The Joys of Social Housing

[Perry]

Violence, burglaries, public excrement from new Housing NZ tenants, neighbours say
6 Feb 2018

Neighbours of a modern Housing New Zealand complex say they are being driven out by burglaries, assaults and public defecation stemming from the social housing block.

Most of the residents at the nine-unit England St, Phillipstown Christchurch complex were good neighbours, but some were changing "the whole tenor of the community", a neighbour said. The man, who had lived on nearby Suffolk St for five years, did not want to be named for fear of repercussions.

[artemis]

Many applicants for social housing have issues, sometimes mental health issues.

One of the indicators of this is that over the years social housing demand for single person, no dependants, has increased dramatically.

According to the Social Housing Register the number of single applicants has doubled in just two years and now makes up around half of all those on the register. (Dec 2015 1584, Dec 2017 2960). It used to be mainly families who got housed, with pensioner housing provided by some local authorities and government subsidised.

Many applicants don't even get on to the register - not high enough priority.

So if we picture single applicants with high housing priority it is not too hard to see that some will be challenging and need a lot more support than income related rent.

Where is the analysis and reporting of this. It is a serious social problem, not just in one 9 unit complex.

[Davo36]

Yes, now that we're more of a meritocracy, we have more mental health issues.

And we don't put them in institutions any more either.

And there are fewer menial jobs for them to do. They're all off shore.

So they are left to fend on their own. On some sort of benefit, in a HNZ house.

[Wayne]

Yes, now that we're more of a meritocracy, we have more mental health issues.

And we don't put them in institutions any more either.

And there are fewer menial jobs for them to do. They're all off shore.

So they are left to fend on their own. On some sort of benefit, in a HNZ house.

Unfortunately yes.
We used to have the 'sheltered workshops' where people with Downs Syndrome (in the main or maybe only them) could work for a nominal 'wage' doing semi useful stuff.
They got some value from it.
Can't have that now - must be minimum wage and you can't run it like that.
So no more jobs and no more value to the person.

[Perry]

How right you are - another do-gooder catastrophe.

A few have ended up gathering trundlers in supermarket car parks, but those few were the lucky ones.

[Wayne]

How right you are - another do-gooder catastrophe.

A few have ended up gathering trundlers in supermarket car parks, but those few were the lucky ones.

I was discussing this with a young very lefty person the other week and all he could say was
'I'm sure something is wrong with the idea that they should be paid less than minimum wage because it makes them feel worthwhile but I can't see what at the moment'.
He was quite flumoxed really.

Of course, this sort of thing needs to be carefully controlled so that it is done for the right reasons rather than exploiting the people for someones gain.

[Perry]

There was once a splendid sheltered workshop in Napier and one in Hastings. No more. At the time, I was told by some involved that a significant number of the disabled people involved were severely traumatised at the destruction of their safe and supportive working environment. But the do-gooders triumphed, intoning "we know what's best for you," to the agitated soon-to-be ex-occupants.

[artemis]

A relation of mine in Australia has been in and out of employment for years. (Semi skilled and quite intelligent but has issues from time to time.) When on the dole he has to do 15 hours voluntary work each week, and there are coordinators who arrange. He always went to a large council plant nursery in the next suburb, and there were quite a lot of long termers not really employable (sheltered workshop) who were happily employed there. It's their job. There is a lot of simple, repetitive work and they build skills over time.

Good idea I thought. Not minimum wage - actually no wage - so likely unacceptable here.

His partner was unemployed for a while and she worked for a charity in their office.

[beno]

Violence, burglaries, public excrement from new Housing NZ tenants, neighbours say
6 Feb 2018

This is across the road from where I live. There have been a lot of burglaries recently and residents on my street have been advised the burglar lives there and is awaiting trial. Very loud domestic fights can be heard occasionally as well. Before that new building, the area had been improving.