Penny Dordoy appointed to the Board of Domestic Violence NSW

by Rochelle | Nov 1, 2021 | All

Housing Plus is delighted to announce that our Head of Community Services Penny Dordoy has been appointed to the Domestic Violence NSW Board. Domestic Violence NSW (DVNSW) is the peak body for specialist domestic and family violence services in New South Wales. They work from a feminist, social justice perspective and recognise that domestic and family violence (DFV) is serious, prevalent, and driven by gender inequality.

Penny has 20 years’ experience in the NFP and Government sectors, including her previous role as Manager of the Central West Women’s Domestic Violence Court Advocacy service (WDVCAS), and led the implementation of the first regional Local Coordination Point and Safety Action Meeting as part of the Safer Pathway reforms.

Penny, as Head of Community Services for Housing Plus, is responsible for the teams who deliver tailored support programs and maintains key partner relationships. She oversees two Women’s Domestic Violence Court Advocacy Services (WDVCAS), covering 22 courts in Central and Western NSW, other domestic violence and homelessness services including our innovative men’s behaviour change program, Commit and Change, as well as other services designed to break the cycle of disadvantage and poverty. She was central to the inception, design and development of The Orchard in Orange, a gold standard, purpose-built domestic and family violence refuge using the core and cluster model.

We congratulate Penny on her appointment and look forward to seeing the benefits of the work that DVNSW continue to provide to the communities of NSW.

Housing Plus COVID-19 Update Thursday 14 October

by Rochelle | Oct 14, 2021 | All

ALL of our services continue to be fully operational however we continue to ask our customers to contact us to make an appointment where possible prior to attending our offices so we can manage our staff availability and social distancing.

Only our Orange office is open with staff working on a rotation basis so it is best to contact us via phone or email first.

Housing Plus COVID-19 Update Friday 24 September

by Rochelle | Sep 24, 2021 | All

Stay-at-home orders in Orange, Cabonne and Blayney LGA’s have now been lifted. All other LGA’s where we offer services and support are still under stay-at-home orders.

ALL of our services continue to be fully operational however from Monday 27^th September our Orange office ONLY will re-open.

We continue to ask our customers to contact us to make an appointment where possible prior to attending our Orange office so we can manage our staff availability and social distancing. Please note not all staff are returning to the office, we are working on a rotation basis so it is best to contact us via phone or email first.

For our tenants, routine inspections and maintenance will be gradually reintroduced with normal notice of inspections to be given as required by the Residential Tenancy Act.

We are excited and happy for the community of Orange and our thoughts are with those who are still under stay-at-home orders.

Housing Plus on track to deliver over 300 new affordable homes across the Central West

by Rochelle | Aug 31, 2021 | All

Housing Plus is delivering the largest regional affordable housing build project in Australia with more than 305 new affordable rental homes for low to moderate income earners across Orange, Bathurst, Parkes, Lithgow, Mudgee, Forbes, Blayney, Cowra and Dubbo.

Since commencing this build program in 2019 we have been able to provide new homes for 179 households so far. The remaining properties are scheduled to be finished by the between now and the end of 2023, seeing over 460 residents in brand new affordable homes by this time. Housing Plus provide tenants with more than housing, tenants also have access to other support services to ensure that they sustain their tenancy as well as thrive within their community.  “We are delighted to be providing these much-needed new homes and are recognise that there are extreme shortages of affordable houses available across Regional NSW. Just as important is the support that we are able to offer our new customers. Tailored support to assist them with the health, education and employment needs. Our work shows the impact that we can have in the regional communities by locally based regional community housing providers working with government at State and Commonwealth levels to meet local needs” says David Fisher Chief Executive Officer of Housing Plus.

There are other benefits to new tenants too. Housing Plus are building high-quality and energy efficient homes which successfully achieved greater than 7 stars under the National Home Energy Rating System (NatHERS). “Housing Plus aims to assist its customers by providing low energy cost housing. All our new homes are built to 7-star NatHERS which will reduce the running costs of these properties for years to come and is great for the environment” says Justin Cantelo Project Director for Housing Plus.

These additional new homes come at a critical time with increased demand and pressure on the rental market across the region which has resulted in a loss of available rental properties.

Here is the breakdown on where we are delivering these new affordable homes across the Central West.

COVID-19 Update Sunday 15 August

by Rochelle | Aug 15, 2021 | All

In response to the Stay-at-Home orders in place across Regional NSW all Housing Plus offices are closed. We remain fully operational with staff working remotely.

We ask that our customers contact their Housing Officer or Support Coordinator/case worker directly.

If you have any questions please contact us on: 1800 603 300 or email info@housingplus.com.au

Additional COVID-19 Update Wednesday 11 August

by Rochelle | Aug 11, 2021 | All

Additional Update Wednesday 11 August:

Due to further potential cases in the Central West we are taking a precautionary approach to ensure everyone’s safety, we still have no staff affected and Housing Plus remains fully operational.

• Bathurst office will close From Thursday 12 August. All Bathurst staff are working remotely
• Our Dubbo office is now closed. All staff are fully operational working remotely
• Our Mudgee office continues to be closed with all staff fully operational working remotely
• Our Orange office is operational however operating on skeleton staff. So ask anyone wishing to attend the office to please call ahead so that we can do a COVID screen to confirm you have not been to any hotspot areas and to assist us in continuing to manage social distancing requirements

If you have any questions please contact us on: 1800 603 300 or email info@housingplus.com.au