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The Consumer Charter is for people seeking or receiving assistance from any Victorian community-managed homelessness assistance or social housing service. It is designed to help individuals and organisations understand their rights and responsibilities.
The Consumer Charter, and the Guidelines that support it, are integrated into the Victorian Homelessness Assistance Service Standards.
The Consumer Charter is an initiative of the Victorian Homelessness Strategy.
Your rights and responsibilities
If you are seeking or receiving homelessness assistance or housing services, you have the right to:
- assistance during a crisis or to prevent a crisis
- be considered for accommodation and housing, based on fair policies
- receive help finding and staying in suitable housing on a long-term basis
- feel safe
- be free from discrimination
- respect for your culture
- respect, dignity and privacy
- make choices that will affect your future
- participate in the decision making process of organisations providing services to you
- help applying for income support, employment and health services, educational opportunities and other support services
- make a complaint or appeal a decision you do not agree with and receive an answer that makes sense to you.
You also have the responsibility to:
- supply the correct and necessary information about yourself and your situation to organisations providing services to you
- respect the rights of others to feel safe
- respect the cultural backgrounds and privacy of others
- treat others with respect and dignity
- meet your responsibilities as a tenant.
Making a complaint
To help you deal with your complaint, please read through the full charter booklet, which is available from the organisation you are seeking services from. The next step is to discuss your concerns directly with the organisation you have the issue with. If this doesn't work you can seek assistance from the following organisations:
- The Homelessness Advocacy Service on 1800 066 256 or the Council to Homeless Persons
- The Social Housing Advocacy and Support Provider. To find your local service, contact your local housing office
- Your local housing office to ask how to get your complaint heard and dealt with
- Contact the Department of Human Services
Consumer Charter Guidelines (PDF Size 294KB, Pages 20)
The wallet card has been translated into the ten following languages:
Amharic (PDF Size 85KB, Pages 2)
Arabic (PDF Size 224KB, Pages 2)
Chinese (PDF Size 150KB, Pages 2)
Russian (PDF Size 86KB, Pages 2)
Serbian (PDF Size 122KB, Pages 2)
Somali (PDF Size 33KB, Pages 2)
Spanish (PDF Size 37KB, Pages 2)
Tigrinya (PDF Size 82KB, Pages 2)