Pacifi c Link CEO Keith Gavin (left) with chairman
David Bacon on site at Dunbar Way – the North Gosford
estate due for refurbishment
Housing Ministers across Australia agreed to a new National Regulatory System for Community Housing in March last year, with individual assessments for community and housing providers starting this year.
With over 900 properties and 2,000 tenants, Pacific Link is a mid-sized provider with plans for the future that have now been acknowledged under national provisions. The provisions allow for providers to be ranked as Tier 1, Tier 2 or Tier 3 organisations – with Tier 1 reserved for the most active and significant providers in the sector.
Pacific Link Housing was one of the first in NSW to be awarded Tier 1 status. “For an organisation with just 23 staff to be recognized as a Tier 1 provider is a huge achievement – not just for us but also for the Central Coast and Lower Hunter regions which we serve,” said Pacific Link chairman Mr David Bacon.
“Of more than 200 NSW-based providers now included in the national provisions, less than 15 have achieved Tier 1 status. “This follows on from our Class 1 ranking under the previous NSW State system, achieved last year,” he said.
Mr Bacon said he attributed the Tier 1 ranking to four major aspects of Pacific Link’s work in recent years including: the appointment of a skills based board to guide the organisation; research projects leading to evidenced based planning; the development of an innovative housing program in close collaboration with housing NSW and associated NSW Government authorities; and the growth of operating surpluses that allow Pacific Link to reinvest in new housing initiatives.
Under CEO Keith Gavin, Pacific Link has gone on to develop innovative policies and develop new housing solutions recognised through a number of State and National awards. “We are now engaged in the refurbishment of the Dunbar Way Estate in North Gosford – updating an estate with more than 90 homes that might otherwise have fallen below standard,” said Mr Gavin. “The Central Coast has 30% fewer homes set aside for community and social housing than the average for NSW.
“Crisis Centres are finding it extremely difficult to cope and people, including the elderly, disabled and young mothers with children, are sometimes in desperate need. “It’s up to us as an organisation, and all of us as a community, to build a sustainable society that provides for those who need our help,” he said “We need to plan for the future and we need to be active now. “Being recognized as a Tier 1 provider will assist in our endeavours.”
Media Release,
25 Jun 2014
Fiona Mcgill, Pacific Link