specialist homelessness services conference · to homelessness. leading the road home! is a timely...

Specialist Homelessness Services Conference:

Leading the road home!

Hosted by the Western Australian Council on Homelessness and the Department for Child Protection.

Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre

28 & 29 May 2012

Conference program

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Overview

The Western Australian Council on Homelessness (WACH) in partnership with the Department for Child Protection (the Department) is pleased to host the Specialist Homelessness Services Conference – Leading the road home! to be held on 28 and 29 May 2012 at the Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre.

This is the first state homelessness conference to be held in Western Australia that will bring together specialist homelessness services, and mainstream agencies.

The conference will provide an opportunity for delegates to celebrate reforms in homelessness and mainstream agencies, showcase innovation and research, discuss key emerging trends and opportunities, and inspire future change to address homelessness in WA.

The conference theme Leading the road home! builds on the reform work articulated in the Western Australian Homelessness State Plan 2010-2013 Opening Doors to Address Homelessness.

The three primary themes of the conference are:

• Quality Service Provision - for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness.

• Service Integration - between National Affordable Housing Agreement (NAHA), National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness (NPAH), and mainstream agencies.

• Partnerships, Collaboration, and Linkages - to improve sustainable housing outcomes.

The conference aims to consolidate the significant progress underway in reforming the way specialist homelessness services respond to homelessness. Leading the road home! is a timely reminder of the rights of people experiencing or at risk of homelessness to access quality services, whilst further integrating service and mainstream agency responses to the issue.

With a number of developments underway in the homelessness sector, the conference provides a unique opportunity for organisational change agents to influence the direction of local and state responses to homelessness. This is a conference for representatives who can demonstrate the ability to inspire, influence, enthuse, and promote positive change to others.

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The venueThe Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre (PCEC) is located in the heart of Perth city, adjacent to the Swan River. The location provides quick and easy access to and from the PCEC by car, train, bus, taxi and on foot.

WalkingWalking access into the PCEC on Level 1 is via Mill Street or Mounts Bay Road. Level 2 can be accessed via the Esplanade Busport overpass.

DrivingAccess to the City of Perth Convention Centre Car Park is via Mill Street, Mounts Bay Road and the Riverside Drive off ramp of the Mitchell Freeway. Access to the Level 1 Plaza area is from Mill Street or Mounts Bay Road.

Public transportPerth has an excellent public transport system serving the entire metropolitan area. The Central Area Transit (CAT) bus system provides a free, scenic link between the foreshore precinct and hotels, shops, restaurants, museums and cinemas in and around the city centre. Bus stands closest to PCEC are located in the Esplanade Busport adjacent to PCEC and also on William Street. Weekday services run every 5 to15 minutes from 6:50am to 6:20pm WST. Please refer to the Transperth website at www.transperth.wa.gov.au for further information, including timetables and maps.

The closest train station is ‘Esplanade’ (corner of William Street and The Esplanade).

TaxiA Taxi Spot phone is located at the Level 1 Plaza entry door to PCEC. The Taxi Spot number is 1088. Alternatively, taxis may be called on:

Swan Taxis 13 13 30 Black & White Taxis 13 10 08

ParkingThe City of Perth Convention Centre Car Park is located directly under the PCEC. It holds over 1,500 parking bays and operates 24 hours, 7 days a week. This car park is accessible via Mill Street, Mounts Bay Road and the Riverside Drive off ramp of the Mitchell Freeway. Payment for parking can be made by cash, credit card or with the City of Perth Parking Card. Direct access to the PCEC from the City of Perth Convention Centre Car Park is available during opening hours via our central foyer lift and two staircases.

For further information regarding City of Perth Parking please contact 1300 889 613 or visit their website. For further information regarding Wilson Parking please visit their website.

AccommodationPerth offers a great range of accommodation for all tastes and budgets; from a quaint bed and breakfast, to leading five-star hotels. The following link provides information on accommodation: http://www.pcec.com.au/attend-an-event/accommodation.aspx

General information

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Conference registration information is available on the Department for Child Protection website:

http://www.dcp.wa.gov.au/servicescommunity/Pages/Homelessness.aspx

Registrations closeWednesday 9 May 2012

All queries Specialist Homelessness Services Conference Email: [email protected] Telephone: (08) 9222 2903 Fax: (08) 9221 0178 Address: PO Box 6334, East Perth WA 6892

The Specialist Homelessness Services Conference, Leading the road home! is funded through the Joint Commonwealth/ State National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness.

Conference registration information

Government of Western AustraliaDepartment for Child Protection

Government of Western AustraliaMental Health Commission

Government of Western AustraliaDepartment of Housing

Government of Western AustraliaDepartment of Corrective Services

The Specialist Homelessness Services Conference is proudly supported by:

WESTERN AUSTRALIAN COUNCIL ON HOMELESSNESS

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Plenary speaker introductions - day one

Opening address

Who are we in the lives of the homeless? Everybody counts

Christine Edwards, Deputy Chairperson Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness

The Commonwealth government is committed to a reform process that will make substantial changes to the issue of homelessness. Reform is more than shifting the

funding chairs around; it calls for changes to our understanding, for challenging the way that we think about an issue, for thinking differently about how we deliver services. Reform does not sit with any one sector. It rests with us all and success will depend significantly on how well we know each other and collaborate to meet people’s needs.

So what is the government’s reform agenda about? What do we really think we can achieve? What has to change or be done differently to bring it about? What have been some of the major changes and achievements to date? What role does collaboration play in this reform agenda?

This is a rare opportunity to participate in a significant reform. We are all players in the lives of homeless people and must see ourselves as pieces within a much larger picture. Specialist homeless services are integral to the Commonwealth government’s reform agenda. With their expertise in delivering programs, influencing policy, and providing a voice for the homeless and those vulnerable to homelessness; they are well placed to be leaders in these reforms.

Most recently Christine Edwards was the Chief Executive Officer of the Myer Foundation and the Sidney Myer Fund. Over seven years, Christine led both organisations and contributed to the growth of the philanthropic and community sectors. Christine’s career has spanned health, community services, and the philanthropic sectors. In Victoria, she was the Chief Executive Officer of St George’s Hospital and Bethlehem Hospital, and in Western Australia and Tasmania held senior management positions across portfolios of mental health, aged care, dental, alcohol and drug services, women’s health, indigenous affairs, child protection and youth justice.

Christine is a Board Director of the Brotherhood of St Laurence, a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Management, an Associate Fellow of the Australian College of Health Service Management, and a member of the Institute of Public Administration Australia. She graduated from Curtin University in Western Australia, has postgraduate qualifications from Flinders University in South Australia and completed a Master of Health Administration at LaTrobe University in Victoria.

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Plenary speaker introductions - day one

Closing address

The state affordable housing strategy 2010-2020: Opening doors to affordable housing

Ms Genevieve Errey, A/Director Social and Affordable Housing System, Department of Housing

Why do we need an Affordable Housing Strategy? After 30 years of declining affordability, and in the last decade almost tripling of house

prices and rents there is pressure at all points in the housing continuum. Pressure at the bottom end of the market puts pressure on public housing. At the same time there are broader demand and supply factors such as population growth, the availability of finance, investor returns, rental prices and availability. The Government is working with private and the not for profit sectors to finance, develop and deliver long term affordable housing solutions for people on low to moderate incomes.

