Housing for the Aged Action Group

This is an exerpt from the At Risk 2: From Awareness to Action online forum held on 17 September.  It features two lived experience advocates, Linda Hahn and Penny Leemhius, and  questions and answers to our political panel - Tanya Plibesek MP from the Australian Labor Party, Larissa Waters MP from the Greens and Zali Stegal MP, Independent. To hear the whole panel, including the speeches from the panellists in full and a pre-recorded address from Senator Jane Hume, please go to our website: https://houseonfire.oldertenants.org.au/at-risk-forum/ 

Fiona and Shane speak to Reuben about our new online forum House on Fire and why its more important than ever to connect across the country for housing justice.  We also talk about our upcoming event At Risk: From Awareness to ActionYou can register for the event here:https://houseonfire.oldertenants.org.au/at-risk-forum/You can check out House on Fire here: https://houseonfire.oldertenants.org.au/

Fiona, Shane and Pam speak to David Kelly from Save Public Housing about their new website Public Housing Watch, which is keeping an eye on the public housing renewal developments.  So far lots of public housing has been demolished, but not much has been rebuilt, casting doubt on the Big Housing Build announcement.See the website and get involved here: https://map.savepublichousing.com/ 

Fiona and Shane speak to Jasmine, a Kurdish film maker who is making a documentary about the Bendigo Street campaign, where a group of people moved into houses left empty after they were compulsarily acquired for a freeway project that didnt go ahead.  The conversation includes discussion on the long history of activism in the inner city suburb of Collingwood, and how "housing deprivation" impacts on the community.

Fiona interviews Robert Pradolin, CEO of Housing all Australians, about the role of the private sector in addressing the housing crisis.  He talks about his awakening to the issues of homelessness, how "purpose" is just as important as "profit" in the private sector, and what his organisation is doing to make use of all the empty buildings in our cities to provide shelter for the homeless.Interviewing organisations like these is not what we ordinarily do on 3CR – we usually try to hear from people who do not usually get their voices heard on the radio - and would love to hear your thoughts.  Is there a role for private developers in providing affordable housing, or is this a fundamental contradiction?  Is it true that government is too slow to act, and we must turn to the private sector? Can we use the masters tools to dismantle the masters house?  Get in contact and tell us what you think haag@oldertenants.org.au or call (03) 9654 7389 to have your say 

Rental laws have changed in Victoria.  What does this mean for older renters?  What can you do if you get an eviction notice?  Is it illegal to have no heater in your house? What modifications can you make to your home?  This and more in our wide ranging interview with lawyer Georga Wootton from Tenants VictoriaTenants Victoria Advice Line:  (03) 9416 2577https://tenantsvic.org.au/

Shane, Fiona and Pam talk about the Retirement Accommodation Action Group (RAAG) and some of their experiences in retirement housing, and how those experiences relate to the government's review of the Retirement Villages Act. The group is calling for an ombudsman so that these issues can be easily resolved

Fiona welcomes co-host Pam back to the airwaves and we talk about the importance of community radio to HAAG and our members.  We interview Lois Knight about her work in documenting the ways HAAG "elevates the voices of older people" and how important community radio is for that, and we chat about HAAG's first "hybrid" face to face and Zoom general meeting

Fiona speaks to Andrew Rogers, member of HAAG's Committee and our LGBTI community reference group.  He talks about what interested him in getting involved in housing advocacy, his experience as a trainer for LGBTI inclusion in aged care, and his own personal experience of housing stress and mental health.  

Fiona talks to Dini Liyanarachchi, HAAG's new NSW-based worker about political advocacy and our national campaign for housing justice.  They chat about the Federal Budget, what it means for public housing (not much) and older people (a little more than not much)