Evolve Housing News, June 2021

Have you got the Golden Ticket?

t. 1800 myevolve (1800 693 865) · w. evolvehousing.com.au @evolvehousing evolvehousing

We’ve hidden a ‘golden ticket’ in one of the newsletters we mailed out this quarter! Check inside the envelope to see if you’ve won!

Congratulations GOLDEN TICKET WINNER

Yes, you’re the winner of our Golden Ticket Giveaway.

Here’s what you need to do to receive your $100 voucher: 1. Call us on 1800 698 865 2. Ask for Rob Costa or Heidi Bain 3. Tell them you have this notice sheet and quote this date to them: 01·04·2021 That’s it. They will arrange with you a time to come in collect your $100 voucher.

Important: Please contact Rob and Heidi by Friday, April 30th.

IN THIS ISSUE Imaginate Kids Robotics and programming events July school holidays.

Page 3

Volunteers Week A special lunch for National Volunteer Week on May 20 Page 4

Events Roundup Community Roadshow, kids making Cup Cakes, & trip to Mt Annan Seniors Festival.

Page 6–7

Keeping Warm 5 ways to keep warm without breaking the budget

COMMUNITY GARDENING HotNews!

Page 8

Best Ways to Fix Mould

Page 4–5

Try these practical ways for dealing with unhealthy mould.

Page 8

EVOLVE HOUSING NEWS THRIVING COMMUN ITIES FOR ALL PEOPLE

WIN ORIGIN TICKETS!

Coming in July NAIDOC Week 2021

NAIDOC Week is coming up, from the 4th to 11th of July, and this year’s theme is ‘Heal Country’,

Win a double pass to the

focusing on securing significant and lasting change and also empowering and celebrating

State of Origin game on

Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities, nations and heritage. If you’re interested in

14th JULY. See Page 2

attending a NAIDOC Week event, see what’s going on in your area. Visit: www.naidoc.org.au/get-involved/naidoc-week-events

NEWS catch-up

A new App from Smoke Alarms Australia

We have increased our newsletter from just 4 pages

Smoke Alarms Australia have launched a new app for tenants making tests on all our social housing properties more convenient.

More content and a refreshed design

to an 8 page publication bringing you more stories, pictures and information. AND if you’d like to see something featured in Evolve News please reach out

The app allows tenants to message Smoke Alarms Australia

to us: community@evolvehousing.com.au

directly with enquiries, check on their next scheduled service, track when their technician is on the way, see all

Eid Mubarak

smoke alarm information for their property, and log service

A belated Eid Mubarak (meaning ‘blessed feast/

requests for beeping, faulty or chirping alarms.

festival’ in Arabic) to all our Muslim residents!

May 13th marked the end of Ramadan and the

To download the app for Apple’s App Store and Google Play

beginning of Eid Al-Fitr (a festival to break the fast,

Visit:

http://bit.ly/SmokeAlarmsApp

marking the end of Ramadan, which involves daily fasting for around a month).

RAG Chat The RAG (Resident Advisory Group) has been working on messaging for tenants to help them be prepared in an emergency.

They have come up with five tips that are important for residents to know. See below and keep your eye out as the RAG will be creating more emergency preparedness resources later this year.

Win State of Origin Tickets!

• Know where and when you will go if you need to evacuate (family/friends if possible, evacuation centre and identify what the trigger is for you to leave — this will be risk-specific)

Want a chance to WIN a double pass to the State of Origin game in Sydney on 14th July?

• Know how you will get there (transport & evacuation routes) • Know who will be in your care (children, pets/assistance

Come to our free Blokes BBQ at Gazzard Park, Cooper

animals, aging relatives etc. or who will be assisting you)

Road, Yagoona at 11.30am, Friday 2 July. All men living

• Know what you will take with you (important documents,

in Evolve Housing properties can go in the draw to win!

valuables, important momentos, medications & assistive

Give us a hand making burgers (then eat them!), kick

technologies, a way of keeping informed). Be practical

the footy around or just hang around and have a chat.

about what you can carry.

Everyone who attends will be automatically entered into

• Share your plan (have conversations with your household,

a draw to win the State of Origin double passes, valued

then with key people as necessary — i.e. neighbours, close

at $400. To register to attend, SMS your full name and

relatives/friends — to make sure key people know what you

your mobile number to 0428 250 420.

will do in an emergency).

2 | EVOLVE HOUSING NEWS

ROBOTICS EE It’s FR

Imagine What You Can Create This JULY School Holidays learn how to build and program a robot.

