HOME WINTER 2020 In this issue: STORIES Listening to Housing Choices’ latest new Featured our Community building ‘Spence on Light’ on cover Survey Results P3-4 is nearing completion! P10 Well I’ll Bee Resident Profile International P11 Latoya Rule P4 Women’s Day P12 Neighbourly Staying Home and or Not? P8 Staying Safe P13 Find us online Follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter Housing Choices South Australia From the “These days turned out nothing like General I had planned” is a line from one of Manager my favourite Powderfinger songs. I have found myself listening programs and activities, and • Installed new common to it quite a bit lately. postponed rent increases. area lighting in our It’s exactly how I’ve been Despite this, we have still Franklin Street and feeling about what has turned managed to achieve some Light Square apartment out to be the strangest of great outcomes including: buildings years. Pretty safe to say that • Allocated 13 homes to • Maintained our 2020 turned out nothing Common Ground like any of us had planned. new Housing Choices residents and relocated Oz Harvest program It seems so long ago now, 3 existing residents to • Delivered the Common but South Australians started more suitable housing Ground annual this year responding to the • Sent out 1003 activity immunisation program aftermath of devastating packs for residents to 30 residents bushfires. We went from there straight into toilet paper and • Introduced a new With the restrictions pasta hoarding, then came program of online easing, the team and I social distancing, travel bans, activities for residents are busy planning for business shutdowns, working the second half of the • Made 272 welfare year. We hope that we from home, and directions to check calls to ROSAS just stay at home. What a time will be able to bring back residents and daily calls some of the programs of high emotion, change and to vulnerable Common uncertainty it has been. and activities we know Ground residents are being missed. Above Yet, we have also seen some • Made 2 emergency all, we hope we will be truly amazing responses from welfare check visits to able to enjoy an end of South Australians. The rally residents in ROSAS and year get together with of donations and support for 13 in Common Ground residents. people who lost homes in • Introduced new bushfires, farm animal and In the meantime, please contractors to our continue to follow the wildlife rescue efforts, and maintenance service during the pandemic a wave health advice; wash your of donations and volunteering • Raised 487 responsive hands, social distance, effort to support vulnerable repairs orders and stay safe. people in need. This includes • Delivered 75 new Julie Duncan new home delivery services of affordable CBD food and essential supplies. apartments on time State Manager SA All of this however, topped by the massive community effort • Upgraded the hot water to voluntarily stay at home to service on our Mellor stop the spread of Coronavirus Street apartment building and save lives. and upgraded the solar generation capacity Just about everything we do of the system at Housing Choices has also • Repainted the common had to be done differently areas in our CBD since mid-March. We’ve apartment buildings reduced face to face services, home visits and non-urgent repairs, cancelled community 2 Listening to The last Annual HCSA Tenant Satisfaction Survey was conducted by our Community Quest Consulting for Housing Choices Survey Results SA over July and August 2019. We’re thrilled so many of This is a sample of some • “Everyone I have you participated in the of the comments received, encountered is friendly, survey – 42% of Common both complimentary and helpful, understanding Ground residents and 47% constructive, all of which and caring. My worker ROSAS residents, with over we take very seriously. especially (really takes the 600 individual comments time to understand me).” • “Good neighbours - that submitted. Thank you to all • “I would like to see some makes a big difference who participated. tenant representation in in quality of life. Housing Housing Choices - another The results of this annual Choices seems to consider avenue for resident survey show us what we’re carefully the placement of representation.” doing well and where we new tenants - well done.” need to improve. • “Have not had much • “My home is perfectly evidence that we’ve The survey, completed by located to all my medical been listened to! Nothing a total of 463 residents, is facilities, also close to changes.” summarised into a report to shops, schools and local the Housing Choices Board, park. Perfect, thank you!” • “Overall services of Housing and used to identify areas Choices are excellent • “Maintenance have always of our service that can be internally and externally. been helpful, friendly, changed or improved. Compared to Housing SA, polite and happy to listen I now feel like I’m valued & to any concerns I have. Here is a snapshot of respected as a person.” the results: They are really reliable and come within a fortnight - • “I am pleased that Housing % of Satisfaction much faster than any other Choices SA are doing a variety of different Overall with place I have lived.” community events e.g. our service Property • “All the work was done in lunches etc and coffee get good time, good quality togethers to try and get service and the work and their tenants involved with the service people are different things.” % % very nice and professional. 