1. Social Housing
and
Special Needs Housing
for the City of Cape Town

2. Beneficiary Targeting For Special Needs
Targeting as part of Special Needs (SPN):
Orphans and vulnerable children
Infected or affected by HIV/Aids
People with physical disabilities and mobility problems
People with psychological difficulties requiring community care
Elderly requiring extra support
Victims of domestic abuse and violence
Homeless on the street

3. Social Housing link with Special Needs Housing
Presently no properly developed special needs policy in the City
Plan is to develop a policy and subsidy programme for SPN on the development and management of new stock within social housing programme
Link the SPN programme of land allocation and subsidy provision through the Social Housing programme
Subsidy to come through the Social Housing, Transitional housing and Institutional Subsidy routes

4. Social Housing Program - Aims / Purpose
To provide access to good quality rental and co-op ownership housing in well located parts of the City at rentals affordable to people on low incomes (R1,500 – R7500 per month)
Within this to provide for people with Special Needs.
And
To ensure that alternative forms of tenure are offered to people living in the existing City Stock so that it can be owned and managed in a pro-active way that maximises the best use of the asset.
Through this to contribute to the economic, racial and social integration of the city.
In doing this to use City owned assets, Partnerships and Government subsidies to leverage additional financial investments into its human settlement development objectives.

5. Social Housing – Institutional Elements
Partnerships
Setting up of 5 year Public Private partnerships between City of Cape Town and Social Housing Institutions
3 partnerships set up through tender process
SOHCO
CTCHCo
Communicare
City provides leasehold land/buildings and access to subsidies
SHI’s facilitate the development and management the rental stock
SHI’s sets up financial packaging with City support

6. Social Housing - Contractual Arrangements
Interlinking contractual arrangements that provide for:
Long term financial planning
Shared risk between City and Partners
Control over efficient use of government resources
Freedom for SHI’s to act as independent businesses
Programme Agreements
5 years
Project Agreements
Duration of project
Land Lease Agreements
30 years
Programme Agreement
Project Agreement 1
Project Agreement 2
Land Lease Agreement
Land Lease Agreement

7. Accessing Well Located Land (restructuring zones)
Land and Building identified and agreed: 5000 units for 5 years
Mainly City land and Buildings
Identified and negotiating on Provincial land and Buildings
Purchase of appropriate land and buildings
Land selected on the basis of:
Well located giving access to well developed Social Economic facilities
Easy access to well developed Public Transport Routes
Contributing to giving access to low income households in areas where housing access otherwise very difficult
Integrated into City’s IDP

8. Social Housing Funding
Capital Financing
Each project financial packaging has the following elements
SH Subsidy: approx R120,000 per unit
City Land and or Building Equity
Equity
Loan Finance – capital repayment in rentals
Operational Financing
From rentals to cover:
Capital repayment
Management Costs
Admin costs
Planned Maintenance of Asset

9. Forms of Special Needs Housing
Potential forms of housing:
Permanent and transitional
Model 1 - Independent living integrated in all SH projects (5 -10% allocation on all new SH projects)
Model 2 - Specialist support housing within SH projects
Model 3 - Specialist support housing as separate projects
Partnerships
Build on our existing partnerships for the development and management of stock – SHI’s
Some specialist care within these partnerships e.g. Communicare home help provision to elderly
Build new partnerships with agencies e.g. NGO’s, W.O.’s to provide the specialist care support
Institutions require organisational sustainability as well as project sustainability

10. Model 1 – Independent Living
Units Developed and managed by SH partners % for people with special needs able to live independently.

11. Social and Special Needs Housing
Model 2 – Special Care Integrated into SH Project
Units Developed and managed by SH partners.
NGO responsible for Care needs of people in special need cluster.

12. Model 3 – Special Care on Own Site
Units can be Developed and managed by SH partners.
NGO responsible for Care needs of people in special need cluster + choice of developing and managing the facility.

13. Financing the Social Housing -Special Needs Program
Capital Finance:
Housing subsidies – Social housing, Institutional subsidy, (Follow KZN policy 1 subsidy per bed)
Special needs disability subsidies (Dept of Social development)
Grants
Loan finance
Operational Finance:
Administration and management of the housing provision
Administration and management of care services
Donations/grants to care organisation
Individual social welfare grants

14. Financing the SPN Housing Program
Very low affordability levels for capital repayment and building management
Higher subsidy per unit required
Additional grant financing for part of Management cost
None of this viable unless the financing is available for the specialist support service on viable basis
Policy Alignment
Broad alignment of City policy with Provincial policy
Alignment of City and Provincial Policy with National policy
Addressing special needs housing in Social Housing Act

15. Current Experiences with SPN in SH Projects
SOHCO has reserved 10% of Units for Special Needs.
Communicare has reserved 30% of Units for Special Needs.
Visual impaired (Blind and semi):
Floor covering should differ at various stages to indicate foreseen obstacles e.g. rubber strip in front of a door way to indicate a door opening onto the walk way.
Bright colours painted on  the edge of each stair on a stairway to indicate the rise or decline of the staircase.
The positioning of windows in the units as direct lightning will be extremely irritating to  a semi blind person
All documentation, e.g. lease agreements should be made in audio format for the tenant to be able to independently keep record of.

16. Current Experiences with SP in SH Projects
Hearing impaired:
A light fitting that flickers when a door bell gets wrung or when an emergency alarms goes off has to be installed inside the unit.
All projects should be made accessible and this can only be achieved if we treat people living with disabilities as independent individuals so the unit is not the only aspect of the project that caters for them but the project in its entirety.

17. Way Forward Finalisation of City Social Housing Special Needs Policy
Enforcement of the component of Special Needs in all Project contracts with SH Partners
Setting up of Special Needs Advisory Group

18. Conclusion
Let us work together for a better city