Rough sleepers in Lismore are set to get more help from North Coast Community Housing (NCCH), but first, the regional social housing organisation needs to find properties to rent.

NCCH chief executive John Mckenna is asking the Lismore community to help them find 30 properties that can be rented out and give rough sleepers a better future.

“We received $2.1 million in government funding for the Together Home project, which will help us assist up to 30 local people over the next two years,” Mr McKenna said.

“We have a long list of rough sleepers needing help, and most of the people on the list are based in Lismore.

“This funding is for people who have been housed in temporary accommodation during the covid lockdown and were rough sleeping – not just homeless. 

“They have been identified already by the Department of Community and Justice and were housed in temporary accommodation through the lockdown period.”

Mr McKenna said about 37,000 people across state are homeless and after the homeless count in February, about 400 people were identified locally. 

“Now we need to find 30 properties with one or two bedrooms,” he said.

“If we can get the people who have been sleeping rough into housing and give them support to deal with their complex issues, they will be able to sustain tenancies and potentially move into long term housing.”

Mr McKenna said that NCCH often assists people into housing with help to pay the rent.

“But the difficulty is in having financial support to pay for the wrap around support you need to keep them there,” he said. “Rough sleepers need that.

“We run in partnership with mental health services, but with no support dollars, that bit falls over.

“This latest funding actually covers the whole package and means we can make a difference to help get people off the streets and give them a chance.”

If you are a property owner and would like guaranteed rent income for the next two years, Mr McKenna asks you to call NCCH Lismore on 0266 275 300 NCCH and talk to Nikki about the rough sleeping leasehold program.

NCCH currently has 980 properties, housing 1900 people across the region from Grafton to Tweed heads.

For more information, visit the NCCH website: https://www.ncch.org.au/