Bold practical measures are also being taken to supply an additional 20,000 homes by 2020. More options are being made available along the continuum of housing from crisis accommodation to home ownership; with better assessment and targeted assistance to help those on low to moderate incomes to access housing that is affordable and appropriate to their needs. This signals a change in the primary role of the Department of Housing from building and managing public housing to enabling access to a broader range of affordable housing solutions.

Genevieve’s experience in the areas of housing and homelessness include achievements for the State Homelessness Taskforce in 2002 followed by her leadership of the development of the State Homelessness Strategy delivering $32 million to address homelessness in Western Australia. Ensuring particular consideration of Aboriginal people is taken into account - she was directly involved in developing and implementing the WA Place Management approach - an initiative from the Government’s response to the Gordon Inquiry and directed the Gordon Initiatives Unit. As Manager Aboriginal Housing Policy she has enabled the State’s take up of responsibility for Aboriginal housing without disturbing land tenure or native title.

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Plenary speaker introductions - day two

Opening keynote address

Building models of service integration: reflecting on international experience

Presented by Sue Cripps, Director Homelessness, Mental Health and Disability, Catholic Community Services NSW/ACT

Sue Cripps received a Churchill Fellowship in 2011 to investigate models of homeless service integration. Sue visited the United Kingdom, Brussels and the United

States of America to critique how these countries have delivered on over ten years’ experience of national homelessness strategies and in particular to review progress made in how the United Kingdom and the United States of America have developed integrated models of service delivery.

People don’t just become homeless. It is often a result of a multitude of life, health and justice events that coalesce and result in someone becoming homeless. There is no quick and easy fix which makes ending homelessness a policy challenge for any government that steps up and resolves to address homelessness. Getting the different service systems talking and planning together to address homelessness is often difficult.

Australia has made a good start in developing strategies to reduce the numbers of people who are homeless but there is still much to do. Building mechanisms to enhance the collaboration between government funding programs such as housing, health, justice systems, child protection and income management are integral to the success of developing models of service integration with both government and non-government service providers.

Sue Cripps is the Director Homelessness, Mental Health and Disability, Catholic Community Services NSW/ACT. Sue has worked in a variety of government and non-government organisations with a focus on homeless policy development and service provision to homeless and marginalised people. Sue was awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 2011 where she travelled to Europe and the USA to review models of service integration that improve outcomes for homeless people and those at risk of homelessness. Sue has extensive management experience across mental health and housing services and was the founding CEO of Homelessness NSW, one of the leading advocacy bodies on homelessness within Australia. Sue was also a member of the NSW Premier’s Council on Homelessness.

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Networking event

Monday 28 May - 4:30pm to 5:30pmThis networking event is limited to the first 200 delegates who register interest to attend. Overlooking the Swan River, the event will be held on day one of the conference immediately after the closing plenary, and will provide delegates with an opportunity to network and reflect upon the days workshops and presentations.

Plenary speaker introductions - day two

Closing keynote address

Beyond homelessness: developing community, capacity and spirit through our work

Presented by Tim Muirhead, Director of the Community-Spirit-Development Network

Tim will suggest that all our work - whether it be the inevitable accountability requirements, or supporting a person who

is homeless - is made richer and more powerful if we focus on the human spirit; the spirit of the individual (‘me’), and the spirit of people together (‘us’). Through this we help develop genuine community (‘me and us’) around people. Tim will offer frameworks that help clarify this personal and community development work, and the role it can play in addressing homelessness. This closing address will remind us, at the end of the conference, just why we feel passionate about the work that we do.

Tim Muirhead, Director of the Community-Spirit-Development Network is a trainer, advisor and practitioner in two main areas: community development and Aboriginal/non-Aboriginal relations. In all of this work he is driven by a focus on ‘developing spirit’ in ourselves and others. Tim has a particular interest in fostering collaborative approaches between people with often diverse knowledge, skills and perspectives. Tim began as a non-government community worker with Travellers (‘Gypsies’) in inner London. Since then he has also worked as Director of Community Development at WA Local Government Association, as Coordinator for Australians for Reconciliation, and Community Funding and Development Officer for the State Government. In his role with CSD he works in partnership with people in all three spheres of government, as well as the non-government sector and communities.

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Program day one - Monday 28 May 2012

8:30-9:30am Registration

9:30am-11:00am

Opening plenary

Opening welcome: Steve Glew, Executive Director, Service Standards and Contracting, Department for Child Protection

Welcome to Country

Launch by Minister McSweeney, Minister for Child Protection; Community Services; Seniors and Volunteering; Women’s Interests; Youth

Keynote address: “Who are we in the lives of the homeless? Everybody counts” Christine Edwards, Deputy Chairperson, Prime Minister’s Council on Homelessness

11-11:30am Morning tea

11:30am-12:45pm

Morning sessions

Research stream Focus groups and workshops

Service integration Partnerships Quality services All

Session 1 Session 2 Session 3 Session 4 Session 5 Session 6

Getting Out and Staying Out of HomelessnessRobyn Martin,

Curtin University

Where to From Here? Considering

what has been achieved with coordinated approaches and what is still needed

to reduce and prevent women’s

homelessnessDr Donna Chung,

University of Western Australia

Connecting the Dots – Focus group for the

inner-city services reviewStarfish

Consulting

The Lucy Saw Centre… A hub of

servicesThe Lucy Saw

Association

All the Right Doors

Uniting Care West

Together We Can!

Centacare Kimberley,

Department of Housing

(Kimberley), Kimberley Mental

Health

Partnership, Collaboration

and Linkages - The People with

Exceptionally Complex Needs (PECN) Project

Disability Services

Commission

Quality Assurance-

Considerations for the Sector55 Central Inc.

Concept of Registry Week - and Plans for Perth Registry

WeekRuah Community

Services

Client’s perspective on

the National Partnership

Agreement on Homelessness

(NPAH) ProgramsSocial Systems and Evaluation

12:45-1:45pm Lunch

1:45pm-3:00pm

Afternoon sessions


Street to Home- Service Models in

Three StatesDr Eleanor

Button, Flinders University

National Research

Project- Service Integration

Dr Paul Flatau, University of

Western Australia

Quality Services in Practice- interactive

workshop 1Department for Child Protection

Local Solutions: Regional

Homelessness Planning in

Western Australia WA Council on Homelessness,

Department of Housing,

Accordwest, and Department for Child Protection

Working Well in the South East

CorridorCentrecare and

Mission Australia

Helping Clients to Get a Private

Rental - The Challenges and

PitfallsMercyCare

Best Practice for Working

with Children in Specialist

Homelessness Services

Women’s Council for Domestic and Family Violence

Service (WA) Inc.

Developing a Best Practice

Model- Responding

to Family Homelessness

St Patrick’s Community

Support Centre Ltd

and Fremantle Multicultural

Centre

3:00-3:30pm Afternoon tea

3:30pm-4:20pm

Closing plenary

Keynote address: The State Affordable Housing Strategy 2010-2020. Opening doors to affordable housing. Ms Genevieve Errey - A/Director Social and Affordable Housing System, Department of Housing

Summary of day one Western Australian Council on Homelessness

4:30-5:30pm Networking Hour - Perth Convention and Exhibition Centre. Limited to first 200 delegates.

