Summer 2024
Housing Choices New Strategic Plan 2024-29 P3 Housing Choices Resident Pop-Up Op Shop: A Success! P5 2024 End of Year Resident Celebrations P6
HChoicesTAS
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From the Executive Director Operations For many of us, Summertime across Australia is a chance to rest and recover - slow down, take a break and spend time with neighbours, friends and loved ones.
It’s also a great time to reach out to others who could be feeling isolated or alone. We should all take the time to check in on an old friend or neighbour, to just see how they’re doing. Reading Home Stories is always a fantastic reminder just how important – and how much fun – it is to feel and be connected to our communities. We were inundated with entries for our spring garden competition and were impressed by the amazing gardening skills of our residents. Find the winners and see some pictures on page 4. This year Housing Choices held 6 end of year Christmas events around the State, providing opportunity for our residents to come together and share a meal and connect with members of their communities. See the pictures on pages 6-7. As we say goodbye to 2024 we would like to wish you all a safe and happy festive season and a bright and happy 2025
Around the country many of our residents enjoyed end-of-year celebration events, which are always a major highlight for Housing Choices staff as well. On behalf of everyone at Housing Choices I thank all our wonderful residents for their support and valuable feedback over the year, and we look forward to delivering more and better services to all our communities in 2025.
Hannah Harvey Executive Director, Operations
Cover: Housing Choices Tasmania resident Fulvia with one of her artworks.
Acknowledgement of Country In the spirit of reconciliation Housing Choices Tasmania acknowledges the Traditional Custodians of Country throughout lutruwita (Tasmania) and their connections to land, sea and community. We pay our respect to their Elders past and present and extend that respect to all Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples.
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It always pays to have a plan! Over the last year we’ve been working to update our Plan for Housing Choices’ future. We’ve had fantastic input from a whole range of experts, including residents, staff, partners and services providers. The result is our new Strategic Plan 2024-29 which was released in October. If you’re interested, you can find the Plan on our website at: https://www.housingchoices.org.au/ Housing Choices New Strategic Plan 2024-29 What does it mean for you?
about-us/our-five-year-strategic-plan/ But in a nutshell, what will it mean for you?
Our Plan focusses on 3 main aims
Build and offer more and better homes for people in need and
Become a vibrant and resilient, resident-focussed organisation.
Deliver more and better services to residents.
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create strong communities.
Everything we do will be with the diverse needs of our residents at top of mind. What works best for you, will ultimately work best for us. Nothing will happen or change in a big hurry. It’ll take some time for us to get our internal, staffing, and delivery systems in the right shape so we can become more efficient and responsive to your needs. But that’s the plan!
And at the centre of that plan is building a resident- focussed culture. We want to better maintain our existing homes, as well as build more homes, in more places, to help more people. But we will be making sure we stay utterly focussed on our current residents and their needs along the way. We will be shifting to a ‘national service model’ over time. That might
sound a bit ‘lofty’, but it’s really not. It’s about making it easier for you to get in touch with us, and easier for us to respond to your needs - faster and better. We’ll keep all residents informed as our new Strategic Plan progresses over the next five years. But our progress will be steady and, as with everything we do, it will be built to last.
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Above: Garden competition winner, Shelley Deverall.
Above: Garden competition winner, Joan Bessell.
And the gardens have spoken: Spring Gardening Competition wrap-up!
What a blooming fantastic time we’ve had! The Housing Choices Spring Garden Competition has officially come to a close, and wow – the talent and creativity on display were truly something to behold! From vibrant flower beds to stunning vegetable patches, each garden told its own unique story of hard work,
passion, and a love for the earth. Congratulations to our winners!
We’re thrilled to announce our winners in each category, who’ve truly earned their titles as the green-thumbed champions of our community: A pop of colour (Kathy - Ulverstone) A rainbow of petals that turned heads and brightened up every corner! Best fruit/vegetable garden (Kevin - East Devonport) Fresh, homegrown goodness that made us all envious of those tasty harvests! Most Creative Garden (Shelley - Shorewell Park & Joan - Shorewell Park) Innovative designs and quirky touches that made it impossible not to smile! A heartfelt thanks to all participants! A huge shout out to everyone who participated. Whether you had a backyard oasis or a charming balcony garden, you’ve all made our community greener and brighter. Every garden was a winner in its own way, and it was a joy to see so many different ideas and styles come to life.
