Social housing it’s time for a change

Words Ingrid Nelson

When we retire, we want to live a happy, safe and comfortable life after all the years of hard work and sacrifice. But the reality is that many seniors face housing poverty due to a set of circumstances often beyond their control.

Social housing is available to provide housing stability to vulnerable people who aren’t able to access and sustain housing in the private market, but unfortunately the accommodation provided is not always suitable for the aged community and their specific needs and health requirements.

Latest figures show there were 20,820 people waiting for public housing across Queensland as of June 30, 2020. That number was up from 15,817 a year earlier, with more social and affordable housing needed in the major cities and regional areas across the country.

Unfortunately, older women are finding themselves over-represented in the state’s escalating homelessness problem as many suddenly find themselves single, unable to work and priced out of the rental market.

In fact, older women are the fastest-growing group among the state’s homeless for reasons ranging from the sudden disintegration of long-standing relationships, a lack of savings or superannuation, or time out of the fulltime workforce leaving them with limited job or income opportunities other than the age pension or subsidies. The latest Rental Affordability Index (RAI), found rental affordability for single people on an aged pension across the country was “alarmingly poor”.

Ingrid Nelson sat down with one Sunshine Coast woman who has been a voice for seniors in need for many years. A resident of a social housing community herself, she is passionate about seeing social housing created especially for the senior community.

This is her story …

Imagine having to check your locks three times before you go to bed at night for fear of someone breaking in, having your gardens turned upside down when you leave your home, or your car damaged because you phoned the police to report the abuse and bad language you are subjected to daily from your unruly neighbours. This is the reality for 76-year-old Patricia Munro who has lived in social housing on the Sunshine Coast for the past 15 years.

“There are about 66 people living here in the complex, they are all supposed to be seniors, but they are not,” says Patricia.

“There are people living here who have a criminal history, there are drug addicts, people with chronic mental health issues.

“I had an incident recently with one of the men who lives here. He nearly ran me down with his bike, and then he put his fingers to my head like a gun and said ‘I’m gonna get rid of you’.

“That’s the sort of thing I and the other seniors have to put up with every day, it’s just frightening to live here”

It’s a shocking and confronting story, but sadly, this is not an isolated incidence. In fact, many seniors residing in social housing live with a constant element of fear and are afraid to raise their voice.

Patricia would like to see affordable rental accomadation made available to seniors.