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Program day two - Tuesday 29 May 2012

8:30-9:00am Registration

9:00-10:30am

Plenary

Brief speech: The Mental Health Commission, Homelessness, and Service IntegrationMr Eddie Bartnik, Commissioner, Mental Health Commission

Keynote address: Building models of service integration: reflecting on international experience Ms Sue Cripps, Director Homelessness, Mental Health and Disability, Catholic Community Services NSW/ACT

Panel response - Members of the Western Australian Council on Homelessness

10:30-11:00am Morning tea

11:00am-12:15pm

Morning sessions

Research stream Focus groups and workshops

Service integration Partnerships Quality services All


Service linkages for Aboriginal

womenStarfish

Consulting

Under the bridge and under the

radar - the food security

and nutrition of homeless young

people Jill Whelan, PHD Candidate Deakin

University



The Mobile Clinical Outreach Team: Bringing mental health to

the streetsMobile Clinical

Outreach Team, South

Metropolitan Area Mental Health

Creative partnerships

improving homelessness

servicesSt Bartholomew’s

House

Skill Sharing Program

Nardine Wimmins Refuge

Is anyone better off? The Foyer

Project and Results Based AccountabilityAnglicare WA

National Research Project

- focus group

Risk factors in homelessness programs and interventionsDr Eleanor

Button, Flinders University

12:15-1:15pm Lunch

1:15pm-2:30pm

Afternoon sessions


Disruptive behaviour

management strategy

Seeking optimal outcomes -

Review of the Tenant Support

Program

Where do I fit? Successful relationships – NPAH so far

Department of Housing



Doing what works…

achieving outcomes

together with Aboriginal families Swan

Emergency Accommodation

Indigenous Visitors

AccommodationDepartment of

Housing

Empowerment - how do we make this a reality for

vulnerable people experiencing

homelessness? Salvation Army, The Graceville

Centre

My tenancy my home: A

new approach to tenancy

management in remote Aboriginal

communities Department of

Housing

Not just getting housing, but staying in it:

Reflections on critical time intervention

Ruah Community Services

Juvenile offenders - gaining and maintaining independent

accommodation (Life Wise Program)

Youth Futures

2:30-3:00pm Afternoon tea

3:00-3:50pm

Closing plenary

Key address: Beyond homelessness: Developing community, capacity and spirit through our work Mr Tim Muirhead, Community-Spirit-Development Network

Closing summary Mr Terry Murphy, Director General, Department for Child Protection

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Session 1 - Research stream

Getting out and staying out of homelessness

Presented by Robyn Martin, Lecturer, Director of Fieldwork, Course Coordinator Postgraduate Mental Health, Curtin University

This presentation will explore the conditions and contexts that create a sustainable pathway out of homelessness. Based on findings from applied

research, the structural, individual agency and relational factors that help or hinder a pathway out of homelessness will be discussed. These factors will be related to helpful service delivery approaches and contexts.

Robyn has worked in and around the homelessness sector since 1987 as a refuge worker, coordinator, executive manager, researcher and activist. She currently works at Curtin University, teaching undergraduate and postgraduate mental health and is Director of fieldwork for the social work program. Robyn’s dream is to see service users’ expertise developed through lived experience and the driving force in service delivery and policy activities. She believes that people with lived experience are the experts on their situations, and positions professional knowledge as playing a supporting role in people’s journeys of recovery and inclusion.

Where to from here? Considering what has been achieved with coordinated approaches and what is still needed to reduce and prevent women’s homelessness.

Presented by Dr Donna Chung, Winthrop Professor Social Work, University of Western Australia

Coordinated approaches between agencies and workers have long been considered as essential foundations to address complex and long standing social

problems such as homelessness. There is little disagreement about the potential merits of coordination. However, partnership working in practice has varied across locations due to the wide range of influential variables such as policies governing different agencies, power differences between agencies, varying commitment by managers and workers towards partnership working and local conditions. The presentation will examine those aspects of partnership working which show some evidence of being effective, the potential problems of ‘institutionalising’ partnership working and important areas for future development in order to reduce homelessness and prevent its reoccurrence.

Dr Donna Chung is Winthrop Professor of Social Work and Social Policy in the School of Population Health at the University of Western Australia. Donna has a long standing research interest in gender, violence and homelessness. In addition to undertaking research Donna has acted as an adviser to governments on domestic violence policies and programs. In recent years Donna has been focused on how partnership and coordinated approaches to addressing complex social problems have progressed and what have been the limitations of these approaches in a range of settings in Australia and the UK. Donna was previously the Director of the Centre for the Study of Safety and Wellbeing at the University of Warwick until taking up her position at UWA in August 2011.

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Session 2 - Focus group for inner city Perth and Fremantle service providers

Connecting the dots - focus group for the inner city services review

Presented by Leah Watkins, Researcher, Starfish Consulting

This is an opportunity to shape the future of homeless services in inner city Perth and Fremantle. The Department for Child Protection has commissioned a review of services in the inner city, which is currently underway. This workshop is part of a series of focus groups, surveys, interviews and client consultations which will help understand what is currently available for homeless people, what gaps there are in services and how they might be filled.

The review includes interviews with homeless people both in services and in park settings.

This workshop is not a presentation of findings, but a part of the research and your opportunity to ensure your experience and knowledge is recorded. It will also encourage participants to think creatively about how services in the inner city can work together to better meet the needs of homeless people. As such participants will be invited to make suggestions which may form part of the recommendations of the review. The draft report of the review is due in August and the discussions in this workshop will become part of the research and findings.

This workshop is designed to gather feedback from inner city service providers to input into the review of inner city homeless services in Perth and Fremantle and as such requires participants to take part in both large and small group discussions.

Session 3 - Service integration - paper presentations

Working as a hub

Presented by Anne Moore, Executive Officer, The Lucy Saw Centre Association Inc. and Linda Smith, Safe at Home Worker, The Lucy Saw Centre Association Inc.

This presentation will focus on the integration of services within the Lucy Saw Centre that have served to benefit client outcomes. The Lucy Saw Centre is a multi-program, domestic violence (DV) service providing support and intervention to women and their children. The hub of the service is a women’s refuge providing short-term emergency accommodation and outreach appointments in-house. The Lucy Saw Centre also operates Safe at Home (South Metro) which case manages longer-term clients and processes police referrals into the service.

The Lucy Saw Centre also operates Case Management Coordination, for high risk recidivist families affected by severe and chronic domestic violence. Other interventions provided are, counselling for women and children, specialist DV counselling and alcohol and other drug counselling. Competent assessment processes for clients, and the ability to refer clients for an appropriate internal\external program or intervention, is essential. This allows efficient staff actions and provides appropriate support for the client.

The Lucy Saw Centre is involved in the local community, in DV education and participates in activism for families affected by violence at higher levels. The Lucy Saw Centre is proud of its close working relationships with Government agencies such as Department for Child Protection, WA Police and Centrelink to bring about effective outcomes for our clients.

All the right doors

Presented by Jodie Smyth, Manager Accommodation and Support Services, and Naomi O’Donnell, Manager Homelessness Services, UnitingCare West

UnitingCare West Inner City Centre located in East Perth is a homelessness hub consisting of nine services including a drop in centre, assessment officer, Street to Home, transitional accommodation, private tenancy support, emergency relief, financial counselling, specialist re-entry support and mental health support. This integrated service centre is the only one of its kind in Western Australia.