85 87 Thanks!” A highlight this year is the increase in satisfaction levels • “Communication needs Location Maintenance with customer service. to improve. Work men This is a very positive result just turn up with either and is supported by the no previous calls, many compliments included extreme short notice or in the survey. % % lengthy delays and poor 90 81 communication between We have responded by different tradesmen doing emphasising to all staff We take different parts - no one and contractors that every Customer your views coordinates them.” interaction with a resident is important to the resident, services into account • “Housing Choices SA has however small or incidental taken great leadership it may seem. We have in supporting Aboriginal also recently updated our clients and issues, contractor panel to add reconciliation in our % % some new contractors. local community.” 85 72 3 Continued P4 Listening to our Community Survey Results continued In respect to the maintenance comments in the survey, it appears a number of legacy maintenance issues are still unknown to Housing Choices. If something was reported to Housing SA and wasn’t fixed before the transfer, it will need to be reported to Housing Choices as we won’t know about it. From analysis of the Resident profile comments it is also clear that some residents may have assumed the Property Latoya Rule Condition Surveys would ensure outstanding Latoya has been a valued member of Housing maintenance would be Choices SA’s Common Ground Adelaide responded to, and that reporting to our maintenance community since 2011. Aged just 27, determination, area was not required. intellect and extensive accomplishments are only surpassed by modesty and willingness for Our planned upgrades authentic connection with others. connected to the condition audits will take some time Latoya recently met with Ground apartment in to deliver and will prioritise Mark, one of HCSA’s Adelaide’s CBD. works based on ensuring Community Development properties meet condition Officers, at a local city café “I mostly kept to myself,” standards. If you have a to explain their journey in explained Latoya, “but I maintenance issue that has becoming active in the fight was grateful for Common become urgent, please let for Aboriginal human rights, Ground as it was the first us know. freedom and ending racial time I’d experienced stable housing since being a The Housing Choices discrimination. young child, as well as team has enthusiastically Latoya’s family descend from getting social support, and embraced the survey results Wiradjuri (NSW) and Maori access to GP and Dental to help shape the continued (Aotearoa/New Zealand), and care, it was a holistic development of services. they were born and raised healing opportunity”. We are implementing on Kaurna Country of the Latoya also described an improvement plan Adelaide plains. Latoya spent becoming involved in focussed on: most of their early childhood Catalyst-Clemente, a > Further improving around the local church in University Pathways customer service Iparrityi (Whitmore Square). program made possible > Continuing to improve the As a result of a relationship through a partnership maintenance service breakdown, Latoya started between Common Ground, sleeping rough at aged 17, Mission Australia and > Improving how we seek and less than two years later, Flinders University. out, listen and respond to moved into a Common residents on all aspects of our service. 4 “The program was that was responsible for amazing; I hadn’t even the death of their brother. completed Year 9 and here I was enrolled at Sadly, in late 2019 Tauto Flinders University”. Sansbury passed away. Nine years later, Latoya Tauto’s legacy, along with Staff profile has graduated with an Latoya’s brother’s, will Honours Degree in Social endure forever across Kirrily Loring Work and Social Planning, this continent. with a first-class grade Latoya’s passion and and a university medal. drive for justice has been They were also selected informed by both their to be a participant in a lived experiences, and US study tour for high the experiences of their achieving students that family and community. took Latoya to places like Their drive also stems New York and Harvard from hearing the stories University in Boston.