Government Regional Officer Housing

• Contact Housing and Transport at the Department of Education for any queries about your housing entitlements: housing.transport@education.wa.edu.au | (08) 9264 4412
• Access housing in regional locations on Ikon
• Access help with housing and transport when you relocate for work on Ikon
• All information regarding GROH can be found on the Department of Communities website
• GROH tenant’s handbook
• Find your local housing office here

Government Regional Officer Housing (GROH) accommodation is managed through the special relationship between Communities, the employing agency and the employee. Unfortunately, this can make it difficult to know who to contact about various issues.

The following table provides some general guidelines, but if in doubt please do not hesitate to contact your local Communities Housing office for assistance.

Eligible staff can get help with moving in WA. Use this information to find out more about relocation help available. Staff can access support when moving to another location to take up an appointment.

The department will also help with a return move once your contract is complete. Depending on entitlements, they may assist with:

• Packing and transport of household items and furniture.
• Transport of up to two vehicles or trailers.
• Removal insurance.
• Reimbursements of travel costs.
• Temporary accommodation and meals while you are travelling.
• Storage costs.
• Allowances related to the cost of moving.

Use find awards and agreements to find specific information about entitlements.

If you are eligible for household relocation you can also apply to relocate vehicles. The department will also provide assistance to arrange relocation travel for you and your family.

If you are moving from within WA, you are responsible for booking the removal of your items with Grace Removals. Make a booking as soon as you know about the move. Uplifts will take place within one week of the requested dates.

If you are moving from interstate, contact housing and transport support before booking your move.

If you are moving to a remote location your relocation may take longer than for standard removals. It is important that you are flexible with uplift and delivery dates.

To book your move:

1. Go to the Grace Removals website.

2. Log in with your E number and password.

3. Complete and submit your application.

Grace Removals will send your application to the department. The department will approve your application after confirming your appointment and your eligibility. If your appointment is not yet on HRMIS, the department may contact your new principal to confirm it.

Your removal request is your insurance request. When completing your household inventory, the insurance value should be equal to what it would cost to replace the item. You should list all items and self-packed boxes valued over $500.

The removalist will confirm uplift and delivery dates with you once they have scheduled your removal.

The removalist may contact you to organise a pre-removal inspection.

Note:

• If you are moving to Cocos or Christmas Island, you will have restrictions on the volume of items you can move. See access support when moving to the Indian Ocean Territories on Ikon.
• You don’t need to wait for a delivery address before submitting a removal request. If you do not have an address, enter TBA in the street field, and the town in the town part of the removal form. This allows the removalist to progress your application.
• During busy periods, the removalist may only be able to confirm their uplift or delivery schedule around one week in advance.

Use the links below to access further information about your move, on Ikon.

• Determine eligibility for teaching staff
• Determine eligibility for support staff
• Understand remote teaching service entitlements
• Access support while on leave
• Book your move
• During removal
• Transport your vehicle
• Transport a trailer, boat or caravan
• Arrange long term storage
• Understand transit storage
• Understand transit insurance
• Transport your pets

The department can provide housing to all staff employed under the School Education Act Employees’ (Teachers and Administrators) General Agreement 2023. This includes:

• Principals.
• Deputy principals.
• Teachers.
• School psychologists.

The department will consider applications from other school and regional office staff on a case-by-case basis.

To be eligible you must meet the following criteria:

• Your role is essential to the school’s core business.
• You work at least 0.5 full time equivalent (FTE).
• You do not already live in the town.
• You do not own another residential property within 50km of your school.
• Your school is not within 35km of Bunbury, Mandurah or the Perth metropolitan area.

The department provides housing in Busselton, Dunsborough and Margaret River for up to 12 months only.

Allocation of housing is subject to availability. If your circumstances change, contact the department to make sure you are still eligible.

Your eligibility for housing will end when:

• Your appointment ends (including if you resign).
• You take an extended period of unpaid leave.
• You live elsewhere for other reasons.

Access the Housing for Country Employees in Public Schools Policy to find out more about eligibility.

You may also be eligible to access GROH furniture. To access furniture, include this request in your application for housing.

All properties north of the 26th parallel are eligible for furniture. Properties south of this are eligible if:

• They are in isolated locations.
• They are share houses.
• You are in your first 12 months in housing in Busselton, Dunsborough or Margaret River.

Furniture includes:

• Lounge settings.
• Dining setting.
• Outdoor setting.
• Washing machine.
• Fridge/freezer.
• Chest freezer (remote teaching service locations only).

Access to furniture is to help you set up your house and provides an option to keep your own furniture in storage. Graduate teachers may be able to access furniture for up to 12 months.

You can find more information in the GROH Furniture Policy.

Submit your application for housing online.

You should submit your application as soon as possible. This is important if your appointment starts at the beginning of the school year. The department will usually let you know the address of your GROH property in the second or third week of January.

