
- people who experience mental or psychiatric illness
- people who have physical and learning disabilities
- residential alcohol and drug services
- women, men and children seeking refuge
- families/whānau (including those who need emergency housing)
- support for youth/children at risk
- prisoner reintegration.
Community Group Housing properties often have special features to reflect the characteristics of the residents they support, for example a large number of bedrooms, accommodation for a carer or other forms of co-living or ‘supported flatting’ arrangements.
Issues and opportunities
As we build knowledge we will get a better understanding of demand so we know how best to respond to the needs of current and future customers. For example, the Customer Strategy identified large and multi-generation whānau that may want to live together as a specific group we need to cater for.
We recognise our obligations under Article 19 of the UNCRPD to ensure the right of “persons with disabilities to live in the community, with choices equal to others… and to prevent isolation or segregation from the community”. We will therefore continue conversations with the disability sector to ensure that our housing promotes independent living solutions and sufficient choices for disabled people.
Next steps
- Use customer demand information to inform specialised solutions for different customer groups – for example aged care, the Deaf community.
- Continue to provide bespoke solutions to our Community Group Housing
Identify and develop best practice/innovative co-living models and design standards that can be replicated elsewhere, including providing bedrooms for live-in carers as needed, and adequate space for equipment storage.