The second Australian Co-operative Housing Alliance Summit, held at Melbourne Cricket Ground last month, gathered more than 130 delegates including co-op members, government representatives, international guests and housing professionals.
Federal special envoy for social housing and homelessness, Josh Burns MP, set the tone early, reminding the audience that the housing crisis demands bold, community-led solutions.
“What is clear about the co-op model is that it’s a completely different way of thinking,” he said. “It’s not about long-term rental, it’s about the sense of belonging and ownership of your own home and your own place. And I think that that’s a really important, fundamental way of thinking about housing, because housing is not about bricks and mortar. It’s about safety, it’s about security, it’s about the foundations of life.”
His call to embed co-ops in national housing policy resonated throughout the day, with global and local voices sharing the platform.
Blase Lambert, chief executive of the UK’s Confederation of Co-operative Housing, shared how British co-ops managed to scale up with government support, while Dr Marcus Spiller, from the National Housing Supply & Affordability Council, highlighted the urgency of structural reform.
“We need to build the capacity so that co-ops can be ramped up at scale and at pace,” he said, highlighting the need for “the right institutions for prudential supervision, and ongoing demonstration that this is a low-risk sector.”
Student housing advocates Donald Proctor and Scott Jennings shared stories of young people taking housing into their own hands, while additional practical sessions explored issues such as placemaking strategies and shared-equity models for the over-55s.
Western Australia’s Kyloring Co-operative described its approach to ageing in place, blending environmental sustainability with strong social networks.
And New South Wales All Nations Co-operative shared examples which, it said, show how federal, state and local governments can work together with co-operative housing providers and members, to make innovative co-op housing a reality.
The event demonstrated how “co-ops are proving that housing can be done differently, at scale, sustainably, and with people at the centre,” said ACHA chair, Liz Thomas.
