Patricia is a 44 year old woman with an acquired brain injury who also suffers from anxiety and depression. A single parent with a complex history of drug use and chronic health issues, she had lived independently until her brain injury eight years ago. No longer able to live independently , she now lives with an abusive ex-partner and has been suffering family violence since the injury. She was referred to us by a self-advocacy service hoping Leadership Plus could assist in securing safe and affordable housing.

An application for Priority Housing had been declined by the Office of Housing , who judged Patricia had not sufficiently demonstrated attempts to seek alternative accommodation or shown that public housing was the only option.

Leadership Plus gathered evidence to demonstrate the barriers to Patricia seeking alternative accommodation. With advice from the Social Housing Advocacy & Support Program, we compiled evidence of the family violence, a neuro psych report on her disability and anxiety disorders to support a Housing Appeals Application for Priority Housing. This included reference to the Victorian Charter of Human Rights (Article 12- Freedom of movement, and Article 17- Protection of families and children) and the UN Convention on the Human Rights of Persons with Disabilities (Article 19-Liviing independently and being included in the community and Article 28- Adequate standard of living and social protection)

As a result, the Office of Housing approved the Priority Access application under the category Homeless with support, giving Patricia a better opportunity to be placed in safe housing.