OUR OPERATING ENVIRONMENT
Evolve Housing operates within a context that is
unmet and future needs in NSW, over the next 20 years
constantly changing, with demand for our services
two out of every 10 new homes built need to be social
continually growing. To ensure that we remain responsive
housing, and one in 10 need to be affordable housing.
and able to take advantage of all the opportunities
This equates to a demand for around 12,000 new
that may arise, we have based our Strategic Plan 2020–
homes per year.
2023 on a thorough consideration of our operating environment. Some of the prominent contextual
Currently, just 4.4% of Australian housing stock is
factors that affect our work are explored below.
social housing, and the government’s Australian Infrastructure Audit has identified the community
HOUSING PRESSURES
housing sector as having an important role to play
Over the last year, the community housing sector has
in creating affordable housing solutions that
continued to face major challenges in addressing
help address the needs of our most vulnerable
housing shortfalls. The affordability crisis is deepening,
communities. However, to be able to deliver much
with many Australians continuing to experience
needed housing, community housing providers such
housing stress and paying more towards rent than
as Evolve Housing need ongoing government support
they can sustainably afford. Others are forced to live
through policy settings and funding, and to pursue
in overcrowded, insecure or poor-quality housing.
mutually beneficial partnerships with private investors and corporations.
Particularly worrying is the continued growth of homelessness, with a 14% increase in the number
While there has always been a great need for social
of homeless Australians between the 2011 and
and affordable housing, this need has been even more
2016 Census. In 2017, 50 people in every 10,000
dramatically highlighted in recent times due to the
were considered homeless. A quarter of Australia’s
global outbreak of COVID-19 and its flow on effects.
homeless people live in NSW, where the level of
Before COVID-19, there was a wait list of 51,000 people
homelessness correlates to higher median rents and
for social housing in NSW, and 231,000 low-income
overall shortfalls in affordable private rental housing
households paid more than 30 percent of their income
and social housing. In addition, in 2017, 11% of
in rent. During the pandemic, in April 2020, nearly
Australian households were categorised as being
a third of Australians have reported that their household
in housing stress.
finances had worsened due to COVID-19, and 7.5 per cent are struggling to pay their bills. It is expected that
The supply of social housing is not keeping up
as unemployment grows, more people in NSW will
with demand, with the NSW social housing waitlist
become at risk of homelessness and there will be an
including over 51,000 applicants across the general
increased need for social and affordable housing.
and priority lists as of June 2019. In Australia, there are over 148,520 applicants on the social housing wait
Evolve Housing’s 2020–2023 Strategic Plan has been
list. Researchers estimate that in order to meet current
developed to allow us to carefully respond to and
36 | Evolve Housing Annual Report 2019–20
