The WA Housing Strategy was launched today by Housing Minister Peter Tinley at an event hosted by the UDIA and HIA, with representatives from the housing not-for-profit sector and private industry.
The WA Housing Strategy 2020-2030 sets a new direction for housing in Western Australia over the next 10 years. The Strategy will connect people to safe, stable and sustainable homes, while improving housing choice and outcomes for households and communities. It will also create an agile housing system that can respond to social and economic changes.
The Strategy commits to:
- connecting 150,000 WA households to a home
- building liveable, inclusive and connected communities that improve social and economic participation
- creating jobs and contributing to the State’s economy
- improving outcomes through a more integrated approach to housing and service assistance.
In order to reach the target of connecting 150,000 households to a home by 2030, the Strategy calls for developing a more diverse rental sector which will support 130,000 households to access a private rental home. It also sets a target for a six per cent net increase in social housing, adding about 2,600 homes to the 42,932 social homes in WA.
The WA Housing Strategy 2020-2030 is an example of best-practice policy development. It was informed by a consultation process which involved over 600 individuals and 200 organisations across the State, including stakeholders from the private and community sectors, government and people with lived experience.
The Department of Communities is currently developing three plans to support the implementation of the Strategy. The Affordable Housing Implementation Plan, due for completion later this year, will set the agenda and articulate the roles and responsibilities in relation to affordable housing delivery.
The Social Housing Framework will look at how we can create a more agile social housing system that can respond to changing housing needs. It is expected to be launched in mid-2021.
The Regional and Remote Housing Implementation Plan will assess the unique needs and characteristics of each region and is due to be rolled out in late 2021.
The new Strategy builds on the Affordable Housing Strategy 2010-2020 and the Affordable Housing Action Plan 2017-2020 which positioned Western Australia as a leader in affordable housing and set a target of creating 35,000 housing opportunities. The State Government eclipsed the target, providing 36,662 housing opportunities over the 10-year period.
