Housing Support Program - Stream 1 - Planning Capability

The Australian Government’s Housing Support Program (HSP) is one of a range of programs designed to help achieve National Housing Accord’s target of building 1.2 million new, well-located homes over 5 years from 1 July 2024. The HSP will support the delivery of increased housing supply by funding projects that seek to deliver enabling infrastructure, provide amenities to support new housing development or improve building planning capability.

This first Stream (HSP 1) is designed to provide resources to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of planning process, so that housing construction can commence sooner, support increasing housing in well-located areas, or encourage development in line with the national blueprint.

Applications can only be made by a state government, territory government or local government authority (LGA). Applications in partnership with other government and non-government entities are eligible to apply, but the lead applicant must be a state, territory or local government authority.

To be eligible, the project must improve planning capability. Examples of eligible projects could include, but are not limited to:

• New pathways for planners and related professions to enter the industry
• Tools to streamline planning systems and improve efficient decision making
• Sharing of resources between local governments
• Resources to support master planning and planning reform.

Planning capability projects can support the delivery of housing outcomes either directly (for example by increasing the efficiency of the development approval process) or indirectly (for example by increasing the workforce trained to do planning and related work).