The presentation will take an in depth look at how this centre has ‘No Wrong Door’ and is able to provide wrap around services to individuals, couples and families who are homeless or at risk of homelessness. The presentation will look

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Session 4 - Partnerships - paper presentations

Together we can!

Presented by Damien Russell, Manager, Centacare Kimberley, Tania Lavars, Department of Housing, and Kimberley Mental Health

The complexity of mental illness and homelessness cannot be understated. The individual is our concern and the centre of the partnership. With a client centred approach, coordinated care and regular consultation the future is bright for many.

National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness Mental Health is providing the people of West Kimberley (Broome) a chance that was but a dream. This partnership between the individual, the Commonwealth and State governments, Department of Housing, Kimberley Mental Health and Centacare Kimberley is proving that “Together we can!”.

Partnerships, collaboration and linkages – the People with Exceptionally Complex Needs (PECN) project

Presented by Amanda Perlinski, Coordinator, PECN project, Disability Services Commission and Margaret McGuinness, Coordinator, PECN project, Disabilty Services Commission

This presentation will explore the People with Exceptionally Complex Needs (PECN) model which is designed to ensure that services work together to support people with exceptionally complex needs. The PECN initiative is a whole-of government pilot project which aims to provide a coordinated service delivery response to improve the well-being and quality of life of individuals with exceptionally complex needs.

The target group for the project is adults (18 years of age and older) who have two or more of the following: a mental illness; an acquired brain injury; an intellectual disability; a significant substance use problem; and pose a significant risk of harm to self or others; and require intensive support, would benefit from receiving coordinated services; and for whom the existing system is not working as well as it should.

The model involves the partner agencies (Mental Health Commission, Department of Health, Office of the Public Advocate, Department of Corrective Services, Disability Services Commission, Department of Housing and Drug and Alcohol Office) working in a coordinated way to better meet the specific needs of the people in the project. An Interagency Executive Committee ensures seamless service provision across the sector and the Complex Needs Coordinators provide inter-agency coordination and the single point of entry to the project.

Stable Housing is the essential first step to providing appropriate support. Having some funds to set up people’s home has also been really important. The presentation will include case studies and an analysis of what worked and why.

at the integration of these services, internal and external referral processes and the relationships with external service providers. It will look at the advantages of a large organisation that can provide services outside the Inner City Centre with the ability to access services that focus on disability, strengthening families, indigenous communities and diverse sexuality and/or gender.

With a focus on client outcomes the presenter will provide examples of how clients can enter one service and be supported by several services within the centre to ensure a holistic whole of life response to the individual need.

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Session 5 - Quality services - paper presentations

Quality assurance – some considerations for the sector

Presented by Kevin Dunn, General Manager, 55 Central Inc.

Demonstrating ‘value for money’ and good ‘consumer outcomes’ has become a pressing concern for the sector where new funding arrangements and procurement reforms are afoot. Correspondingly, the issue of ‘Quality’ is gaining greater prominence. Yet for services, implementing quality frameworks and their associated processes can impose additional administrative pressures. Adopting a Quality Assurance system must be viewed against this backdrop, as well as its user-friendliness and practical application to an organisation.

The presentation will examine quality assurance in relation to the Quality Improvement versus the Quality Assurance Audit approach. Drawing on best practice, models of continuous quality improvement from Victoria and Tasmania will be reviewed. As well as Quality Assurance toolkits, including the Practical Quality Assurance System for Small Organisations (PQASSO).

To ensure greater reliability of Quality Assurance, particular emphasis will be placed on Peer Evaluation and independent review. For the purpose of this presentation, the term ‘peer review’ involves a service manager, assessing another service and vice versa. It will be demonstrated that Quality Assurance need not place an unnecessary administrative burden on an organisations and benefits include:

• Fosters a culture of change towards becoming a reflective learning organisation.

• Closer collaboration with other services helps offset isolation especially for organisations in rural settings.

• New insights around best practice can be derived.

• The structural framework provides an opportunity to take stock of progress.

Finally the experience of conducting a peer review between 55 Central Inc. and St. Patrick’s Community Support Centre will be discussed in relation to practical recommendations.

Concept of Registry Week – and plans for Perth Registry Week

Presented by Ros Mulley, Executive Manager, Ruah Community Services

We can’t properly address homelessness without person-specific data on who the people are who are sleeping rough and what housing and services are needed to end their homelessness. The methodology for Registry Week was developed by an organisation called Common Ground in the United States. It makes use of trained volunteers working in teams to conduct surveys of people who are sleeping rough. It is not a full count of the homeless population as it targets people who experience primary homelessness only. Participants must consent to being surveyed. The purpose of it is twofold:

1. To develop an accurate registry of the needs of the rough sleepers in a city, town or suburb by identifying individuals who are permanently or frequently living on the street; and

2. To identify the most vulnerable people and prioritise them for permanent housing and appropriate support.

Registry Week is now taking place in cities and towns all over the USA as the success of this strategy to survey people sleeping rough and to introduce a targeted approach to move the most vulnerable of these into housing has been proved time and again. Since June 2010, Brisbane, Melbourne, Sydney and Hobart have organised Registry Week events, led by Australian Common Ground Alliance members; with the support of a range of government, non-government and corporate partners.

This presentation will provide information about the concept of Registry Week, refer to some of the data from Registry Week in other Australian cities and inform of plans for a Registry Week in Perth in 2012.

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Session 6 - Research stream - interactive

Client’s perspective on the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness (NPAH) Programs

Presented by Rosemary Cant, Barbara Meddin, and Colin Penter: Social Systems and Evaluation

As part of the two year evaluation of NPAH programs, about 200 clients of NPAH programs have been interviewed to date about their experiences. This session will discuss the findings from the client interviews including the significant changes the program made to their lives and the things that they found most

helpful. Some of the challenges encountered in undertaking such a large number of interviews will be discussed and participants’ ideas on other means of obtaining clients’ views will be sought.

Presenters are members of the NPAH evaluation team: Rosemary Cant (Project Manager), Barbara Meddin and Colin Penter. Rosemary, Colin and Barbara are experienced evaluators who have undertaken a number of significant projects for government and non-government organisations in Western Australia, Australia, and in the case of Barbara Meddin, overseas.

Session 7 - Research stream - paper presentations

Street to home – service models in three states

Presented by Dr Eleanor Button, Flinders University, South Australia

Flinders University has been funded by the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs to

document and explore the Street to Home service models and client outcomes in WA, SA and the NT. This research is longitudinal and will be completed at the end of 2012. This presentation will focus on the findings of the first round of research interviews with service managers. The presentation will compare the service models in each jurisdiction and highlight the different service delivery activities and service management arrangements. The research has found that in each of the models different aspects of the Street to Home (S2H) model developed by Common Ground in New York have been emphasised. The Flinders University research modelling exercise included looking at how the work of S2H services are supported by broader sector activity and service agreements with government and non-government agencies. As the research is on-

going a second round of data collection will take place in the second half of 2012 to see how the services are evolving and how their structures or service activities have changed. In addition, the research includes interviews with clients who are new to the service (in WA and NT) as well as those who have been assisted over the longer-term (SA). Preliminary findings from the first round of interviews with clients will be presented.

