Ian Brain (pictured) has joined Uniting Housing as its chief executive officer. Mr Brain will be based at the synod offices in Little Collins St, but his task is synod-wide.
“Uniting Housing’s role is to support UnitingCare and the UCA with the provision of accommodation properties where services and mission need them,” Mr Brain said. “The State and Federal Governments require particular legal structures to hold property for housing provision, and this is a key role that Uniting Housing undertakes.”
Mr Brain’s background is in welfare service delivery and development, having commenced his working life as a youth worker with the Grassmere Centre in Doveton in Melbourne’s south-east, and later with a wide range of welfare agencies and policy development organisations.
His career led him to focus particularly on disadvantaged access to employment and training, and more widely, job generation and job creation programs. This led to senior positions in service delivery management in these and the wider welfare and policy development field.
More recently, Mr Brain has been involved in property development, particularly with a view to creating more accessible housing.
“The Australian community has a great need for more affordable housing,” Mr Brain said. “Federal Government policy and the broader Australian economic environment is not directly encouraging its development. There is a vital role for the Uniting Church in this area, and I look forward to assisting UnitingCare with this work.”
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