A home that changed everything
For years, Sandra* juggled two homes and constant worry. Her adult son lives with a complex mental health condition. To be near him, she moved into a share house nearby.
“It was a nightmare for about three to four years,” Sandra says. “Every morning and every night, before and after work, I would go there. I’d get him ready, organise support workers because he ended up on the NDIS, and then after work I’d go back, help with dinner and make sure he was settled for the night.”
“He had community mental health team working with him along with the NDIS,” she says. “But what was dragging him down was where he was living.”
Sandra took a small studio through Home in Place for herself. “That was great, but it was still the same situation,” she says. “I’d go over every morning and afternoon. On my days off I’d be with him to make sure he was safe.”
She kept checking the Home in Place website. “Around March last year a two-bedroom property became available,” she says. “We pulled up on the day of the viewing and there were 55 plus people. I said to my son, ‘Mate, we’re just going to sit in the car and wait for the mass to go through. We’ll go toward the end so we can get a better idea of the property.’ We went in. I loved it.”
“A couple of weeks later we were notified that we were offered the property. It was unbelievable.”
“I think it was 4 April. The lease was signed, and we moved in,” Sandra says. “It was just a totally different world. Absolutely different.”
Those first weeks lined up with a longer in-patient treatment stay for her son. “Combined with that, living in the new property, the support team and NDIS, strategies were in place” she says. “He knew where he was coming to when he came back.”
“When he came out five or six months later, he blossomed,” she says. “Housing has been a huge factor in that. The simple things, like hanging the washing on the clothesline, being able to buy food and have it in the fridge and prepare meals, also means better food intake.”
“We’ve been approved for cats. We’ve got cats” Sandra says. “No doubt they’ve contributed to our improved mental health as well.”
Gardening has helped too. “We applied for a raised veggie garden through the Green Thumbs funding, and received a grant” she says. “We met with Meg [Community Participation Officer] at Bunnings and picked up the raised veggie garden. We’ve just started it. The rain hasn’t helped, but we’re getting there.”
“It’s paradise where we are,” Sandra says. “The neighbours are brilliant. Beautiful native birds come into the backyard. There are kookaburras, king parrots, rainbow lorikeets and little butcher birds who have the most beautiful sound. The cats are indoor only, but they’re absolute characters.”
“He’s into projects again,” she says of her son. “Right now, he’s working on a great restoration project. Seeing him focused on something positive is everything.”
“We’re happy,” Sandra says. “It’s a huge relief. Our day isn’t constant fight or flight anymore. Home is peaceful. We pull into the driveway and say, ‘We love our home.’ I can’t say thank you enough!.”
Sandra also values the ongoing contact. “The engagement from Home in Place is brilliant,” she says. “It’s not just the forums. It’s newsletters, Facebook posts, everything. They do not feel like just a landlord. It feels like a relationship that’s about improving people’s lives.”
