Tiny houses to help Bunbury homeless approaching completion

Those experiencing homelessness in Bunbury will soon have a new avenue for support when an affordable housing project is finally completed. The $180,000 Tiny Houses project was announced by Bunbury MLA Don Punch in late 2016 and is expected to be officially opened later this month. Three “tiny houses” for single people, one of which will be disability friendly, are being built on land owned by the Salvation Army on Timperly Road and aim to provide a short-term solution for people in difficult housing situations before they transition into long-term, stable accommodation. The project has previously received some community backlash from neighbouring residents, with the Times reporting in January that several neighbours were worried about potential antisocial behaviour arising from the service and some said they were afraid they would be living in fear. Since then Accordwest, which is managing the service, established a tiny houses reference group which will meet regularly to support the project and has representation from Accordwest, the Salvation Army, community partners and local residents. “The shortage of affordable housing is a significant issue facing a large number of people in our community, some who have never faced the risk of homelessness before,” she said. Accordwest is planning a formal opening of the homes later this month, with an opportunity for the community to view the homes before tenants move in. “Tenants are provided with full wrap-around social services during their stay,” Ms Bush said. “They’ll work with their housing support worker to secure long-term accommodation, simultaneously working towards goals and actions identified during their case support planning sessions.” Mr Punch said there had been lots of community interest in the project and it was exciting to see it near completion. “Accordwest will be brilliant in providing wrap-around services to support people and the Salvation Army has been great to work with to establish the houses there,” he said. “I know there’s some anxiety around some people in the community, but there are so many different aspects of support services for people ... I’m very confident Accordwest will have a good process for engaging with neighbours and making sure the tiny houses are part of our community. “We’re putting in place best frameworks to make sure the houses are a success.”