Housing

Housing is a basic human right and a key way to address poverty.

Australia has a housing affordability crisis.

Increasing housing costs are causing widespread stress, especially to those living in poverty who struggle to afford even basic accommodation.

How does BSL help?

BSL works to ensure all people have access to safe, secure affordable and appropriate housing.

• Our Education First Youth Foyers provide supported accommodation and an educational environment for young people who are homeless or at risk of homelessness for up to two years. Secure housing enables them to focus on their studies and graduate with qualifications to help them be independent. We are a founding member of the Education First Youth Foyer Model and provide backbone support for the Foyer Foundation.
• We provide residential aged care accommodation for older people experiencing poverty and disadvantage.
• We produce and publish the Rental Affordability Index , in partnership with National Shelter and others. We use it to highlight the experiences of disadvantaged households with media and key stakeholders, and it raises the issue to the fore of the national agenda.
• We are part of a number of key advisory groups, including the University of Melbourne Affordable Housing Initiative, AHURI research grants, and Vic Residential Tenancies Commissioner Reference Group.
• We conduct research with Melbourne Disability Institute on innovative housing models for People with Disability.
• We are the architect and ongoing adviser to the Tasmanian Government’s “Housing Connect” strategy to prevent homelessness for young people.
• With our research and insights, we produce policy recommendations , service and practice development frameworks, and publications that we use to advocate for change with government and other stakeholders.