Public housing support if you experience domestic and family violence
Find support from Housing ACT or other agencies.
If you're experiencing domestic and family violence, there are services outside Housing ACT that can help. Visit get help now.
Are you in danger now? Call the police on 000
How to get public housing support
Housing ACT doesn’t provide emergency accommodation, but we can help you connect to local organisations who do.
If you are already a public housing tenant or resident you can:
- contact your Housing Manager
- come into the office and speak to a staff member about how we can help you.
If you are experiencing domestic and family violence you might be able to get public housing more quickly.
If you are on the public housing waiting list, contact Housing ACT. Ask to update your application with information about the domestic and family violence you are experiencing. We will look again at your application, and it may be moved up to get you help earlier.
If you haven’t applied for public housing with Housing ACT, the first step is to apply.
Contact Housing ACT or come into the office to speak to someone. We can help you apply for public housing and answer your questions. Let us know if we need to make special arrangements to help you be safe when you contact us.
You can phone us, email or visit our Belconnen office. Find the details at Contact Housing ACT.
Help to connect with other support services
To find support you can contact FIRST Canberra. This service helps people with housing issues, safety, and social isolation. They can help you to connect with local community support services.
These community services may include:
- legal support
- domestic and family violence services
- youth support
- emergency accommodation
- food and clothing services.
FIRST Canberra can also help you to apply for public housing. Visit FIRST Canberra or call them on 1800 176 468.
If you are a tenant or resident of a Housing ACT property
Housing ACT wants to support tenants, and residents we know about, to be safe. We treat victim-survivors with respect and involve them in decision making.
If you are experiencing domestic and family violence, you can ask us about:
- moving to a different public housing property
- applying for a public housing property of your own (if you aren’t the one on the current tenancy)
- security upgrades to keep you safe at home
- help with property damage or debt caused by the domestic and family violence.
Ending your public housing lease early
You can end your lease early if you experience family or domestic violence.
If you want to move out of your property and end the tenancy agreement you can do that. To leave earlier than the normal 3-week notice period, you can use a Family Violence Termination Notice. This allows you to end your tenancy on the vacate date you put in the notice. You’ll only need to pay rent up to the vacate date.
You should only use a Family Violence Termination Notice if:
- you understand your options and what it means if you do this
- you don't need a public housing property anymore
- you’ve found other accommodation.
It is a good idea to contact Housing ACT and ask to speak to your Housing Manager. They can explain:
- how Housing ACT might be able to help you
- what leaving means for you if you end your public housing tenancy agreement.
Read how to end a tenancy because of family violence.