If you need access to GROH furniture, request this in your application.

The department will let you know of the result of your application. If you are successful, they will:

• Email your address and property details.
• Let you know who to contact to sign your GROH tenancy agreement.
• Let you know how to collect your keys.
• Make arrangements to deduct rent from your salary.

The department will match you to a house that best suits your circumstances. The department will factor in whether you have a spouse or any dependants. The department will try to accommodate pets where possible.

Note:

• If your principal has already given you an address, you still need to complete an application. Please include the address in the additional information section.
• You must not live in any GROH housing unless your application has been approved by the department.

The department assigns housing taking into account:

• Number of housing/units available.
• Number of people in a family.
• Best use of available housing.

Conditional housing

The department aims to assign housing for the duration of your appointment. In some cases, this is not possible, and they may assign housing on a conditional basis. This means that you may move house again during your appointment. The department offer conditional housing when:

• Your eligibility ends before your contract.
• You would not otherwise be eligible for housing.
• The department assigns reserved accommodation.
• The department assigns accommodation with more bedrooms than needed.

Reserved housing

The department reserves housing in most locations for specific roles, for example school principals. The department may assign this housing to other staff members on a conditional basis.

Serviced housing

The department may assign you serviced housing.

Serviced housing usually shares common utilities, driveways and gardens. This is usually a one or two bedroom unit. If we assign serviced housing the department will:

• Maintain all common areas.
• Pay utility accounts in southern WA locations.
• Pay water accounts in northern WA locations.

Shared accommodation

The department will usually only place you in shared accommodation at your request. In some cases, the department may need to place you in shared accommodation, even if you have requested to live alone.

The department will only assign shared accommodation to single staff members of the same gender who do not own pets. This is usually in a three or four-bedroom house. If you are a tenant in shared accommodation, you need to:

• Respect the rights of all co-tenants.
• Get permission from co-tenants before providing temporary accommodation to family or friends.
• Let the department know if you wish to have a spouse or dependant live with you on an ongoing basis.

The subsidised rent charges for shared accommodation is split between all tenants. If you are the only occupant in the house, the department will charge half the subsidised rent.

Note: You cannot sublet any part of your property.

The department will charge subsidised rent for your housing which is deducted from your salary. The department will start charging rent when you receive the keys to the property. The department will stop charging rent after all steps to vacate your accommodation are complete.

The department calculates the subsidy amount based on the GROH Tenant Rent Setting Framework policy. You can access a GROH Tenant Rent Calculator from the Housing Authority website. If you work in the Remote Teaching Service, you will not be charged rent.

If you work and live in an eligible location, you may be able to salary package your rent. This means that you can deduct your rent before your salary is taxed. The Australian Taxation Office determines which towns are eligible. This is only available if you are assigned a GROH property. To apply to salary package your rent, complete the Agreement to Salary Package GROH Rent form.

You must pay rent while on all types of leave.

You may need to vacate your property if you are taking unpaid leave for more than 20 days. This does not apply to unpaid sick leave or unpaid parental leave if you intend to return to work at the end of the leave. If you continue to live in your property while on any other type of unpaid leave, the department will charge you the non-subsidised rent amount.

Fringe Benefit Tax legislation considers housing that is subsidised and paid for by the Department of Education to be a benefit. This may appear on your HRMIS payment summary as a reportable fringe benefit amount. You will not pay income tax on this amount. This may affect your eligibility for other income tested government benefits. These may include:

• Child support.
• HELP debts.
• Family tax benefits.
• Child care subsidy.

Email doetax@education.wa.edu.au for more information.

The following information is general in nature and provided as a guide only; it does not take into account personal circumstances and is subject to change. Seek professional advice for further and specific information.

Remote area housing benefits

You may be able to salary package these benefits if:

• You are renting through the department’s Government Regional Officers’ Housing (GROH).
• Your usual place of work is in an area considered remote, as defined under the Australian Taxation Office current Fringe Benefits Tax provisions.

The department provides this service internally to eligible teaching employees at no charge.

If you wish to salary package this, all associated costs imposed by the salary packaging company will be passed on to you.

Refer to access housing in regional locations for:

• Further advice on salary packaging GROH accommodation.
• The eligibility rules governing these arrangements.

You may be able to salary package housing expenses that are:

• In connection to your primary place of residence.
• Located in the remote area in which you work.

These include:

• Private rental costs.
• Interest on your home loan.
• Cost associated with purchasing your property.
• Utilities (energy and gas bills).

Private rental costs

You may be able to salary package the rent paid for your accommodation if it is:

• Not owned or leased by the department.
• Your usual place of residence in a remote area.

The rental agreement must be:

• Leased or licensed to you.
• Required as proof of expense.

