The innovative program to help bushfire affected families stay on their land while they rebuild following the recent bushfires will be expanded thanks to a new partnership between the NSW Government, Minderoo Foundation and the Salvation Army.
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The NSW Government and Salvation Army will both commit $1.5 million towards the program, bringing the total funding for the program to $8 million.
The first family sized pod in NSW arrived in the Nambucca Shire back in May to help the Willis family:
Deputy Premier and Minister responsible for Disaster Recovery John Barilaro said the existing program had been so successful that the NSW Government saw an opportunity to expand the program to provide temporary housing to more families.
"The existing program has seen over 100 temporary accommodation pods allocated to families across NSW, so I am very happy to announce we are supercharging the program to roll out another 60 to 70 temporary accommodation pods.
"I have met with many families who have already received a pod and I have seen firsthand how much this means to them.
"The NSW Government is also looking at partnering with other organisations for additional housing options for individuals and families looking to rebuild."
The Salvation Army's Secretary for Mission, Lyn Edge (Lieut. Colonel), says the Salvos assisted more than 8,000 NSW households during the bushfire response.
"We are providing ongoing support for thousands including the residents of 2,475 houses destroyed. We know those who lost their homes will face a particularly hard road to recovery and that having the stability of a Recovery Pod will make the journey more manageable," Ms Edge said.
"We are pleased to be working with the NSW Government and Minderoo Foundation and look forward to stepping further into the provision of additional long-term recovery accommodation in the weeks ahead."
Minderoo Foundation Chairman Dr Andrew Forrest AO said the Foundation was humbled to play a role in assisting NSW communities devastated by bushfire.
"When our Fire Fund team visited impacted communities across northern and southern NSW shortly after the fires, many people on the ground told us their number one priority was to be able to stay on their land while they rebuilt. This message drove the innovative thinking that led us to the design of the Minderoo recovery pods," Dr Forrest said.
