What we've learned about social housing

To get it right, key decisions need to be made at the outset. Here are the top five dealbreaker decisions as we see them:

Invest in placemaking 

An investment in placemaking should be a non-negotiable component of the development agreement. Placemaking operates at the design and social levels and is essential for the long-term wellbeing of a community. It’s both a design consideration and program of curated experiences.

Physical spaces must be available where people can come together and interact. Socially, it’s about programs such as Live Life Get Active, ‘meet the neighbours’ events, outdoor movie nights and other such organised gatherings that help to incubate a new community.

The investment in placemaking is especially critical to integrate community housing, to ensure the needs of people who are more socially disadvantaged are addressed.

Ensure your design does not discriminate

Regardless of whether the community housing dwellings are in a single high-rise apartment building within a high density community, or freestanding townhomes in a lower density structure, they should be aesthetically indistinguishable from the private dwellings.

Factors like the site’s location, land ownership structures and the demographics of the surrounding neighbourhood can influence the design response when placing different tenure homes side by side.

Keeping the community housing dwellings separate may be advantageous depending on the strata management solution adopted, as logistical and legislative considerations – such as points of entry and access to common areas – are factored in. It might also provide Government with a whole asset to be managed in its entirety.

But this strategy puts the pressure on the design team to devise an architectural response that fosters an integrated community.

The Ivanhoe community in Sydney (pictured below) will integrate community, affordable and private housing in separate buildings, although the nature of the tenancies will be indistinguishable.

Choose your strata management solution

Regardless of how the different types of housing are physically structured within a community, the strata management solution must provide for a clear delineation of strata issues for public and private.

Depending on the ownership structure, the ongoing management requirements can be vastly different. For example, some parks and outdoor spaces may be given over to the local Council to manage but other external and internal community spaces may be jointly owned, so the management of access to these spaces needs to be determined.

Embed social and community services

This is important for every development, but where community housing is integrated, the provision of tailored services that support the specific needs of residents is even more crucial.

Ideally, community housing is a stepping stone. It’s about providing a safe and secure home in a vibrant and well-connected community for people to take the next step in their lives.

To help community housing tenants achieve safety, stability and independence through employment, and help them to progress to alternative housing options, a suite of tailored, person-centred supports and services is needed to connect them with local services, education, training and employment opportunities.

Management of these services must be costed into the project delivery agreement on an ongoing basis and provided by a tier one Community Housing Provider (CHP).

Dedicated funding generated through the Ivanhoe Estate development will be reinvested in social outcomes in the community over 20 years. Mission Australia will coordinate a comprehensive suite of tailored, person-centred supports and services for social housing tenants who elect to access them.

Commit to making amenity a tool for integration

Like any new masterplanned community, there must be an emphasis on providing common spaces for everyone to be immersed in when they walk out their door.

Community infrastructure, indoor facilities and outdoor spaces that encourage connections, including connections to surrounding neighbourhoods, retail and employment hubs, should all be backed by social initiatives designed to foster community ties.

At Local Carlton (pictured below) in Melbourne, two highly functional communal areas – a rooftop terrace and an urban park – are included to create community connections. Everything is designed with the end user in mind, be they a community housing tenant or private dwelling owner. In short, it’s designed for people who love inner city apartment living.

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We acknowledge and thank our collaborators

Ivanhoe Estate, Macquarie Park NSW | Citta Property Group, Mission Australia Housing, NSW Government Land and Housing Corporation
Living Carlton, Carlton VIC | Citta Property Group, Development Victoria
Queens Riverside, East Perth WA | WA Housing Authority