Community Housing Concierge
We are helping remove barriers to progress community housing projects through the planning system.
The NSW planning system can be complex.
The Community Housing Concierge pilot provides end-to-end assistance to participating Community Housing Providers as they navigate through the planning system, helping to remove barriers and ensure much-needed community housing projects can be delivered across NSW.
The Community Housing Concierge pilot provides:
- Planning pathway navigation, sound boarding and early resolution of issues.
- Ongoing portfolio management on planning matters (i.e. regular structured check-ins on each of the partners projects) to ensure projects are efficiently progressing through the assessment process.
- Support on concurrences and referrals between DPE, councils and other state agencies.
- Information updates on new or revised government policy and expert insights on planning processes.
- Access to the Planning Delivery Unit Case Management if projects get stalled in the system.
Please note that the Community Housing Concierge is not a statutory consent authority and does not guarantee favourable planning outcomes.
Expressions of Interest
An Expression of Interest (EOI) for the Community Housing Concierge was completed between 23 January to 20 February 2024. Applicants will be advised of the outcome of their EOI application in late March/early April 2024.
Program guidelines
The Department has created the Community Housing Concierge Guidelines to outline critical information about the program and the EOI process.
Evaluation criteria
To be eligible for the Community Housing Concierge EOI, applicants:
- Must be a registered Community Housing Provider, including Aboriginal Community Housing Providers.
- Have current or upcoming projects in the NSW planning system, which will contribute to the five-year National Housing Accord timeframe.
In addition to key eligibility criteria, the following criteria was considered by the Department as part of the EOI evaluation process:
- Scale of investment and timing of investment (number of projects to be delivered and when)
- Geographic spread
- Variety of housing types
- Support a variety of Tiers
- Ability to facilitate positive outcomes for Aboriginal communities
- Recipient of government funding
- Demonstrated capacity as a model proponent
- An evaluation of the ability for the Community Housing Concierge to make a meaningful impact on the portfolio
Community Housing Providers already receiving Planning Concierge support will be transitioned into the Community Housing Concierge and were not required to apply.
If you have any questions about the services provided by the Community Housing Concierge, please see Community Housing Concierge Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) or email [email protected].