HELPING INDIVIDUALS LIVING WITH MENTAL ILLNESS SUSTAIN TENANCIES Cooperation, Coordination, Collaboration ? Carolyn Williams Emily Teding van Berkhout –

How did the project come to be?  Partners in Recovery (PIR) Consortiums 2014/2015  Accessing and sustaining tenancies key issue raised  Supportive Tenancy Service workers raise living with mental illness as key issue  Capital Health Network provides flexible funds to Woden Community Service and Belconnen Community Service to explore these issues Mental Illness and Housing Project

Our Key Purpose… To gain a stronger understanding of the specialist support that individuals living with severe and enduring mental illness may require to establish and maintain tenancies

The main objectives include  Identify the needs and barriers faced in accessing and maintaining secure tenancies  Identify the resources and capacities that the STS team currently bring  Identify the ways in which the current capacity and skills of STS can be enhanced  To help establish clearer role expectations between PIR and STS workers  How can the NDIS be useful?

Supportive Tenancy Service

Time for an activity!

Discussion  What was the activity like?  Did you draw anything recognisable?  How did the time pressure feel?  Did your expectation of the finished product change?

Sustaining Tenancy – multiple stakeholders  Who?  Service user  Landlord or HACT  Family  Mental health services  Financial services  Legal services  Child and youth services  Tenancy Support Do they all have the same goal?

Lets look at an example  John  44 years old  Public housing  Two school aged children  Living with severe depression  Referred for property condition Involved John Housing ACT Child, youth, family gateway Mental Health (public) Others?

What are the agendas?  John: To get public housing off his back and live how he wants  HACT: to get the property condition corrected  MH: to assist John with improving his mental health  CYF: to help children – does CPS need to be involved?  STS: to help John to keep his tenancy, and make sure it is sustainable for the future

How would STS collaborate?  Meet with John. What does John actually want? Does he consent to you talking with other services?  Case conference +/- John  Shared goals  Regular communication  Flexibility

The Challenges  Engaging the service user  STS is voluntary, but can feel mandatory  Agency policies on closing files due to non-engagement  Conflicting agendas and timeframes  We want to work at John’s pace if possible  Trust between services  Communication barriers e.g. Consent  Roles and Responsibilities  Time

The Continuum of Integration AutonomyCooperationCoordinationCollaborationIntegration Agencies act without reference to each other, although the actions of one may affect the other(s). Agencies establish ongoing ties and provide limited support to an activity undertaken by the other agency. Communication and sharing information is emphasised. Separate partners plan the alignment of their activities. Duplication of activities and resources is minimised. Requires agreed plans and protocols or the appointment of a coordinator or manager. Partners put their resources into a pool for a common purpose, but remain separate. Responsibility for using the pooled resources is shared by each of them. Requires: - common goals and philosophy - agreed plans and governance - agreed administrative arrangements. Links between separate agencies draw them into a single system. Boundaries between the agencies dissolve as they merge some or all of their activities, processes or assets. Table1. (

Strategies to Improve Collaboration CClear goals and accountability PParticipation TTransparency OOpen and honest communication OOne clear, agreed upon, case plan LLimits multiple agendas LLead by example

Take Home Message  Collaboration is ideal but challenging  Requires strong partnerships, commitment, transparent and mutual goals, and trust  Working with different agencies, different levels of experience with mental illness  STS promotes and encourages collaborative approaches

The Project  Have you had experience with the interactions between severe mental illness and housing problems?  What do you think the key barriers people living with mental illness face in regards to tenancies?  What, if any, are the particular needs of people living with mental illness in regards to housing?  Do you have anything to contribute?

IF YOU HAVE ANY FEEDBACK, SUGGESTIONS, OR IDEAS TO INFORM OUR PROJECT PLEASE CONTACT US: Carolyn Williams Emily Teding van Berkhout –