What the Tasmanian Liberals will do:

Invest $4.125 million in community houses over four years.

A Hodgman Liberal Government will invest $4.125 million in Community Houses over four years by –

• Increasing annual recurrent funding to all Neighbourhood and Community Houses by 15%.  This will allow Community Houses to meet increasing demand, and funding might also assist those houses providing outreach or satellite services in their communities. 
• Providing $1.9m over three years for urgently needed upgrades, refurbishment and maintenance. The funding will be administered by the Tasmanian Association of Community Houses Inc (TACH) and the only stipulation for expenditure will be that, where possible, local small businesses should be utilized in the work and that TACH independently determines priority for expenditure on behalf of community houses seeking funds.
• Recognising the need to celebrate good things happening in our local communities, the Tasmanian Liberals will sponsor a Celebrate! annual awards scheme to acknowledge and reward the achievement and success of individuals and groups within, and associated with, Tasmania’s Neighbourhood House network.  We will provide funding of $10,000 per year for the Celebrate! awards which will be announced each year at the TACH conference.
• Providing $50,000 in funding to TACH to conduct a review of the current framework for funding Community Houses with a view to greater flexibility while retaining an equitable and sustainable funding model, and establishing a new funding category to allow the establishment of Community Houses in less populated regional or remote communities.  The review will also be aimed at streamlining onerous reporting to government which is considered overly-bureaucratic and costly for these largely volunteer organizations.
• Providing growth funding of $795,400 over four years to add up to four new houses to the Tasmanian Community House network.  Decisions on new houses will continue to be independent, according to need-based criteria and free from political interference, however growth funding will enable communities who wish to establish a Neighbourhood House are able to proceed, and those who already fit the criteria, can access annual funding.

The Liberals also recognise that Community Houses are currently missing out on an opportunity to assist their communities with local transport as current eligibility guidelines to the Community Transport Trust restrict cars to only those community groups who can prove capacity to cover ongoing costs.  A Hodgman Liberal Government will review how we can help Community Houses to meet criteria on a case by case basis.

Why this policy is needed
Tasmania’s Community and Neighbourhood Houses have become a victim of their own success and many are currently bursting at the seams.

Many of the 34 Houses across Tasmania need additional staff, and some simply need more space.  Others lack suitable office facilities, or desperately need disability and pram access.  Many need kitchen upgrades, additional car parking, storage space, garaging for community transport vehicles or a bigger Men’s Shed.

Maintenance issues at the Houses require urgent attention, including roof repairs, fencing for child safety, security screens better lighting, painting and drainage of outside areas.

It is recognized that a handful of Houses might require new buildings altogether and a Hodgman Liberal Government will be willing to negotiate this on a case by case basis.

First established in the late 1970s, the number of Tasmanian Neighbourhood Houses has grown significantly, as have the range of programs they deliver into their own communities.

While programs provided from each House are tailored individually to the communities they serve, the goals of all Community Houses are shared and include building communities, supporting people in those communities, working together for hope, opportunity, training and employment, and sponsoring pride in the local community. The Houses, their coordinators and army of volunteers, act as strong advocates and a referral and information point for many disadvantaged Tasmanians. The Houses offer projects and programs as diverse as community gardens and parenting support from teaching young adolescents to drive and home maintenance for the elderly and disabled.

A crucial strength of Houses is that they are run by the local community.  The local community is in charge, and participation on committees of Houses has been a pathway for so many people.

The Liberals have always supported and will continue to support Tasmania’s Community House network, including funding for full-time coordination and additional staffing.  We don’t agree these facilities should be allowed to be run down and support funding for vital infrastructure and maintenance needs.

Current government funding is structured to deliver funding to Community Houses under a two-tier arrangement.  This DHHS funding framework, which is based on population and income levels, can disadvantage smaller populations.

A Hodgman Liberal Government will work with TACH to review and restructure the funding framework to ensure the successful Community House network can continue to grow and flourish in Tasmania – and remain true to its independence and objectives of building stronger communities.

The Liberals also recognise that while there are outstanding examples of resilience and strength in many of our local communities, largely due to the work of the community house network and other community-based organizations, stigma and discrimination of many of these communities remain.

Pride in one’s own community and one’s place within it is an important factor in individual self-esteem and growth. The Liberals’ ‘Celebrate!’ award program is aimed at encouraging, acknowledging and rewarding valuable local contributions and achievements in local communities of both individuals and groups, including those volunteers working tirelessly as part of our Neighbourhood House network.

It is envisaged that nominations for recipients for this new award program would come from within the general community, Tasmania’s Neighbourhood and Community House family and its umbrella organization, TACH. A Hodgman Liberal Government would work cooperatively with TACH on developing the award scheme.

After 11 years of Labor...
All political parties support Tasmania’s Community Houses and recognise the value and work of the network in building community capacity.  However, the Association has always faced a battle in attracting additional resources (the bid for a full-time coordinator for each house took several years) and there does not appear to be any growth funding for additional community houses built in forward budget estimates.  Further, after three decades of building the network, some of our community houses are looking tired and need maintenance, care and attention.

A Hodgman Liberal Government will demonstrate its commitment with a package of capital and recurrent growth funding over the forward program.

Costings are in addition to the $1 million allocated to Community House Network for upgrades and built into Forward Estimates, and does not include the $180,000 for King Island Phoenix House (costed separately).