Wellington Housing First contracts revealed

Services for 200 people and whānau in Wellington, including the Hutt, are scheduled to begin this month. Photo / Mark Mitchell

Two contracts have been awarded for the rollout of Housing First in Wellington, which will begin this month.

Housing First is a Government-led initiative to end homelessness.

It's a collective response which offers people immediate access to housing, with "wraparound" health and welfare services, as required, backing up the placements.

It's understood contracts to deliver Housing First services in Wellington are being entered into with Kahungunu Whānau Services and a collective being led by DCM.

In a pre-Budget announcement the Government said it would spend almost $200 million on strengthening Housing First.

Services for 200 people and whānau in Wellington, including the Hutt, are scheduled to begin this month.

Kahungunu Whānau Services CEO Ali Hamlin-Paenga said the Housing First contract was the beginning of a lot more work to come.

It's important a Māori housing provider was awarded one of the contracts, she said.

"Maori have their own solutions and I think the importance of allowing us to do what we need to do in a Te Reo Māori way gives us an opening to ensure not only our people but all people in the community are looked after.

"When you look after those less likely to experience good outcomes, you look after everybody", she said.

Meanwhile, Wellington City Mission is set to secure a one-off $500k grant from Wellington City Council's City Growth Fund.

The money will go towards developing a commercial building on Oxford Terrace the Mission purchased earlier this year.

The plan is to move its services from Newtown to the new Mt Cook site.

Between 30 and 50 supported-living units will also be developed under the Housing First initiative, subject to final design plans.

"Housing isn't about walls and a roof, it's about the ability to live successfully alongside and with other people.

"So the idea is not just to create a building that has a whole lot of individual rooms in it, that don't have any connection to each other, the intention is to actually build a brand-new supported living community", Wellington City Missioner Murray Edridge said.

What will be the City Mission's new home is practically across the road from where Wellington's first KiwiBuild homes are being developed.

The Wellington Company is building a new six-storey apartment block in King St containing 44 two-bedroom KiwiBuild units. They will cost between $450,000 and $500,000.

Just down the road the Urban Habitat Collective has purchased a site large enough to house more than 20 households.

Wellington City Council housing portfolio leader councillor Brian Dawson encouraged other housing providers to think seriously about Housing First.

"It's a really good thing to see someone deliberately targeting that service because we are going to have to have those units available as soon as Housing First hits the ground so we can start getting runs on the board."