Dr Eleanor Button works as a Research Officer at the Flinders University in South Australia. Eleanor’s PhD explored the relationship between problem gambling and pathways into and through homelessness. Eleanor has been involved in the field of homelessness since she graduated from the Hatfield Polytechnic (UK) in 1983. She then worked in NGOs helping agencies in the UK and Ireland to develop accommodation and support services for homeless young people. After she completed her MSc at the London School of Economics (UK), Eleanor held a variety of national homelessness policy positions. Since moving to South Australia Eleanor has worked for NGOs as well as for State and Local Government. Her work in Australia has included conducting community consultations on strategic housing and homelessness issues as well as implementing practical initiatives focused on community well-being and social inclusion.

Session 7 continued...

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Sessions 8, 14 and 20 - Interactive workshop for Specialist Homelessness Services (SHS)

Quality service provision in practice

Facilitated by the Department for Child Protection and the Western Australian Council on Homelessness (WACH)

The Homelessness White Paper, The Road Home: A National Approach to Reducing Homelessness set the agenda for tackling homelessness by 2020 with ambitious targets to:

• Halve overall homelessness • Offering supported accommodation to all rough

sleepers who seek it • Proposed new legislation to replace the

Supported Accommodation Assistance Act 1994.

To maximise outcomes, it was envisioned that a National Quality Framework (NQF) will provide a level of consistency of minimum quality across Australia with the delivery of ongoing improvement and better integration of services by Specialist Homelessness Services (SHS) and allied and mainstream organisations.

This interactive workshop, offered three times throughout the conference, will provide delegates with an opportunity to contribute to the review of the Western Australian Supported Accommodation Assistance Program (the former SAAP) Service Standards in line with the development of the NQF. The workshop will also provide useful information on the status of the NQF for SHS and mainstream agencies.

SHS delegates are encouraged to attend one of these sessions.

Are homelessness and other services integrated? What is the impact of service integration and does it work for clients?

Presented by Winthrop Professor Paul Flatau, Director, Centre for Social Impact, University of Western Australia (UWA)

How, and to what extent, do specialist homelessness, mental health and drug and alcohol agencies/organisations work

together in partnership or in integrated teams to deliver services to client/consumers who have homelessness-related, mental health, substance use and other needs? Do clients perceive that they are part of a seamless system that addresses their needs regardless of where they

land? What are the overall benefits and costs of service integration? This presentation will present evidence on these key questions from a national study being conducted in Perth, Melbourne and Sydney among specialist homelessness, mental health, and drug and alcohol services.

Winthrop Professor Paul Flatau is the Director of the Centre for Social Impact (UWA) and has published widely across the fields of social policy, labour markets, housing and homelessness, education, Indigenous outcomes and the history of economic thought. Paul has managed over 25 major studies in Australia covering topics as diverse as Indigenous access to social housing, unemployment, the measurement of poverty, inter-generational homelessness, the cost-effectiveness of social programs, and housing careers.

Session 7 continued

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Session 9 - Service integration - panel presentation

Local solutions: regional homelessness planning in Western Australia

Presented by Hilary MacWilliam, Manager Special Projects NPAH, Housing Policy, Department of Housing; Ross Kyrwood, CEO, YMCA / WACH; Neil Hamilton, CEO, Accordwest and Andrew Geddes, District Director Peel, Department for Child Protection

The Western Australian Homelessness State Plan 2010-2013 – Opening Doors to Address Homelessness outlines the outcomes and key principles for implementing an improved, integrated approach to homelessness. It requires all relevant agencies and services to come together to work to open doors and improve circumstances for homeless people and those at risk. The development of Regional Homelessness Plans looks to implement an integrated service system responding to homelessness at a local level.

The process commenced in November 2010 with workshops in each region involving local stakeholders and was jointly facilitated by the Department for Child Protection regional offices, and the Western Australian Council on Homelessness (WACH). Regional discussion papers were distributed prior to the country and metropolitan workshops in 2011. Each Regional Homelessness Plan identifies three key priority actions to address homelessness. There are 16 Regional Homelessness Plans covering the State for 2011-2012.

State and Regional Plans will be reviewed in late 2012 to early 2013 and it is anticipated that the review will identify means of maintaining on-going momentum to ensure homelessness remains a priority in regions. The current learnings from the processes and outcomes of two Regional Homelessness Plans will be presented.


Working well in the South East Corridor

Presented by Manika Goel, Housing Support Worker, Centrecare and Michelle Bryan, Housing Support Worker, Mission Australia

A presentation on the successful collaborative relationship between Centrecare and Mission Australia and the delivery of the Homelessness Accommodation Support Worker program in the South East Corridor.

Topics to include: Snap shots of both agencies, the ongoing development of working relationships, joint allocation process for the South East Corridor, joint brochures and email address. Relationships with the Department of Housing and will also provide a case study.

Mission Australia and Centrecare continue to work at the partnership and continually reflect on the ways we work together.

Helping clients to get a private rental – the challenges and pitfalls

Presented by Steve Thrussell, Manager Youth and Family Services, MercyCare and Tania Hennah, Housing Support Worker, MercyCare

It is a well-known fact that for homeless people, securing a private tenancy is extremely difficult. Being a young person adds another further hurdle. The housing situation has worsened over the last few years and the cost of renting is out of reach for most single young people.

MercyCare Youth Services achieved some success with assisting young parents in obtaining private rentals. Staff have developed a number of strategies to increase the chances of these clients to succeed in a difficult and challenging arena. This presentation will discuss these strategies and show some of the tools used to help young people.

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Session 11 - Quality services - interactive workshop

Best practice for working with children in specialist homelessness services

Presented by Louise Carey, Children’s Policy Officer, Women’s Council for Domestic and Family Violence Services (WA)

In 2006/07, 51% of women who accessed crisis accommodation in WA to escape domestic and family violence had children with them (AIHW, 2008). Furthermore children make up a large percentage of clients in broader homelessness services.

Since July 2011 children have been counted as clients in their own right through the National Specialist Homelessness Services Data Collection. This has been terrific in recognising that children actively respond to their circumstances and are not passive in their experiences of homelessness, and the need to work just as intensively with them due to the pervasive nature of homelessness. Many services already work intensely and creatively with children; however, the recent focus on this work highlights the need for broad standards in light of gaps in services, training and information identified over the past three years.

The Keeping Kids Safe project has been investigating models of best practice for working with children, including comprehensive State-wide consultation with specialist domestic and family violence homelessness services. These consultations have been utilised to develop draft best practice standards for working with children. Although these standards have been developed primarily with the domestic and family violence services, it has been recognised that their broad and inclusive nature could be of good use to the homelessness sector as a whole, and conversely that other specialist homelessness services have valuable input that could be included in the standards.

This workshop will focus best practice standards for working with children in homelessness services, allowing services to contribute to the standards to ensure that they are comprehensive and inclusive. Most significantly this highlights the experience of children experiencing homelessness.

Session 12 - Multiple themes - interactive workshop

Family homelessness – towards an integrated service approach

Presented by Michael Piu, Chief Operations Officer, St Patrick’s Community Support Centre Ltd and Alison Lawrie, Manager Accommodation Program, Fremantle Multicultural Centre

The interactive workshop will be on the topic of ‘Developing a Best Practice Model for Responding to Family Homelessness’. The workshop will explore with participants what occurs when a homeless family presents to a homelessness service or mainstream agency. It will also seek to identify best practice in responding to families who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.

