Mental illness is a health issue that can impact how a person feels, thinks, behaves, and interacts with others.
Mental illness is more prevalent than many realise.
Mental health and housing are fundamentally connected.
The experience of mental illness can mean someone is more likely to experience housing insecurity, and the experience of housing insecurity can make someone more likely to experience, or perpetuate, a mental health issue.
Appropriate housing is a critical foundation for people to recover and maintain mental health and it can prevent further deterioration of mental illness.
Approximately 45% of Australians aged between 16 and 85 years will experience a mental illness at some point in their life, while one in five Australian adults will experience a mental illness in any given year. (ABS)
People living with a mental illness are more than twice as likely to have experienced homelessness than the general community.
Our rooming house provides an accommodation option for ten adults between the ages of 25 and 65 years who are living with a mental illness and are either homeless or at risk of becoming homeless.
Ten single bedrooms are rented to ten individuals who each have tenure through a rental agreement.
We “value-add” to the usual rooming house model to create a stable, secure, and affordable living environment that recognises residents’ individual uniqueness, needs and value.
Inclusive of rent is the provision of all food and a fully prepared evening meal every day. Either a nominated resident or volunteer oversees each meal service. Residents’ birthdays are celebrated with a special take-away meal of choice and a cake.
Linen is provided and laundered; newspapers are delivered daily, occasional group outings are organised as do “house meetings.” Wi-fi and landline telephone are provided. Residents are supported by a small group of volunteers as well external service providers.
According to individual capacity, residents contribute to household cleanliness and functioning, this includes taking care of the pets and the chickens!
The accommodation can be transitional while a resident waits to move to another living situation or an ongoing arrangement.