We’re bringing an exciting new Imaginate event for kids this July school holidays!

GRANVILLE Thursday 1st July, • 9.30am – 11.30am Granville Centre, 1 Memorial Drive Granville To register to attend, please visit website link:

This time, our theme is Robotics and programming — perfect

.

to spark young people’s curiousity and interest in science

BANKSTOWN

while still being loads of fun.

Wednesday 7th July, • 9.30am – 11.30am

Kids will get the chance to build a robot and get it moving.

Bankstown Arts Centre, 5 Olympic Parade, Bankstown

There’ll also be prizes on offer. Win a Fitness Watch or a Lego Remote Control Car.

To register to attend, please visit website link:

Book NOW

Imaginate goes mobile at Blacktown!

During the April school holidays, we went mobile with our Imaginate event to a unit block in Blacktown. It was great to see our residents come together to enjoy a day of community fun and games.

Around 20 parents and kids attended our event and enjoyed making terrariums, badges, and arts and craft.

Prizes were given away to lucky winners and we thank all our residents who got involved on the day!

EVOLVE HOUSING NEWS | 3

Veggie garden at SDA block FEATURE STORY

Four Evolve Housing residents living in a newly built Specialist Disability Accommodation property at Narara now have their own community garden to enjoy.

which was specifically developed for people living with a disability.

The program supports the belief that all people benefit from time spent in green spaces, and that wellbeing is enhanced

The residents and some Evolve Housing staff had a fun day

through meaningful interactions with nature.

installing the veggie garden and each resident received a free watering can and gardening gloves.

Would you like to see a garden in your block?

We partnered with garden supply company Vegepod to

Contact Rob or Heidi for a chat to see what’s involved.

deliver the garden as part of their Growability program,

Volunteers Week

To celebrate our wonderful volunteers and thank them for the fantastic work they do, we held a special lunch for National Volunteer Week on May 20.

4 | EVOLVE HOUSING NEWS

20 volunteers joined us for lunch held

Thanks to everyone who has given up

in a Parramatta restaurant to celebrate

their time to help make Evolve Housing

National Volunteer Week, and were

great, and to any of our residents who

awarded a certificate of appreciation.

volunteer for other organisations too!

Residents enjoy their own Garden of Eden A group of residents at Evolve Housing’s social housing block in southern Sydney have worked together to brighten up their home with a community garden and mural.

The community garden, which has been named the Garden of Eden to reflect the street it’s located in, was set up by 7 residents in collaboration with Evolve Housing staff, Vegepod and Community Greening in December 2020.

monthly Community Roadshow visits with snacks and

The garden is accompanied by a colourful mural, which

“All the community things were good so you’re not socially

was painted by Michael Black to brighten up the area. It will

distancing yourself, you’re not in your unit by yourself…

be used as a source of fresh food for residents, as a place

we’ve got the community garden out there, we put seats

where residents can learn how to grow their own food, and as

around it so people can sit around and have a chat to each

a space for the community to meet and bond.

other,” he said.

In February, Community Greening held a workshop with eight

“There’s a certain amount of people who go to the Community

residents attending and setting up a worm farm.

Roadshows so you get to see them all the time, you do build

a chance to catch up, a painting workshop, and occasional day trips for residents. Former resident Warren, who lived at the property for 9 months and is still engaged with the community, said that the garden and group activities helped him settle in and make friends.

up a friendship and get a bit of trust. You build up a friendship The community garden is just one of many activities that

with the staff too because they’re not working against you,

are going on in the block in southern Sydney, including

they’re working for you.”

EVOLVE HOUSING NEWS | 5

EVENTS ROUNDUP

Community Roadshow

Our Community Roadshow tour has been continuing over the past few months, and one of the lucky communities that got a visit was our Arncliffe unit block, pictured here enjoying the event!

The Community Roadshow involves our Community Engagement Officers, Rob and Heidi, visiting Evolve Housing unit blocks and holding small events with light snacks and a hot drink, fun activities, prizes and a chance for everyone to get to know each other. If you want the Community Roadshow to come to your block, please email community@evolvehousing.com.au or SMS Heidi on 0424 961 143.

Yummy Cake Cupcake Day

We had some very passionate decorators visit our Parramatta office in April to enjoy a cupcake baking class.

Residents and their kids enjoyed learning baking and cupcake decorating skills and we couldn’t help but share their works of art with you!

Money Management Workshops Want to meet your savings goals faster, pay off debt or balance the family budget? Evolve Housing offers a Money Management workshop that provides general tips on how to be better with money.