Participants will be invited to reflect upon “What are we worried about?” / “What is working well?” / and “What needs to happen?”. Drawing from their own casework experience and providing case examples participants will identify “What are we worried about’ in terms of family homelessness; including considerations related to family homelessness and risks to children. The workshop outcomes will be used in the development of an integrated family homelessness service model of best practice.

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Session 13 - Research stream - paper presentations

Aboriginal women and the art and science of service linkages

Presented by Leah Watkins, Researcher, Starfish Consulting

Service integration, collaboration and building strong linkages between agencies are the current buzz words for improving access and outcomes for people in need. A year-long research project undertaken by Ruah Community Services investigating how such service linkages benefit homeless Aboriginal women found there are several steps in the process for this to be effective.

The first step is understanding the cultural and personal importance of trust when working with Aboriginal women and how this means they tend to remain with individual workers they already know, or who are recommended by their peers. The second step is developing strategies for these grass roots workers to be part of the networking process and build their linkages and knowledge. Only with these two steps in place will the final step of collaborative work around service integration be fully effective.

Using this process, the research identified a wide range of strategies, key players and benefits involved in building strong service linkages that could improve the lives of homeless Aboriginal women and the quality of service we offer them. Leah Watkins (Starfish Consulting) undertook a major research project in 2011 commissioned by Ruah Community Services, funded by Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs (FaHCSIA) and administered by the WA Department for Child Protection (DCP).

Under the bridge and under the radar – the food security and nutrition of homeless young people

Presented by Jill Whelan, PhD Candidate, Deakin University; Food Security Practitioner, Time for Youth

Acute hunger is one of the many challenges faced by homeless youths who are typically beyond the reach of mainstream services. Pre-intervention research documented the poor nutrition of this group and identified preferred strategies for improved food security. This paper reports on the evaluation of the subsidised Cafe Meals program five years after implementation in Geelong. Twenty homeless young people as well as 26 stakeholders, including youth workers, cafe owners and youth agency managers participated in semi-structured interviews that collected qualitative and quantitative data. They provided unique insights into the impacts of hunger and homelessness on their capacity to deal with daily life.

Eighty-five percent of these youths regularly experienced food insecurity despite engagement with support services. When involved in the Cafe Meals program, meal frequency and vegetable intake were higher. Youth and cafe owners provided evidence of increased social inclusion through the young persons’ participation in the program. Youth workers acknowledged the importance of food and nutrition in their clients’ journeys to independence, although insufficient resources limited their capacity to meet this need. Ongoing funding of such interventions remained problematic. These findings highlight the complex issues surrounding food provision for homeless youth but also provide valuable insights into the benefits of a model which promotes social inclusion and dignity as well as better nutrition. Quality service provision in practice

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Session 15 - Service integration - interactive workshop

The Mobile Clinical Outreach Team (MCOT): bringing mental health to the streets

Presented by Anthony Collier, MCOT Manager, Department of Health, Dr Peter Morton, Consultant Psychiatrist, and Russell Oliver, Clinical Nurse, Department of Health

This presentation will focus on engagement of rough sleepers, the development of service integration between specialist mental health and the NGO homelessness sector, processes for successful transition of rough sleepers into mainstream mental health services and the use of data to demonstrate clinical outcomes.

Government Mental Health Services (MHS) traditionally operate on geographical inclusion criteria, which in practice, excludes the primary homeless. Additionally, there is a significant co-morbidity of mental illness and substance abuse in this cohort, which tends to exclude clients from either specialist service.

Commencing in August 2010 as part of the Street To Home program, the Mobile Clinical Outreach Team (MCOT) is a small, government

team of two Clinical Nurse Specialists, a 0.4FTE Consultant Psychiatrist and a Program Manager who work with NGO Assertive Outreach Workers and Housing Support Workers to address the needs of rough sleepers in the metropolitan areas of Perth and Fremantle. MCOT provides holistic outreach mental health assessment and intervention as part of the multi-agency “wrap around” service delivery approach for rough sleepers.

MCOT clinicians face unique practice challenges within this framework. Removed from the traditional settings of Inpatient Units and Community Mental Health Clinics, we seek to incorporate shared-care frameworks with established service providers (government and non-government), provide consultation/liaison for “Street to Home” Program NGO’s, direct provision of intensive, outreach mental health psychiatric care for clients, dual-diagnosis services, basic counselling, screening for general health services, training and education for NGO’s, and reporting data for both government MHS and the Street to Home Program.

Session 14 - Interactive workshop for Specialist Homelessness Services (SHS)










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Creative partnerships improving the homelessness services

Presented by Lynne Evans, CEO, St Bartholomew’s House

St Bartholomew’s CEO will discuss the journey the organisation has taken, starting 10 years ago, with an effort to provide homelessness services for 148 people in the Perth Metropolitan area. With cutting edge and eco-sensitive design by Perth based architects, Formworks, and building and fit out undertaken by Northerly, St Bartholomew’s new Lime Street building in East Perth will be a culmination of efforts, passion, planning and dedication to provide the first homelessness service of this kind in WA. The success of this project has relied upon strong partnerships and along the way has improved understanding and respect for the basis of the building, its purpose and its users, by all involved.

The building supports a multi-program layout made up of residential aged care, crisis and transitional accommodation and single occupancy self- contained units. With storm-water harvesting, LED lighting, wind optimising design, wind turbines and solar panels, Lime Street is very much a building of 2012 in respect to minimising the carbon footprint. The interior has been used as a canvas for art, with a sense of bringing the outside in, through landscaped interior gardens, coloured glazed bricks, interior climbing plants through the inside balconies, coloured tinted windows and a harnessing of light through multi coloured glass bricks. Set on a small East Perth plot, it has still managed to maintain its practicality. The underpinning aspects of the building and its design maintain the focus on St Bartholomew’s clients and the use of the building to be one where people can be assisted to turn their lives around.

Skill sharing program

Presented by Karen Havard, Acting Manager, Nardine Wimmins Refuge

Nardine Wimmin’s Refuge ‘Skill Sharing Program’ has been building upon workers skills for the benefit of all Nardine’s clients as well as building self confidence within the workforce. Clients are also sharing their skills with staff which is serving to boost client self confidence.

The skill sharing program has been so successful that Nardine are now extending this to the wider community. Nardine are doing this by a cross pollination of skills between refuges and other agencies including Nardine’s link in with the Pat Giles Centre for Counselling; Graceville for Budgeting and Child Support as well as Armadale Court; Nardine and Graceville are currently working on a joint literacy project.

Casual workers, working with other refuges, share their skills with Nardine without compromising confidentiality. Skill sharing includes transparency, for without this, effective skill sharing would not work. This transparency is helping to build up trust between refuges involved. This means clients are receiving professional expertise from the refuge in which they reside, and also benefit greatly from the extended knowledge and skills continually being gained by workers.

This practice has increased staff and client motivation tenfold and is having a positive domino effect throughout the refuge. This practice is gaining momentum as Nardine continually look for opportunities to share their skills as well as sourcing skills from other agencies and professionals. The goal is that staff will have an abundance of skills and knowledge, transferable to the community at large, to help provide community sustainability.