This benefit is concessionally taxed at 50 per cent of the total amount paid.

Interest on your home loan

You may be able to salary package the interest paid on your home loan if it is:

• In a remote area.
• Your usual place of residence.

You must provide the loan statement as proof of expense.

This benefit is concessionally taxed, Fringe Benefits Tax payable on 50 per cent of the annual deduction.

Costs associated with purchasing your property

You may be able to salary package costs, such as stamp duty, associated with purchasing a remote property over a number of years.

Evidence includes:

• Settlement statements from legal transfer of property.
• Bank-issued mortgage statements.
• Purchase of land/property contracts.

Utilities

You may be able to salary package energy and gas expenses incurred in connection with accommodation that qualifies as:

• Remote area housing.
• Remote area housing loan.
• Remote area housing rent.

You must provide proof of purchase in the form of:

• An invoice.
• A payment receipt.

You must be working and living in a remote area as defined under the Australian Taxation Office current Fringe Benefits Tax provisions.

You will need to pay for all utilities and other living costs used at your GROH property. The department pay utilities for serviced accommodation locations in southern WA.

Arrange utilities

Before moving in, arrange electricity and gas accounts with the local providers. This also applies if you are in shared accommodation. GROH will send you an invoice for water consumption.

Some locations may have bottled gas (LPG). You are responsible for paying for the replacement of these containers. Contact a local supplier when you need a replacement.

You are responsible for telephone, internet and pay TV connections to your property. If the connection needs any physical changes to the property, you must get prior approval from GROH. Contact your GROH office using the contact details on the Housing Authority website to arrange this.

You may be able to claim a disturbance allowance for setting up your utility accounts.

Complete tenancy requirements

Before moving in, contact the local GROH office to sign the tenancy agreement. You will also need to collect your keys.

If you are moving into a GROH property, you also need to collect a copy of the property condition report (PCR). Once received you will have seven days to review the PCR and return it to the local GROH office with any changes. If you do not return the PCR, it will be assumed the information is correct about the condition of the house. This means you may be responsible for any pre-existing damage.

If you are moving into a property owned by the Department of Education, complete an accommodation inspection report.

Insurance

You must organise your own contents insurance. This should start from when your items are delivered to your new location. It is recommended that you organise this as a priority.

Whilst you are a tenant, it is expected that you look after your property and keep it clean and tidy. You are also expected to maintain the garden and report any maintenance or repair issues. These requirements are the same for all rental arrangements.

You need to replace and maintain standard household items such as light bulbs.

You can make repair or maintenance requests using the online maintenance request system.

You must report any urgent repair or maintenance items to your local GROH office. More information can be found here.

How long will it take?

Maintenance escalation

If you have previously reported an issue and it has not been fixed within GROH timeframes, you can use the GROH escalation maintenance service.

If your maintenance has not been carried out within the prescribed timeframes or you are not satisfied with the service provided, you should re-contact Housing Direct. If the matter remains unresolved you can then use the dedicated maintenance escalation mailbox for GROH tenants:

• GROHescalationmaintenance.housing@housing.wa.gov.au

For more information on this service see the GROH housing maintenance escalation form on the Housing Authority website.

You are responsible for the cost of damage caused by neglect or misuse.

You can find additional information about GROH repairs and maintenance on the Housing Authority website.

You must give at least 21 days’ notice if you intend to vacate your accommodation. You do this by completing the  notice of intention to vacate accommodation (NIV) form online.

You will need to vacate your housing seven days after your last working day. If your last working day is the end of Term 4 and you do not have a contract for the next school year, you must move by 31 December. You can vacate earlier if you wish.

You must clean your property before leaving. The department will bill you for any cleaning needed after you hand back the keys. The department will dispose of any items left behind at your expense.

You will continue to be charged rent until:

• You return all keys.
• The property is empty.
• You have completed the NIV form.

You should contact the local GROH office if you are not sure about what to do when vacating.

Do not turn off power, water mains or the garden reticulation when you leave the property.

You can access more information about vacating a GROH property from the Housing Authority website.

Sometimes the property you live in is no longer suitable for you and your family. You may also need to vacate your property due to:

• The Department of Education’s lease ending.
• Not being able to live in the property while maintenance work is completed.

If this happens, the department will allocate you another GROH property where one is available. The department will provide you with relocation support if they have required you to move.

If you wish to move, you will need to complete the following forms online:

• Notice of intention to vacate accommodation 
• Application for GROH accommodation 

If you wish to move to another GROH property within the same town, explain why in your new application. You should also provide the support of your line manager with your application. Relocation will be subject to availability.

Note: The department will usually not provide help with transport if the relocation is at your request.

What is the CTP/RTS and CTP/RTS placements

CTP financial and professional incentives

RTS financial and professional incentives

Allowances

Teaching in The Lands

Government Regional Officer Housing