Housing boost for "forgotten" women

Work has started on a major “affordable housing project” for almost 50 older women in the Moreton Bay region.

The State Government and Y-Care are building the complex at Mango Hill for women over 55 from the social housing register.

Women over 55 are the fastest growing homeless group in Australia and often described as the "hidden homeless". 

When finished, the development on Linear Drive will have 47 single-bedroom units with community spaces and onsite support services for tenants.

All units will be built under Social Housing Design Guidelines to meet accessibility needs of seniors and Queenslanders with disabilities.

Moreton Bay City Council is waiving infrastructure charges on the project, which is due to be completed in late 2026.

A development application was lodged with Council last month for “minor changes” to the original approval.

“We’re proud to have waived millions of dollars of development fees and infrastructure charges, including for this project, to ensure housing gets built faster,” Mayor Peter Flannery said.

“We’ve pioneered a number of initiatives to drive more social and affordable housing and continue to work closely with community organisations and other levels of Government.”

There are currently more than 670 social and affordable homes in construction or under contract to be delivered across the Moreton Bay region.

Minister for Housing and Public Works Sam O’Connor said: “We’re ramping up social and affordable housing construction to ease the housing crisis in the Moreton Bay region.

“This complex underway at Mango Hill is a great example of how we are working with community housing providers to deliver more homes in the right locations.

“This will mean safe, secure and affordable homes with on-site support for older women, who are one of our most vulnerable groups when it comes to homelessness.”

Y Queensland CEO Damian Foley said the sod-turn was an “important milestone in our commitment to providing safe, secure and dignified housing solutions for older women”.

Organisations such as The Forgotten Women housing initiative are also trying to help the growing number of homeless older women.