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Session 17 - Quality services - workshop

Session 18 - Focus group for research - for managers and staff of Specialist Homelessness Services

Is anyone better off? The foyer project and Results Based Accountability

Presented by Jethro Sercombe, Manager, Foyer Project, Anglicare WA and Desiree Nangle, Evaluation Project Manager, Anglicare WA

Foyer Oxford represents a new way of doing things in Western Australian youth homeless services provision. Combining high quality accommodation, holistic individualised supports and access to education and training opportunities, the Foyer model is designed to assist young people to find long term solutions to their homelessness. Foyer is structured around a ‘something for something’ deal – a signed agreement with a young person matched with a service guarantee from the Foyer itself. But in making that guarantee to the client group, how do we know what the quality of the service is, or whether it truly leaves anyone better off?

At almost the same time, Anglicare WA has begun a two year journey to implement the Results Based Accountability (RBA) evaluation

framework and methodology across all its services. This choice is centered on a strong desire to know and have evidence of the impact our services have. An awarded WA Government Social Innovations Grant is supporting Anglicare WA’s work with RBA over the next two years.

This workshop draws on the experience of the first six months of operation of the Interim Foyer Program, a trial designed to establish the service model required for the eventual 98 apartment Foyer Oxford Facility onsite at the Central Institute of Technology Campus in Leederville. It will outline RBA methodology as developed by Mark Friedman at the Fiscal Policy Studies Institute, why Anglicare WA has chosen RBA over other methodologies, and how it allows a focus on outcomes within the Foyer Program. It will discuss how RBA has become integrated into Foyer service evaluation and improvement and how it could be integrated into other areas like program reporting. It will also give delegates an opportunity to reflect on their own service outcomes and how RBA might work in other homelessness service provision.

Risk factors in homelessness programs and interventions – focus group

Presented by Dr Eleanor Button, Flinders University, South Australia

How do accommodation and support service managers and staff define service ‘success’, ‘effectiveness’ and ‘failure’? How can they tell when a service is doing well and what do they do when a service is under-performing?

This national research is funded by FaHCSIA and is focused on the exploration of how service managers identify and respond to the risks associated with providing accommodation and support services to homeless people. In particular the research explores how service managers define service ‘success’, ‘failure’ and ‘effectiveness’ and we are keen to document the processes used to help identify whether or not services delivered to homeless people are effective or under-performing as well as understanding what action is taken in the case of a service being judged as under-performing in some way. The focus group will provide an important opportunity for researchers to draw on

current working knowledge and expertise that will enable broad and subjective terms such as ‘success’ to be broken down into component parts that can then be re-constituted as objective criteria that is of use to service providers and funders. The aims of the research are to contribute to:

• sector capacity by developing baseline criteria to help gauge service ‘success’, ‘effectiveness’ and ‘failure’;

• service delivery and policy-making capacity by identifying the processes by which judgements are made about service ‘failure’ and actions taken as a result;

• understandings about the conditions in which service managers and staff are more likely to share information about service ‘failure’ with other homelessness sector stakeholders.

This research project is a joint activity between Flinders University and the South Australian Council on Social Services. The research has been approved by the Flinders University Social and Behavioural Research Ethics Committee (Project Number 5485).

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Session 19 - Multiple themes - paper presentations

Disruptive behaviour management strategy

Presented by Scott Campbell, Manager, Housing Policy Affordable Rental and Community Housing, Department of Housing

In December 2009 the Department of Housing commenced implementation of the Cabinet endorsed Disruptive Behaviour Management Strategy. The Strategy aimed to take a firmer line in public tenancy management in response to community concerns about ongoing disruptive behaviour by a small proportion of public housing tenants. The Strategy’s profile was elevated in 2011 with a tightening of the policy framework to hold tenants to account for their behaviour, the establishment of a Disruptive Behaviour Management Unit to specialise in managing disruptive tenancies, and the passage of the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2011, which provides new provisions for social housing landlords to terminate disruptive tenancies. The presentation will provide participants with a greater understanding of the policy, legal and practical context around the Strategy by examining the following:

• Achieving a fair balance between the competing rights of disadvantaged clients, who are reliant on public housing and may experience a range of vulnerabilities, and those of the broader community;

• The role of support providers in working collaboratively with the Department and mutual clients to prevent disruption to neighbours and eviction;

• Examining the legal framework within which tenancy dysfunction is managed and responded to, how this will change, and de-bunking myths about the Residential Tenancies Amendment Act 2011;

• Understanding the true magnitude of the problem and the impact of the Strategy on rates of tenancy failure.

Seeking optimal outcomes – review of the tenant support program

Presented by Jacqui Herring, Manager Housing Policy, Department of Housing

Over the past two decades the Housing Authority has provided a range of support programs to assist tenants in public housing. A comprehensive reform of this suite of programs is now required and so the Authority has developed an overarching framework in consultation with existing service providers and other key stakeholders to guide and inform the future delivery of tenant support services. This presentation will share the framework, the outcomes and measurement tools that were developed.

The ‘new’ Tenant Support Program will focus on the outcomes of improved tenant capability and sustained tenancies. A cohesive data collection, reporting and monitoring framework will also be implemented to accurately measure the program’s effectiveness. When tenant support is provided effectively, and clients are engaged and committed to the program of support, positive tenancy management benefits are accrued. The short to medium term outcomes of effective tenant support include:

• Tenants understand the tenancy issues and the possible solutions

• Disruptive behaviour and complaints are reduced

• Rent arrears and water consumption debts reduce

• Damage to properties is reduced • Property standards improve.

Over the longer term, effective tenant support can lead to tenants being able to independently manage their tenancy, increase their capacity for social and economic inclusion, and improve their financial stability and life skills. It may also lead to improved neighbourhood relations.

Session 19 continued...

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Where do I fit? Successful relationships – NPAH so far

Presented by Nikki Bollard, Project Coordinator NPAH Service Delivery, Department of Housing

Housing and control over our lives help us to define where we are in the world. The WA implementation of NPAH shows how multiple agencies work with clients to achieve a safer home or accommodation and ways to keep them. Strong relationships have been fundamental to the client successes shared across agencies in the NPAH experience so far. Clients with complex needs are at the epicentre of these relationships. They depend on agencies and services to be there and to make resources available when needed.

Relationships begin when a client is referred for assistance from a hospital, clinic, rehabilitation centre or emergency refuge. While our clients’ worlds are not easy or complete in the context of the wider environment, working together can assist decisions about which agencies are involved with the client/s and how to work with them to get effective referral outcomes. To date the Department of Housing has provided over 550 properties across the State to house over 1180 homeless people who are NPAH clients and their families. Each region encounters its own set of challenges.

‘Where do I fit?’ is a way of sharing how we and our joint clients can view the realities and possibilities on the way from ‘Where in the world am I?’ to ‘My best world’.

Session 19 continued

Session 20 - Interactive workshop for Specialist Homelessness Services (SHS)










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Doing what works…. Achieving outcomes together with aboriginal families

Presented by Sue Theunissen, Program Manager, Swan Emergency Accommodation and Jill Pearce, Senior Housing Support Worker, Swan Emergency Accommodation

This presentation will explore the elements of what Swan Emergency Accommodation (SEA) experience is showing works to produce quality outcomes with Aboriginal families within collaborative and integrated National Affordable Housing Agreement (NAHA) and National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness (NPAH) services.

