Eighteen homes built by “My Home” in North Fremantle were completed in June 2023 and a delighted group of homeless older women moved in over the next few months. Rotary gave every new resident a welcome pack which included food and toiletries.
“My Home” is a local not-for-profit organisation which is building small affordable homes for people who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless. They are using a new housing development model in WA using a public private partnership system.
State government, Local governments and Church bodies make land available for free; corporate Australia funds construction of the houses; Rotary furnishes and equips the houses; and a community housing provider (CHP) manages the property and the tenants.
The first “My Home” housing development was completed in North Fremantle in June 2023. The homes are for women over 55, who are the fastest growing group of people who are homeless in Australia. These women have found themselves in this situation for a number of reasons. Often, they cannot find work because of their age, they have lost confidence in re-entering the workforce after being a stay-at-home mum or feel they are too old to retrain. They have negligible superannuation, no assets and without a partner.