If you’re interested please see our events page:

6 | EVOLVE HOUSING NEWS

RESIDENT SATISFACTION SURVEY

Please keep your eye out for our Annual Tenant Satisfaction Survey, which will be mailed or emailed out to you by the end of June 2021.

The survey gives you an opportunity to share your experiences as a tenant with us and give us feedback on how we can improve our services. It is completely

Seniors Festival

Residents had a koala-ty (quality) day out visiting the Australian Botanic Gardens Mt Annan as part of the 2021 Seniors Festival.

anonymous and will be managed by the Community Housing Industry Association NSW who will ensure that data is confidential.

Everyone who completes the survey will go in the draw to win one of FIFTY $50 Westfield Vouchers. If you have any questions about the survey or have not received it

Evolve Housing team members Heidi, Rob and Paea joined

by July 2021, please email us at:

9 residents for the event, which also included a stop at

myevolve@evolvehousing.com.au.

Camden for lunch. The group enjoyed a guided tour through the connections garden, which displays Australian plants and trees throughout history. They also got to see the incredible Hello Koalas sculpture trail, featuring 22 one-metre high hand-painted koala sculptures.

Are you unhappy about a decision made about your tenancy?

This is how to lodge an appeal with us ...

An appeal is a formal review process that checks if our decision was right or wrong. You have three months from the date of the original decision to lodge an appeal. To lodge an appeal, please fill out the Appeals form, which you can access online at : http://bit.ly/Appeal-Evolve-Housing or by contacting our office on 1800 myevolve (1800 693 865) EVOLVE HOUSING NEWS | 7

Keep warm without racking up a huge electricity bill

Insulate your home Unless you have carpet, it’s likely that your floor gets cold and affects the temperature in your home. You can prevent this by insulating it with rugs and help keep the indoors warm.

Ensure there are no gaps in your doors or windows that are letting cool air in, or warm air out — try using door ‘snakes’.

Maximise the effect of your heating When you do need to turn the heating on, be sure to close the doors to any rooms that you aren’t using. This stops heat moving into unoccupied parts of the home.

Don’t turn the heat up too high Winter has well and truly set in, and with temperatures plummeting, it’s tempting to crank up the heat to keep your home warm.

Resist the temptation to turn the temperature on your heater

While heaters and reverse cycle air conditioning will definitely

setting on your heating can reduce your bill by 10%.

or air conditioner up too high. Use the lowest temperature that feels comfortable. Just a 10 reduction in the temperature

keep you toasty on those cold mornings, they may also lead to financial stress when it’s time to pay the electricity bill.

Think of ways to heat yourself Layer up with jumpers, socks, scarves, long sleeves and

Harness natural heat

blankets to keep your body warm. You can also warm up with

The Sun is a great, free source of warmth that you can take

hot drinks like tea, or use hot water bottles.

advantage of! Don’t forget to open your curtains in the morning to let the sun shine in and warm up your home, then close

For winter safety tips, visit Fire and Rescue NSW:

www.fire.nsw.gov.au/winter

them in the evening.

How to control Mould?

What is mould?

VENTILATION: Moisture is required to grow mould. The

Mould is a type of fungi like mushrooms and yeasts. Mould

cheapest and easiest way to reduce moisture is to open

grows in dust and organic matter using moisture. Mould can

a window or door. Make sure all areas of your home are

be black, grey, green or white. Mould often looks like a stain

regularly ventilated with a continuous air flow. Use exhaust

or smudge, and may smell musty.

fans in areas where moisture is created.

CONTROLLING MOULD: Parts of the house that are prone

HOW TO REMOVE MOULD? Mould should be removed

to mould growth are those areas with condensation or high

as soon as it appears. Eliminating mould can take some

humidity (such as kitchens, bathrooms and laundries), but

persistence. Small areas of mould can be cleaned by using a

also places that have restricted ventilation, such as in corners

bleach mixture (1 part bleach to 3 parts water). Wear rubber

and/or cupboards where the inside temperature is lower than

gloves, take care not to splash the cleaning solution and

outside in winter.

make sure the area is well ventilated.

Acknowledgement of Country evolvehousing.com.au/whats-on or by calling 1800 myevolve (1800 693 865) @evolvehousing evolvehousing

Evolve Housing acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of the land where we deliver our housing and services. We acknowledge and pay our respects to all Elders past, present and future. We welcome all First Nations People to our services, as we walk together towards reconciliation.