NSW

A Standards and Accreditation Unit was established in February 1999.

The Accreditation Unit is currently located within the NSW Office of Community Housing. However, it is overseen by an independent Accreditation Committee, which is comprised of a mix of community and public sector representatives and experts from the broader accreditation/quality systems industry.

For more information contact the NSW Standards & Accreditation Unit:

Update

41 organisations have now been awarded accreditation, 75% of which are housing associations.

In 2004 an external review considered the NSW accreditation system, the outcomes of which are now being considered. The review looked at ways of making accreditation more accessible, especially for smaller organisations. Streamlined products may be one way of achieving this. The review also considered how to make the system more sector-driven. The Unit will be consulting with the sector on how to move forward with the review findings.

The relationship between the NSW Performance Based Registration System and the Accreditation System has been examined. Going through the process of accreditation has been recognised as invaluable preparation for the Registration process. The Registration Unit now accepts Accreditation Reports as part of the primary evidence for meeting performance requirements.

NSW Aboriginal Housing Office

The AHO’s current focus is on governance and developing a viable sector. At this stage accreditation is not appropriate, but remains a goal for the Office to move towards.

The AHO is awaiting the announcement of its new Council.

ACT

One ACT organisation has been awarded full accreditation through the NSW Standards and Accreditation Unit, which was accessed on a fee-for-service basis. Given that the size of the community housing sector in the ACT is relatively small, further consideration may be given to the option of accessing the NSW system rather than establishing an ACT based unit.

Update

The Coalition of Community Housing Organisations of the ACT has been funded by the Department to undertake sector development work. Sector development workers have begun to assist organisations with developing business plans and strategic plans. Developing other policies will be the basis of training later on in the year.

The workers will also help organisations review their policies and procedures and help them identify which of the National Community Housing Standards they would like to implement.

VIC

The Office of Housing appointed a Sector Development officer in 2002 to work with organisations to implement appropriate accreditation/quality systems for community housing and homelessness assistance providers.

For more information contact the Sector Development Officer, Community Programs Group, Office of Housing:

Update

Victoria is committed to establishing an accreditation system, but a timeline has not been set. The complexity of the sector in Victoria - which comprises long-term community housing, transitional housing, crisis housing, homelessness, family violence and the new advocacy program - means that any system will have to take into account the range of applicable standards.

Following introduction of legislatively-based regulation, there are questions about how any future accreditation system will interact with the regulatory system.

Under the “Promoting Excellence” banner, a suite of resources has been developed including a newsletter to promote the Homelessness Assistance Service Standards and a helpful website.