As a not-for-profit Community Housing Provider, we are committed to providing social, affordable and specialist disability accommodation (SDA) homes across eastern Australia.
“We are motivated by our mission to ensure all Australians have a safe, secure and affordable home. We believe this is the best way to support any family.”
Charles Northcote, Chief Executive Office, BlueCHP
These homes support people with low to moderate incomes who can’t afford a home on the private rental market. These are homes where people can live in comfort and dignity and enjoy housing security. For some people, they provide a place where they can rebuild their lives, acquire education skills and access employment opportunities.
People living in our social and affordable homes experience relief through reduced rents and reduced energy expenses.
Every year providing homes contributes to wider social, economic and wellbeing benefits to the public and private sector. This is evaluated based on factors such as reduced healthcare expenses, improved educational attainment, and reduced housing costs, leading to economic benefits through increased consumption.
Figures calculated using the Social Infrastructure and Green Measures For Affordable Housing (SIGMAH) tool provided by Community Housing Industry Association (CHIA).
“for every $1 invested in last-resort housing, $2.70 of benefits are generated over the subsequent 20-year period, including health cost savings, improved quality of life, reduced crime costs (both as victim and perpetrator), increased human capital, avoided property blight and nuisance, volunteering, and economies of scale and scope. However, as ‘last-resort’ housing is for short-term emergency relief, helping people transition into longer-term secure tenancies, it does not account for the additional benefits associated with secure tenure.”
Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI): Social housing as infrastructure: rationale, prioritisation and investment pathway
Through our unique, participant-led GuideYouHome process, we help people searching for an SDA (specialist disability accommodation) home that will suit their needs. Delivering homes built to meet the needs of each resident in their preferred location and providing the security that this is their home for the long-term.
The first home to be delivered under the GuideYouHome participant-led process. This Robust home in Rydalmere (NSW) is designed to suit the needs of the two young men who will be living in this home long-term.
Our two residents required a home that gave them each plenty of space. Having the separate wings was really important to create their own private areas, with private living spaces designed to suit their own individual preferences and living requirements.
The large backyard has privacy fences, and was designed to be an area to be active and enjoy the outdoors; including a pool, outdoor hammock and dedicated garden spaces.
A person living in single-occupant SDA needing 2.4-hours less support per day could save the NDIA over $60,000 per person annually (Summer Foundation, 2022, Quantitative Research Summary).
A study by the Summer Foundation (2022) found that well located and appropriately designed SDA was associated with significantly improved outcomes for tenants. After moving into SDA:
Overall health improved by 60%
Well-being ratings improved by 66%
Community integration scores improved by 73%
Average daily support hours fell by 2.4 hours
Only 66% of tenants required overnight support, dropping from 87% pre-move.
BlueCHP partnered with Solar Energy Enterprises to retrofit homes in Jordan Springs with solar systems, providing affordable green energy to 64 disability homes and 90 community houses.
Our hope is with the completion of the pilot this will be a proven model to deliver solar to low income households at scale.
Since January, this pilot has generated 357,067 kWh of energy (as of mid Oct ’23). Using the most affordable energy retail cost in NSW (37.5c/kWh), this pilot has delivered $127.5K in potential energy bill savings to BlueCHP residents.
“The poor don’t have the opportunity to put solar on their homes,” BlueCHP CEO, Charles Northcote. “This is just the first major step on a pathway to go forward.”
We Are Community offers a variety of food relief services across the Macarthur, Liverpool, Camden and Wollondilly Local Government Areas. Food relief services include weekly and monthly programs, made up of Night Patrols and Community Meal Services, providing a range of cooked meals, hampers, toiletries, essential items and other services directly to vulnerable members of the community.
We Are Community provides regular meal services, offering in-centre dining and meal delivery. In addition to regular Night Patrols supplying a range of hot and frozen meals, bakery products, breakfast packs and blankets/swags.
The NSW office dedicated their time to give the community garden some much needed TLC and get the garden beds ready to start growing fresh produce to go into meals made at the centre for meal services and deliveries.