Above: TRAC - judging Garden Competition.
TRAC Judging of Garden Competition
Each year our Spring Gardening Competition is judged by our Tasmanian Resident Advisory Committee (TRAC). As judges for this competition, they have carefully evaluated each entry based on several criteria, ensuring a fair and thorough review of the gardens. Their goal is not only to recognise aesthetic beauty but also to encourage sustainable gardening practices that benefit the environment and foster community pride.
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Housing Choices Resident Pop-up
Creative Resident Fulvia
Op Shop: a success!
Above: Janet and Al from Grans Van.
Housing Choices recently held a pop-up op shop, where residents and community were able to "fill a bag for $5." The op shop was the initiative of a resident who has a lived experienced of homelessness before being offered securing housing for her family through Housing Choices. As a way of giving back to her local community Janet organised the op shop and chose Grans Van to receive all money raised.
It was a fantastic event, and thanks to everyone's support, a total of $170 was raised! The funds will help support Grans Van in delivering their services within the local community. A big thank you to everyone who participated and contributed—what a great way to come together and make a difference!
Fulvia Morgan (pictured above) has always enjoyed creative art, she has tried her hand at knitting, crochet and sewing and it wasn’t until she got into colouring that she discovered a talent for drawing and painting. Fulvia is self taught and learned how to paint by watching youtube videos. When Fulvia’s husband, David, found himself on a disability pension and Fulvia became a full time carer she found she wanted something more challenging. Fulvia is very modest about her talent but says she now enjoys creating new pieces using watercolours,
Below: Mum and kids.
coloured pencils and grey lead. Fulvia’s art
work was featured on the Housing Choices Tasmania Christmas Card this year.
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2024 End of Year Resident Celebrations Residents enjoying our Christmas Parties.
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Home Stories Summer Puzzle Win a $50 Bunnings voucher!
Find all the words in the word search except for one, which is not actually in the grid. Words may be forward, backward, up, down or diagonal.
SANDCASTLEXKOSOESSDHCMHH HPMYBABNNFLCAUUSAPBIUFPS UKMRPAUDRAUTTNTDEPXSOGPO OLEROFBEESGACGSRAXI AXRAA WATERMELONGRPL INPCDGIUGG QOHALEOYNOARAADDONBNCECC SUNSHINENTGS I SENEUKCCOCC IRSRL ICAASE I LSTJJLKADZAD EEOUPXSLUWRMOEEXEHHLTELT EVASNOI TACAVASPRI 0STHUTH SWIMMINGIWLHAOHCEUQEBRAB NDGBINENMAERCECIDTLRSPRS I EUPRWGSTAPMOSQUI TOESOVA TCRLGNIPMACMANKEELZI SAI S SWIMSUI TFDAUNOIWPMETOLTO E S BPA T E ADP F FOX I NE E RCSNUS
FIND THESE WORDS IN THE GRID SUNSCREEN SPRINKLER
SANDCASTLE SUNGLASSES HAMBURGERS WATERMELON
LUGGAGE SUNSHINE ICECREAM SWIMMING
BARBEQUE CAMPING OUTSIDE MOSQUITOES
VACATION SWIMSUIT
To go in the draw, contact our Community Development team with the remaining word by calling 1300 312 447 or emailing communitydevelopmenttas@hcau.org.au. Make sure you include your name, home address, and contact number. Entries for the competition close Friday 28 March 2025 . Maximum one entry per household. A lucky Shorewell Park resident was the winner of our Spring word search draw. Congratulations!
Hobart Level 7, 39 Murray Street Hobart TAS 7000
Devonport 5 Steele Street Devonport TAS 7310
Shorewell Plaza 11A Wiseman Street Shorewell Park TAS 7320
General Enquiries 1300 312 447
Maintenance
hctinfo@hcau.org.au housingchoices.org.au
1300 512 583
Disclaimer: To the best of Housing Choices Australia’s knowledge (Housing Choices), this information is valid at the time of publication. Housing Choices makes no warranty or representation in relation to the content or accuracy of the material in this publication. Housing Choices expressly disclaims any and all liability (including liability for negligence) in respect of use of information provided. Housing Choices recommends you seek independent professional advice prior to making any decision involving matters outlined in this publication.
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