Ending housing poverty together with CHL

Head Start Homes is delighted to work in partnership with Community Housing Limited (CHL), Australia’s largest housing provider, with whom we have a shared vision to end housing poverty in Australia.

We were lucky to have Dr Lucy Burgmann, Country Manager at CHL, speak at out recent AGM:

“Every day we see the significant barriers to home ownership. What we love about Head Start Homes is that they put in the steps so people can climb over that barrier and be on their way… We see tremendous potential in this for CHL tenants into the future.”

“We know that stable, affordable, quality housing is the foundation which allows people to take action in other important areas of their lives.”

CHL is playing a key role in our Mid-North Coast pilot project; referring community housing tenants into Head Start Homes who have progressed in their community housing journey and are likely to meet our eligibility criteria. CHL also offers support to applicants along their journey to becoming mortgage-ready.

Rennay Miller, Housing Oprtions & Support Manager at CHL, has been supporting applicants to apply for the Head Start Guarantee and encouraging them to continue in their savings plans. She is excited to see tenants reimagining what their futures could hold:

“Community Housing only has properties in certain locations, which may not always be in the area a family wishes to live long-terms so the level of choice and control is restricted. But entering home ownership opens your eyes again to choice and new possibilities for the future.

“To save up that sort of money for a deposit is so daunting for someone in community housing. The Head Start Guarantee offers an opportunity that would never be possible otherwise. The support available for tenants about how to save better has also been really encouraging and inspiring.”

At Head Start Homes we are so grateful for the partnership of CHL and are excited to continue our work together to increase home ownership and the supply of community housing to families in need, addressing a root cause of poverty and homelessness in Australia.

Rennay Miller (CHL) and Stephen Woodlands (Head Start Homes) together in Port Macquarie, working on the Mid-North Coast Pilot Project.