Response to Productivity Commission’s draft report

The Productivity Commission’s Inquiry into Mental Health draft report was released on 31 October 2019. Read our response here. 

In April 2019 Launch Housing made a submission to the inquiry to highlight the critical importance of housing for good mental health care and recovery from mental ill-health.

We called on the Productivity Commission to consider the following themes:

1. Placing safe, secure and appropriate housing at the centre of prevention and recovery.
2. Recognising and privileging the experience, expertise, and voice of consumers.
3. Enhancing prevention and early intervention approaches and improving pathways to mental health services.

It is critical that housing and supports are provided for people experiencing mental illness to prevent and respond to homelessness and accommodation instability. Lack of safe and secure housing undermines attempts to recover from mental ill-health, and consequently, can have an adverse effect on the social and economic impact on individuals and the broader community.

Political follow through is imperative but it must ensure that housing forms a fundamental part of any reform to improve the effectiveness of the mental health system.