| Primary impact area | Impact area | Geographic location of impact | Investment commencement | SDG alignment |
| Social | Housing & Social Real Estate | New Zealand | 2019,2020 |
|
Increased supply of social and affordable housing is vital for meeting the needs of the most vulnerable New Zealanders and a crucial step in moving individuals towards building better lives.
Kāinga Ora supports people across New Zealand to have good quality, affordable homes, and live in strong, healthy communities. Kāinga Ora’s approach to sustainability is aligned with the New Zealand Government’s commitments including the UN Paris Agreement and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and its focus on wellbeing as a measure of the Government’s Living Standards Framework (LSF).
Kāinga Ora Homes and Communities (incorporating Housing New Zealand) operates as the NZ public housing landlord, and is focussed on partnering with the development community, Māori community, and local and central government on urban development projects.
In leading the Government’s priorities for housing and urban development, Kāinga Ora provides emergency, transitional and affordable housing. It provides social housing services for high risk, high need people, delivers public housing and works towards sustaining tenancies, and where it can move people to housing independence and social and economic participation in New Zealand society.
Kāinga Ora provides services to a cross section of the community, including those with health issues, disabilities and those that are socially disconnected. Kāinga Ora provides tailored services and housing solutions for individuals and families in need of additional support.
The Wellbeing Bonds are issued under ICMA Sustainability Bond framework, and fund development and retrofit for housing stock. The bonds also support environmental outcomes: through energy-efficient housing designs and construction, the bond is set to reduce emissions and waste – building greener, more sustainable communities.
The financing, over 4 years, hopes to see 5,295 people housed with new and/or retrofitted social housing accommodation; 192 new and/or upgraded facilities for supported housing for customers that need intensive support to continue to live in their homes; and 49 new and/or upgraded facilities that include mobility concerns.
In addition, wrap-around support will be provided for customers identified as most at risk of poor wellbeing outcomes. Since first established (October 2018), intensive tenancy management has supported 520 tenants.
"Kāinga Ora’s role is to contribute to sustainable, inclusive and thriving communities. QBE’s investment in our Wellbeing bond program helps us achieve
our social, environmental and wellbeing objectives. Kāinga Ora has a significant task ahead in delivering housing and support to those in need and at risk. We see the importance of impact investing continuing to grow and evolve with the investor community requiring positive socio-economic outcomes to align with investment mandates."
— Sam Direen, Treasurer
Case study: Te Waka Urungi – Intensive Tenancy Management
Intensive Tenancy Management focuses on complicated tenancy cases that require a greater level of care and attention. By pulling together a wide network of different support services, the Intensive Tenancy Management team can understand and address the issues tenants are facing in order to turn lives around.
Jessica, a 24-year-old mother with two children, Ruby and Jacob, who were in the care of their grandparents, lived with their whole family in the same home. Jessica had physical and mental health issues and had made multiple suicide attempts. There was a very challenging family dynamic and a lack of support from other agencies.
The Intensive Tenancy Management team advocated for Jessica, for the necessary support from other agencies, and referred Jessica for help getting work and built a trusting relationship. By building these connections across existing agencies and departments, vulnerable people such as Jessica are engaged with suitable and existing government programs, rather than presenting at times of crisis. Jessica now has her own space to focus on her health, with other agencies and whānau also providing support. She is more assertive, confident about the future and focused on getting her children back in her care.
Source: Premiums4Good Investment Impact Report 2019-2020