The SA Housing Trust (the Trust) is committed to the highest design and building standards to support the safety and wellbeing of tenants and home-owners. This contributes to a strong sense of ‘belonging’ in communities, creates positive and better outcomes for people experiencing housing stress, and delivers value for money public and affordable housing developments. The Trust strives to make a significant contribution to the cultural, environmental, and economic wellbeing of communities throughout South Australia.

Design Parameters

The Trust’s design parameters aim to meet the public and social housing expectations of the community. They apply to a range of housing – from single lot detached homes to multi-storey apartments and townhouses. They include:

Building construction siteSustainability

Commitment to developing sustainable communities – reduce the impact of urban development through specific initiatives in energy efficiency, water conservation, and reducing waste

Privacy

All external private open spaces should achieve a high level of privacy, avoiding overlooking where possible

Neighbourhood

New housing should contribute to an overall improvement in the character and amenity of the neighbourhood; public housing should not be distinguishable from new private housing especially in terms of building setbacks and street alignment, roof pitches and materials, and colour schemes

Sense of address

All housing must have a ‘sense of address’ from the street or from the access point of a group site – e.g., street numbers and letter boxes must be clearly visible

Outdoor and indoor spaces

A strong relationship between outdoor and indoor living spaces will create the feeling of connected safe places and increased accessibility

Shape of housing

Shape and configuration of houses will be determined by local government planning requirements, which will impact on size allotments, size of house footprint and number of levels, and the demand profile or prospective tenants

Single lot housing

Consideration must be given to orientation (i.e., north facing living spaces and overshadowing, site topography, servicing, significant natural features, cross ventilation, prevailing weather conditions) – ensure housing design fits the allotment and has regard to easements and required setbacks

Group housing sites

Use a range of housing designs to maximise site yields and accommodate site constraints (e.g., incorporate significant trees, rear corner lots, servicing, orientation, street frontage)

Housing for the aged

Single-storey housing is preferred; all housing must comply with the Trust’s Housing Design Criteria; sites should be located close to facilities and amenities

Boundaries

All building rules and requirements for construction must be met where there is potential for future boundaries; all attached homes must comply with fire separation and stormwater disposal requirements

Legislation

All public and affordable housing projects must comply with appropriate legislation and agency requirements, including the National Construction Code, the Building Code of Australia, and the Work Health & Safety Act 2012 (including Work Health & Safety Regulations 2012).

Universal Housing Design Criteria

The Trust’s Universal Housing Design Criteria provides adaptability at the time of construction, as well as delivering ‘visitable’ housing that meets the needs and requirements of our tenants, including those living with disability. Implementation of the criteria, combined with the Trust’s Housing Modifications Policy, ensures public housing is truly universal and can meet almost all the needs of our tenants. The principal features of the criteria include stepless entries, wider doorways, and power points and other fixtures at universal heights (i.e., 900mm to 1100mm above floor level). The Trust is committed to providing a minimum of 75% of all new public housing that meets or exceeds the criteria.

Gold Standard

The SA Housing Trust constructs a limited number of properties comparable to the Livable Housing Australia (LHA) Gold Standard, which offer enhanced accessibility and adaptability for occupants with disability-related needs.

This standard is oriented at people with significant mobility limitations including the use of wheelchairs or other mobility aids. The SA Housing Trust prioritises Gold standard properties for people with a verified need for such a property.