Neighbourhood houses get by on the smell of an oily rag. And we make every $ count.
At ACC our staple funding, as with the other 500 houses in Victoria, comes from the State Government.
And from there … we all have individual arrangements.
At ACC we have ongoing agreements with Darebin and Yarra Councils for $$ funding support - and as part of this we identify programs and projects that deliver shared strategic goals. Then we regularly report on these so Council can include our deliverables as their own annual outcomes. It is a great relationship that maximises community benefit - because neighbourhood houses need additional funds but are also amazing vehicles for Council to efficiently deliver outcomes for community at the hyper local level. It’s a win-win-win.
The other key support we get from Darebin Council is our ‘peppercorn’ lease. Which is a normal arrangement across Victoria for our sector - neighbourhood houses are not in a position to pay commercial rates and they are all supported in their leasing arrangements in some way.
And friends and neighbours … this is where we need your support.
Darebin Council currently has a draft leasing policy out for consultation. A one size fits all document. And alarm bells are ringing for the neighbourhood houses.
There is very little clarity in who this policy applies to … which properties? Who are the leasees?
We do know that neighbourhood houses are partners in nine leases.
And we’d like your help to encourage Council to consider us as a unique sub-group in this policy … and to develop a more nuanced, fit-for-purpose policy for our peppercorn leases into the future.
Specifically
We’d like to stand alone, or at least be in category A of the proposal - acknowledging our symbiotic relationship with Council and community
We currently have a 10 year lease (4x3x3) that gives us security to do things like renovations. This is being changed with no rationale. We’d prefer the current arrangement to continue unless there is a pressing need that is clearly explained.
We are very concerned about the new proposal re. shared revenue raising. Sharing the meagre gross revenue generated from our subleasing will not deliver better community outcomes. For example, we currently run a suite of free community programs focused on reducing loneliness. These programs are internally ‘subsidised’ by renting our space for birthday parties on weekends. But if the parties become unviable to run, our free programs will also stop. There is no question about this. That ‘smell of an oily rag’ thing isn’t a joke. It really is true. $1000 here and there makes a huge difference at ACC.
We’d like to maintain the separation between our peppercorn lease and our Council reporting requirements - we already have robust, fit-for-purpose and meaningful reporting tied to our annual funding agreement with Council (this agreement outlines how we will contribute to the community outcomes prioritised in the Council Plan). And we produce an annual report. The catchall reporting proposed poses significant collection and privacy concerns if taken literally (which it must be of course - once it is documented it can always be interpreted literally). For example, we have no need to know your age when you come along and join in a program with us. … and it is not appropriate for us to ask for details just because Council wants to collect random data.
And more fundamentally, we are generally concerned at the assumptions that sit beneath the policy … surely all the organisations on peppercorn leases have a strong community/social purpose? Why else would Council offer these leases in the first place? Why is there a vibe that more reporting is required to hold these organisations to account? All not-for-profits must produce public annual reports already.
We anticipate that most of the leasees are much loved and valued organisations like ours on tiny budgets, that barely make ends meet and rely on loads of volunteering and goodwill to get by … and deliver important community outcomes for the most vulnerable in society.
In addition, this policy assumes that numbers through the door tells the story of success … but in the social/community sector is this really success? Perhaps supporting one individual at a time to leap forward rather than drift backwards is success? Or the actual existence of a service for a vulnerable cohort (that without a peppercorn lease could not exist) is in itself the measure of success.
Are our Council managed peppercorn lease buildings really potential economic windfalls in the making? Is this their community value? OR are they amazing community assets that create opportunities for our society to have niche services that build us all up and create a more caring, inclusive and kind community …
If you could take 5 minutes to think about these issues and then complete the Darebin Council survey before 18 March it would be very helpful for us.
Click here to complete the survey.
And … please talk to your local councillor to express your support for neighbourhood houses and the amazing role they play in the community if you get the chance.
Click here to contact the Darebin Councillors.
