New national organisation as sector unites to confront housing crisis
Australia's two leading community housing peak bodies, the Community Housing Industry Association (CHIA) and PowerHousing Australia, today announced their merger to form Australian Community Housing (ACH), creating a unified national voice for the community housing sector.
The merger comes as Australia confronts an unprecedented housing crisis, with 640,000, or one-in-fifteen, Australian households' needs unmet by the private market, a figure projected to rise to 940,000 by 2041.
"The scale of Australia's housing challenge demands a strong and unified response from our sector," said Rebecca Oelkers, Chair of Australian Community Housing. "With over 160 community housing providers owning and managing over 134,000 homes nationwide we need to speak with one voice to government, industry and communities about the role community housing must play in addressing this crisis."
"Australian Government investment through the HAFF has potential to generate profound social and economic benefits in the coming decades, and we must have our sector co-ordinated to deliver at scale. That's what Australian Community Housing is designed to achieve," Ms Oelkers said.
ACH represents a diverse range of community housing organisations providing homes to hundreds of thousands of Australians, including young people, older women, Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, veterans, people with disability and women experiencing domestic and family violence. Larger CHPs partner with institutional investors, leveraging government funds and delivering housing at scale.
Australian Community Housing is actively recruiting a permanent Chief Executive Officer.
The organisation builds upon decades of policy expertise and member advocacy established by CHIA and PowerHousing Australia.
