FaHCSIA aims to assist low- and moderate-income households to access affordable and appropriate housing and to support people to move out of homelessness. This includes providing funding through the states and territories for public housing and community housing. Rent Assistance helps to make rental housing costs more affordable for eligible people receiving income support or family payments.
Access to stable and affordable housing, coupled with improved access to other services, helps support positive life transitions and can provide crucial help for vulnerable people, including those leaving child protection, domestic violence or health facilities.
FaHCSIA has whole-of-government oversight of social housing and homelessness policy and works in partnership with states and territories to improve the housing outcomes for Australians. Payments made under COAG national agreements are made by the Department of the Treasury. Performance indicators can be found at www.federalfinancialrelations.gov.au.
FaHCSIA is responsible for a range of initiatives to address homelessness and leads whole-of-government efforts to achieve the Government's homelessness reduction targets. Much of this work is done in partnership with states and territories under the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness, which supports the National Affordable Housing Agreement.
Through the National Partnership Agreement on Mental Health, the Government will work with the states and territories to reduce the risk of homelessness among people with mental health conditions.
FaHCSIA is working with states and territories and the not-for-profit sector to provide a significant number of additional social and affordable housing dwellings through the Nation Building – Economic Stimulus Plan and the National Partnership Agreement on Social Housing. The Social Housing Initiative is the largest single investment in social housing by any government in Australian history.
Outcome 2 expense statement
Table 2.2 provides an overview of the total expenses for Outcome 2, by program.
Table 2.2: Budgeted expenses for Outcome 212
Program 2.1: Housing Assistance and Homelessness Prevention
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Program 2.1 objective
To provide rental subsidies for low- and moderate-income households, and to fund homelessness prevention initiatives to reduce the impact of homelessness.
Program component objectives
Homelessness Prevention
To provide funding to support innovative prevention and early intervention initiatives to reduce homelessness and its impact, particularly on families and young people.
Rent Assistance
To make payments to low- and moderate-income Australians receiving income support or family payments to assist with the costs of renting private and community housing.
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Linked to: Payments under the National Affordable Housing Agreement, the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness, the National Partnership on Remote Indigenous Housing, the Nation Building – Economic Stimulus Plan and the National Partnership Agreement on Social Housing are made by the Commonwealth Treasury. For information about those payments, refer to the Treasury’s 2011–12 PB Statements and Budget Paper No. 3, Australia’s Federal Relations.
Rent Assistance is delivered by DVA and, from 1 July, by DHS. For information about the delivery of this service refer to each department’s 2011–12 PB Statements.
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Program 2.1 expenses
The change in program expenses across the forward estimates reflects projected changes in indexation parameters and the impact of policy initiatives.
The fluctuating change in expenses in 2011–12, 2012–13 and 2013–14 reflects the transfer of the Housing Affordability Fund to the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities as a result of the 2010 Administrative Arrangement Orders.
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Table 2.2.1: Budgeted expenses for Housing Assistance and Homelessness Prevention
Rent Assistance cash projections
Rent Assistance is not a discrete sum of money separately payable under the law but is a supplementary payment included in the calculation of primary income support payment or FTB.
The following table provides cash projections for the Rent Assistance component included in the primary income support payment or FTB.
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Table 2.2.2.1: Cash projections for Rent Assistance
Program 2.1 deliverables13
Homelessness Prevention
• Number of cases where individuals/families are assisted through homelessness prevention services14
Rent Assistance
• Rent Assistance payments are made through Centrelink to eligible claimants under the provisions of social security law and family assistance law.
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Homelessness Prevention deliverables targets
Program 2.1 key performance indicators15
Homelessness Prevention
• Proportion of clients reporting an improved situation after assistance from homelessness prevention programs
Rent Assistance
• Proportion of Rent Assistance recipients in rental stress before and after receiving Rent Assistance
• Proportion of Rent Assistance recipients paying enough rent to receive the maximum rate of assistance
• Proportion of clients assisted who identify as Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander16
• Average rent paid by Rent Assistance recipients by number of recipients, primary payment type and income unit type17
• Average Rent Assistance paid to Rent Assistance recipients by number of recipients, primary payment type and income unit type16
• Administered outlays
• Number of recipients
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Outcome 3: Community Capability and the Vulnerable
Improved capacity for vulnerable people and communities to participate economically and socially and to manage life-transitions through payments, targeted support services and community capability building initiatives.
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