Training program

Shelter NSW has a training program that comprises three 1/2-day courses on housing issues and policy.

Housing issues and policy 1

This course is aimed at people involved in nonprofit government organizations, who want a general understanding of key issues in housing policy. It could benefit community sector workers who work in fields outside the housing industry. It is not suitable for experienced workers in housing, accommodation and tenancy services. It is a basic introduction. The course is cross-tenure and does not detail specific government programs like community housing, cooperatives, ARHP, SAAP, CAP, TAAP, residential aged care, or disability housing, and it does not deal with program/service operational and client support issues.

Outcomes

The course is designed to enable participants to:

identify the main aspects of the housing system
identify key policy challenges related to housing assistance

About the course

A housing system is about how societies organize the supply and consumption of housing – how it gets built, how it gets used, how it gets paid for and how it gets managed. It’s also about how governments regulate housing markets and assist people who have problems getting decent housing they can afford.

There are different ways of organizing control or ownership of housing, and these vary from society to society. In Australia , ever since World War II, most people who can afford it have opted for home ownership (more than two-thirds of the population). Around a quarter of the population rents housing from private landlords. And around five percent of the population lives in publicly-owned and managed housing.

Governments can influence the housing market in a variety of ways, for example, by regulating building practices and standards, or by regulating market activity (e.g. tenancy laws). They may also provide assistance; for example, by providing cash rental assistance to individuals, or providing funds for building of social housing, or by a variety of taxation concessions.

As consumers, people gain or lose from the way housing markets work. As citizens, people debate the ways governments intervene, and the priorities governments set for assistance. They gain or lose in different ways depending on what policies are chosen. This course outlines the main features of the Australian housing system, and the key policy debates about housing assistance.

Topics

the housing system
housing markets: home ownership; private rental; social rental; homelessness
government interventions in the tenures
connections with the taxation and welfare system
affordability issues in the private markets (homeownership, private rental)
sustainability of social housing
key challenges in Aboriginal housing

Housing issues and policy 2

This course is aimed at people involved in nonprofit housing, accommodation and tenancy services, who have a general understanding of housing issues. It is an ‘intermediate’ course, and might not be suitable for experienced workers in housing, accommodation and tenancy services. The course is cross-tenure and does not detail specific government programs like community housing, cooperatives, ARHP, SAAP, CAP, TAAP, residential aged care, or disability housing, and it does not deal with program/service operational and client support issues. For training on specific nonprofit housing sub-sectors, housing workers should contact their industry peak.

Outcomes

The course is designed to enable participants to:

explain key concepts used in housing policy debates
identify key policy challenges related to housing policy in today’s Australia

About the course

A housing system is about how societies organize the supply and consumption of housing – how it gets built, how it gets used, how it gets paid for and how it gets managed. It's also about how governments regulate housing markets and assist people who have problems getting decent housing they can afford.

There are different ways of organizing control or ownership of housing, and these vary from society to society. In Australia, ever since World War II, most people who can afford it have opted for home ownership (more than two-thirds of the population). Around a quarter of the population rents housing from private landlords. And around five percent of the population lives in publicly-owned and managed housing.

Topics

market failure and the cases for state intervention
approaches to government service delivery
housing affordability
assistance to homeowners and private renters
sustainability and financing of public housing

Social housing and community voices

If you are living and or working in social housing and would like to understand what's going on, then this interactive workshop could be a good way to start.

Topics

What is happening in public housing estates in other parts of the state?
What is driving some of the decisions the government is making about estates?
Where does the money for social housing come from?
What are some of the good things that are happening to people who live in social housing?
How can tenants get involved and be heard?
How can we make our tenant group more effective?
What have other tenants done to improve their area?
How can we get our ideas across to Housing NSW and to the government?
What are public–private partnerships?
What is the 'NSW government plan for reshaping public housing' all about?
Why are they making us pay more for water?
What is the future for social housing? What could be done about it?

General information

Format

Each course is an interactive workshop using a mix of adult learning techniques, e.g. presentations with question-and-answer, case studies, problem-solving discussions.

Course facilitators

The courses are run by Shelter NSW policy staff.

Partnerships

Shelter NSW prefers to conduct courses in partnership with other organizations whose constituency is likely to be interested. We prefer the courses to be free to participants.

Contact

For further information, contact Paula Rix, 9267 5733 ext.12, email paula[at]shelternsw.org.au.

Registration

You can use this registration form to register for courses. The locations and dates for forthcoming courses are indicated on the Education page of this website.

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Updated 17-Dec-2008