Hepburn Shire Council knows that it is getting harder for people to find a home in the local area that they can afford and meets their needs. It is affecting people on lower incomes but also people in key jobs that we need to support our services and local business like hospitality, tourism, farm workers, nurses and other carers.

In April 2021, Council adopted an Affordable Housing Policy recognising that access to safe and affordable housing was an emerging and critical local issue. We are now developing a strategy and action plan to do what we can to make a difference.

Most factors that drive housing affordability are outside the direct control or responsibility of local government and/or the community. However, there are some actions that we can take to encourage and create the right conditions to make more affordable housing available in the Shire.

Stage 1 community engagement and a Background report were completed in December. A summary of the findings and feedback is available in the Summary of Findings document. More detail is in the Background Report and the Engagement Findings Report.

In February we hosted an Affordable Housing Forum (Stage 2 community engagement), which brought more than 40 people from around the Shire together to discuss perspectives, ideas and priorities around improving access to affordable housing and Council's role.

Stage 3 community engagement (current stage) is sourcing feedback on the draft Affordable Housing Strategy and Action Plan.

Thank you to everyone who participated in this project. We appreciate your ideas and views.

Hepburn Shire Council knows that it is getting harder for people to find a home in the local area that they can afford and meets their needs. It is affecting people on lower incomes but also people in key jobs that we need to support our services and local business like hospitality, tourism, farm workers, nurses and other carers.

In April 2021, Council adopted an Affordable Housing Policy recognising that access to safe and affordable housing was an emerging and critical local issue. We are now developing a strategy and action plan to do what we can to make a difference.

Most factors that drive housing affordability are outside the direct control or responsibility of local government and/or the community. However, there are some actions that we can take to encourage and create the right conditions to make more affordable housing available in the Shire.

Stage 1 community engagement and a Background report were completed in December. A summary of the findings and feedback is available in the Summary of Findings document. More detail is in the Background Report and the Engagement Findings Report.

In February we hosted an Affordable Housing Forum (Stage 2 community engagement), which brought more than 40 people from around the Shire together to discuss perspectives, ideas and priorities around improving access to affordable housing and Council's role.

Thank you to everyone who participated in the forum, and those who completed a survey last year.

Council has developed a draft Affordable Housing Strategy and Action Plan.

The draft strategy includes 25 actions across four themes, including Community and partnerships, Advocacy, Land use planning and regulation, and Incentives and investment.

Read the Draft Affordable Housing Strategy and Action Plan.

We invite you to review the draft strategy and action plan and provide feedback via the link below.

Submissions must be received by midnight on Sunday 9 July.

Thank you to the many community members who have been involved in this project. We look forward to your continued feedback.