❓ A parliamentary question regarding public housing waitlists for families with children in Western Australia, and the government's response citing data limitations and average wait times.
AnsweredQoN 328Legislative Council
QuestionView source ↗
PUBLIC HOUSING —
WAITLIST
328. Hon JAMES HAYWARD to the minister representing the
Minister for Homelessness:
I refer to the homelessness crisis
in Western Australia.
(1) How many
families currently on the public waiting list have —
(a) one child;
(b) two children;
(c) three
children; and
(d) four or more
children?
(2) What is the
average waiting time for families to be placed in public housing?
(3) Is the
minister concerned that a lack of stable appropriate housing is harmful to
children's development?
WAITLIST
328. Hon JAMES HAYWARD to the minister representing the
Minister for Homelessness:
I refer to the homelessness crisis
in Western Australia.
(1) How many
families currently on the public waiting list have —
(a) one child;
(b) two children;
(c) three
children; and
(d) four or more
children?
(2) What is the
average waiting time for families to be placed in public housing?
(3) Is the
minister concerned that a lack of stable appropriate housing is harmful to
children's development?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for some notice
of the question. The following response has been provided by the Minister for
Housing. I note that the response was current as at 16 February, which was the date
that the question was asked.
(1)–(3) The
priority of the state government is to see as many Western Australians as
possible in safe, secure and sustainable homes. The Western Australian
government has always taken pride in being committed to assisting our state's
most vulnerable and is investing record amounts to assist Western Australians
in line with this commitment.
This information would require a manual
extraction of data and considerable resources, as Communities data is reported on the type of accommodation and
number of bedrooms required to meet the housing needs of an applicant or
their family. Dwelling type does not always correspond with the family
structure of the household.
The data below includes applicants
who may have turned down a property for legitimate reasons, yet remain eligible
for public housing.
As at 31 January 2023, for applicants
for family dwelling–type housing, in the past 12 months, the average wait time on the public housing waitlist statewide
was 124 weeks. As at 31 January 2023, for applicants for family dwelling–type
housing, the average wait time in the past 12 months in the public housing
priority waitlist statewide was 70 weeks.
of the question. The following response has been provided by the Minister for
Housing. I note that the response was current as at 16 February, which was the date
that the question was asked.
(1)–(3) The
priority of the state government is to see as many Western Australians as
possible in safe, secure and sustainable homes. The Western Australian
government has always taken pride in being committed to assisting our state's
most vulnerable and is investing record amounts to assist Western Australians
in line with this commitment.
This information would require a manual
extraction of data and considerable resources, as Communities data is reported on the type of accommodation and
number of bedrooms required to meet the housing needs of an applicant or
their family. Dwelling type does not always correspond with the family
structure of the household.
The data below includes applicants
who may have turned down a property for legitimate reasons, yet remain eligible
for public housing.
As at 31 January 2023, for applicants
for family dwelling–type housing, in the past 12 months, the average wait time on the public housing waitlist statewide
was 124 weeks. As at 31 January 2023, for applicants for family dwelling–type
housing, the average wait time in the past 12 months in the public housing
priority waitlist statewide was 70 weeks.
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