Aboriginal Housing Board of Victoria
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Summary of Forward Plan

Title to the properties

Title to all 725 properties held under the Victorian Aboriginal Rental Housing Program would be transferred from the Office of Housing to the Aboriginal Housing Board which would hold clear title to all its properties with the power to manage and dispose of them as it saw fit.

Communities and housing programs

Communities who wish to manage housing held under the Aboriginal Rental Housing Program will be able to do so, subject to certain conditions. The major conditions to be met include:

The establishment of a separate housing management structure;
Agreeing to follow housing management guidelines as set by the Aboriginal Housing Board over a trial period;
Demonstrating an ability to maintain good rates of rental collection and keep rent arrears under control;
The provision of democratic community processes which ensure tenants have a say in the management of their housing.

Consultation with communities

Communities will have greater representation on the Board. The Board will be expanded to 20 elected members, with a minimum of two members per region.

To improve communications with the communities, a newsletter is to become a regular feature. A comprehensive information package setting out tenants rights and responsibilities is also to be prepared.

New guidelines for everything from housing selection to rent collection are to be developed by the Aboriginal Housing Board in consultation with the communities and relevant funding bodies. The process for setting new guidelines will be:

First step - Circulate a draft paper setting out the suggested new policy;
Second step - Hold workshops between Aboriginal Housing Board directors and communities to discuss the new policy;
Third step - The Aboriginal Housing Board finalises the policy taking into account community and funding bodies comments, then re-circulates the final policy.

The Plan proposes that guidelines be reviewed on an annual basis in consultation with the communities. The Board's Annual General Meeting is to become an event for consultation on the guidelines, thereby encouraging a sense of common purpose among tenants and communities.

Property purchase and construction

The Aboriginal Housing Board would decide how many houses were to be bought or built, dependent on capital funds available through the Office of Housing and federally through the Commonwealth State Housing Agreement.

In consultation with the communities, the Board would draw up guidelines concerning:

How many new houses each region would get annually;
Housing standards, and the purchase and construction price limits to apply;
Purchasing and construction procedures to be followed.

The Aboriginal Housing Board will set up its own Spot Purchase and Building Branch which will have all the expertise necessary for assessment of properties, the calling of tenders and the supervision of construction of buildings.

Koori Building Teams may freely tender for contracts using a select tender system whereby a small number of approved firms are invited to compete. All things being equal, Koori Building Teams will be preferred.

Housing allocation

In consultation with the communities, the Aboriginal Housing Board will establish uniform guidelines spelling out the priorities to be followed in selecting tenants.

These will then be applied at the local level through the local Aboriginal Housing Board regional office. Their will then be applied at the local level through the local Aboriginal Housing Board regional office. Their uniformity should ensure everyone gets a fair go.

The Aboriginal Housing Board's Allocations Committee will arbitrate over any tenant selection and priority listing disputes.

Lease conditions and tenant information

A model lease appropriate to the needs of Aboriginal people is to be drafted. The lease will be in plain English and emphasise to tenants their rights and responsibilities in relation to the Aboriginal Housing Board.

A comprehensive Housing Information Kit is to be developed, describing how the Aboriginal Housing Board works. It will also include a directory of all services provided by the Board and any other relevant bodies. Every tenant will receive a copy of this Kit on the signing of their lease.

Maintenance: short and long-term

First port of call for tenants with maintenance problems would be the Aboriginal Housing Board's local, regional office. Maintenance work would be undertaken by contractors (including Koori Building Teams where appropriate) and supervised by the Aboriginal Housing Board maintenance supervisor responsible for the area.

Regional Aboriginal housing officers would receive training in the assessment and supervision of emergency maintenance procedures so they can take responsibility when maintenance supervisors are not available locally.

A long term replacement schedule would be developed for all parts of each house, from floor to roof. A Preventative Maintenance Reserve Fund is to be created, so funds are available for regular upgrading of houses.

Rent assessment

Rent is most likely to be set at 20% of the net income of the household's main breadwinner. Rent assessments and rebate calculations would be undertaken by the Aboriginal Housing Board regional offices.

A panel of review would be established in cases of appeal against a rent assessment.

Rent collection

Tenants will have the choice of either paying rents directly at Aboriginal Housing Board regional offices, by post, by deposit book at a local bank or through direct debits from a tenant's bank account or social security payment.

A central computerised rental receipting system would record all rent paid to the Board.

Where a tenant falls into two weeks arrears, the local Aboriginal housing officer would pay a visit to see what's causing the problem. Continued failure to pay rent would result in proceedings being taken in the Residential Tenancies Tribunal to reach a rental agreement - which is what normally occurs with other public and private tenants.

New management structure of the AHB

Under the proposed Plan, the Aboriginal Housing Board will require a new structure to enable it to effectively address its greatly expanded role as the sole manager of the Victorian Aboriginal Rental Housing Program.

The Aboriginal Housing Board is to adopt a standard company structure with four subcommittees to aid in policy development. The roles of the four sub-committees are Property and Maintenance, Allocation, Finance and Administration and Community Participation and Skills Development. Each committee will be chaired by a Board member, with the power to co-opt other members as required. Each committee will be serviced by a project officer and will have the capacity to engage outside expertise as necessary, following approval by the full Board.

Background to the Forward Plan's Preparation

The Aboriginal Housing Board agreed in August, 1990 to a Forward Plan, which - if adopted - will significantly increase Aboriginal control of the 725 houses held under the Victorian Aboriginal Rental Housing Program.

Adoption of the Plan would finally realise the dream of the communities who founded the Aboriginal Housing Board ten years ago. It gives Victorian Aboriginals a new management structure which would put them firmly in the driving seat.

Currently, the Victorian Department of Human Services, Office of Housing, both sets guidelines and controls how the program is put in place, with the Aboriginal Housing Board acting in a largely advisory capacity. Under the Plan, the Aboriginal Housing Board would set all the guidelines for management of Aboriginal housing and would assume control of all service delivery.

The purpose of the Forward Plan is to set some clear objectives for the future role and functions of the Aboriginal Housing Board and the Victorian Aboriginal Rental Housing Program. The plan outlined here attempts to combine:

These workshops discussed the aspirations of the Board, its future role, its management and a possible structure that would enable it to fulfil the tasks and functions agreed on.

(b) The consultants' assessment of the feasibility of this role and structure, based on research carried out for the report Options for Greater Self Management of the Victorian Aboriginal Rental Housing Program, delivered to the Board in February, 1990. This research included consultations with the majority of local Victorian Aboriginal community organisations, government departments involved in the administration of Aboriginal housing programs, and staff and members of the Aboriginal Housing Board.

Wherever possible, the plan takes into consideration the views, desires and capabilities of the local Victorian Aboriginal organisations, expressed in the course or interviews with these groups carried out as part of the Options for Greater Self Management report, mentioned above.

Before final adoption of the Plan, the Board visited each of the communities and consulted with them about proposed changes. Negotiations are expected to begin with state and federal government funding bodies in 1991.

The Plan expands community representation on the Board. In setting new guidelines, a process has been struck which will ensure real, rather than token consultation. A process has also been put in place for communities who wish to manage their own housing under the Aboriginal Rental Housing Program.

The Plan recognises the need for extra staffing and resources if the Aboriginal Housing Board is to take full control. It assumes an increase in the budget of the Aboriginal Housing Board from $3.6 million to over $8 million in the first year of operations. Staff levels would rise from 9 to 32 people.

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