Raise the Roof Podcasts

Royal Abbott joins us to talk about an exciting new project documenting the history of HAAG and struggles over public housing more broadly.

Wantirna Caravan Park has around 200 residents, many of them older people, who have been told the park will close after a developer built the land. Now those residents face eviction, but they're not taking it lying down. Guest host Aoife Cooke brings us audio from a recent meeting organised by the residents to demand better treatment and protection for themselves and other park residents. 

Independent Living Units were built roughly from the 1950s to the 80s as a form of housing for older people - but since government funding for the program ended, nobody's really looked at the conditions or issues for the many thousands of people still living in them. Aoife Cooke recently completed a report - Independent Voices - that investigates the experiences of people living in Independent Living Units. We talk about that research and the pros and cons of ILUs as a form of housing for older people, and some recommendations for improving them. Don't forget you can contact HAAG if you have a problem in an ILU, or want more information about these and other housing options. 

HAAG is going nationwide in an exciting new project funded by the Wicking Trust. Jeff comes in to talk all about it, and the prospects for both improved services and grassroots activism for older people's housing justice across Australia. We also talk about the weakness of voluntary guidelines that have failed to produce accessible housing for disabled people in the private rental market, and how this effects older tenants. If you're an older renter in Victoria and you'd like to talk to someone about your housing situation, please give us a call on 1300 765 178.