Working successfully with Aboriginal Families within the context of NAHA and NPAH involves a holistic model which emphasises a number of essential elements. Developing positive and secure attachment with the Housing Support Worker is integral to enable the ‘peeling back’ of the layers of issues impacting on the maintenance of stable accommodation. Recognition of past and on-going trauma effecting the lives of Aboriginal families is critical in this approach. A worker mind set of being able to ‘go the distance’ with families is encouraged.

Recent SEA experience has shown that optimal client outcomes are also achieved where engagement is also at a broader organisational level where families are supported to dip in and out of relevant and culturally appropriate services on an as-needs basis. The above concepts will be demonstrated through a case study.

Indigenous visitors accommodation

Presented by Maxine Chi, Principal Policy Officer Aboriginal Housing, Department of Housing

This presentation will discuss the affirmative action being undertaken in Western Australia to address issues associated with Indigenous homelessness and mobility due to a range of factors including: lack of short stay accommodation and housing, health reasons (dialysis treatment, pregnancy, mental health, out-patient care), alcohol restrictions in towns and Aboriginal communities, employment, education and training needs, cultural and social obligations.

The impact of these movements can increase town populations dramatically. The Australian Bureau of Statistics census data indicates that up to 10% of Indigenous populations in regional centres are made up of temporary residents from discrete remote communities. In addition, it is estimated that the Indigenous population will increase in population share from 38% to 42% across the wet tropics area (Cape York to the Kimberley) by 2016.

A lack of suitable short stay accommodation has meant that visitors from remote communities often stay in public areas in town or with family and friends in already overcrowded housing. This can exacerbate risk of evictions from private and public rental housing and generates animosity between residents, visitors and Indigenous and non-Indigenous town dwellers. Associated with this are additional hardships, increased risk of anti-social and criminal behaviour and other safety concerns for town dwellers and Aboriginal people coming to town as well as placing additional pressure on law and order, health, housing and welfare services.

Session 21 - Service integration - paper presentation

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My tenancy my home: a new approach to tenancy management in remote aboriginal communities

Presented by Monique Berkhout, Manager Aboriginal Housing Policy, Department of Housing

The My Tenancy My Home Tenant Management Support System is made up of a set of simple, visual tools for use by Housing Officers providing a tenancy management service to discrete Aboriginal communities with a Housing Management Agreement. It was developed in consultation with Aboriginal staff and tenants whose early input, expertise and local knowledge was invaluable and contributed to the depth and authenticity of the discussions. The System:

• Supports the Housing Officer by providing a systematic and structured framework for managing all tenancies, using a solution focussed approach for problematic tenancies and a celebratory approach for successful tenancies;

• Is an educational tool for tenants because it clearly explains what an ideal tenancy looks

like, what a tenant needs to do to achieve and maintain a successful tenancy and it helps tenants understand how to prevent problems and be proactive if problems arise;

• Helps an Aboriginal community by providing protocols for decision making concerning rent and troublesome tenancies;

• Enhances relationships between stakeholders by defining mutual goals and key responsibilities; and

• Allows tenancy sustainability trends across communities, regions and time to be measured.

The main matrix – My Tenancy My Home – will be the primary focus of this workshop. It has been designed to be used as a storyboard, face-to-face, with applicants or tenants. It will ensure a greater level of consistency in how tenancies are managed in remote Aboriginal communities and allow a coordinated approach between service providers.

Session 23 - Quality services - interactive workshop

Session 22 - Partnerships - interactive workshop

Empowerment – how do we make this a reality for vulnerable people experiencing homelessness?

Presented by Margaret MacDonald, Manager, The Salvation Army – The Graceville Centre

Empowerment is the central theme in most homelessness and family violence services - but how do we empower the people who come to us in a state of vulnerability and disempowerment? Empowerment effectively means that people are able to make their own decisions and choices. It also means that they develop confidence in their own capacities and accept responsibility for their own actions as well as gaining more control over their lives.

The pathway to empowerment lies in having access to relevant information, realistic options and sound, non-judgemental advice. When this is provided by caring and empathetic workers, people are empowered to take control and manage their own situation. The Salvation Army Graceville Women’s Centre assists women

and children experiencing family violence and provides this pathway to empowerment through a range of targeted programs and individual assistance that include:

• Boundaries • New Beginnings • The Parenting Toolbox • Positive Lifestyle Programmes • Budget Cooking • Safe from the Start.

The service approach uses tools such as the Duluth Wheel and the Empowerment Outcomes Star to support service users to understand the process of change and moving forward as well as helping them to track their progress towards being empowered in all aspects of their lives. This workshop will provide a snapshot of each of these tools and discuss their effectiveness in supporting vulnerable families to gain mastery over their lives and their future.

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Not just getting housing, but staying in it: reflections on critical time intervention

Presented by Jennifer Murphy, Team Coordinator, Intensive Housing Support Program, Ruah Community Services and Dr Helen Lette, Manager, Data and Evaluation Unit, Ruah Community Services

Finding housing for people without great track records is hard enough. Finding housing that they will want to stay in, and then helping them develop the skills and resources to maintain those tenancies, is even harder. This paper will:

• Introduce Ruah Intensive Housing Support, a program which supports people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness to secure and maintain long term stable accommodation in the community, and describe what the program offers.

• Describe the Critical Time Intervention model used by the program, in which intensive support is applied at the time of transition from psychiatric inpatient unit to community, then, long-term community links are developed and strengthened. The program has already undergone its first Fidelity Audit of this evidence-based model, under the guidance of its US developer.

• Reflect on the factors that have contributed to all of this program’s clients remaining successfully housed after 12 months, and discuss the community resource issues that are so important to successful outcomes being maintained.

• Conclude with a DVD showing clients and workers in the program discussing their experiences and insights.

Juvenile offenders – gaining and maintaining independent accommodation (life wise program)

Presented by Natasha Edwards, Housing Support Worker, Corrective Services Juvenile, Youth Futures WA

The Housing Support Worker Corrective Services (Juvenile) program works with young people between the ages of 16-18 exiting detention. The program supports them for a period of twelve months to gain and maintain independent, long term and stable accommodation.

Juvenile offenders have multiple barriers to gaining and maintaining independent accommodation. Many clients have been deemed unsuitable for the Housing Support Worker program and/or have been unsuccessful in maintaining their tenancy. This is largely due to the young person’s lack of independent living skills which affects the success of clients being appropriate for housing or maintaining tenancy.

To address these issues Youth Futures WA has created a program called Life Wise. The program aims to work with young people in detention to learn the basic skills of living independently as well as living confidently within the community. Youth Futures WA has secured funding through the Community Crime and Prevention Fund and are currently beginning the process of implementing Life Wise.

Session 24 - Paper presentations

Specialist Homelessness Services Conference

Email: [email protected]

Telephone: (08) 9222 2903

Fax: (08) 9221 0178

Address: PO Box 6334, East Perth WA 6892

http://www.dcp.wa.gov.au/servicescommunity/Pages/Homelessness.aspx

specialist homelessness services conference · to homelessness. leading the road home! is a timely...

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