For years the former WestConnex construction sites on Parramatta Road at Haberfield and Ashfield were fenced off. Honestly, they were a bit of an eyesore. Last week I stood on that same patch of land with the Minister for Housing to announce those sites will soon be transformed into hundreds of new homes. Four residential buildings, ranging from three to seven storeys will go up, with 30 per cent of homes to be social housing. For too long, those former Transport sites sat vacant. But now, following our Government's statewide audit of surplus government-owned land, they have been transferred to Homes NSW and will be transformed into quality new homes that our inner west community needs, including 100 much-needed social homes.

Those sites are perfect location for new homes. Future residents will be within easy walking distance of lots of great public transport options, excellent local schools, beautiful green spaces and all the services they need. Community consultation is now open so locals can have their say and help shape this really important project. We all know that we are in a housing crisis. This exciting project on Parramatta Road will make a real difference, but there is no single or simple solution. We need to build more homes wherever we can and faster. That is why our Government is using every tool at its disposal to increase housing supply and make sure public land is working harder for the people who need it most.

Housing is the biggest cost that families face every day. Unsurprisingly, it is what people talk to me about all the time at the shops or community events. People are worried about whether their kids will be able to afford to live near them and in their communities. People have been on the social housing waiting list too long. Women and children escaping domestic and family violence need a safe place to rebuild their lives. Every home we build changes a life. Those 340 homes are not just a target being met or a number in a government media release; they are real homes for real people in our community who are waiting today for a dignified and secure place to call home.

That is not the only project in my community. There is planning work underway for more homes along Parramatta Road. At Burwood North there are housing opportunities that we are looking at as well. At Camperdown, one of the other old WestConnex sites, build‑to‑rent and affordable homes are being built right now.

Those homes, of course, do not just appear out of thin air. The Government is delivering more homes across the State, because we know too many people cannot afford to wait. More than 52,000 homes were approved statewide last financial year—the highest number in four years. There are now more than 80,000 homes under construction across the State. On social housing, the Government has delivered 1,711 new social and affordable homes in its first year through the Building Homes for NSW program. That is the largest increase in government‑built housing in over a decade. The $6.6 billion Building Homes for NSW program is working toward a target of 8,400 new and refurbished social homes. After more than a decade of neglect, where social housing stock shrank from around 110,800 homes to 95,700 under the former Government, our Government's investment in housing matters more than ever.

Some will say that land like those former WestConnex sites should be set aside for social housing alone and nothing else. I understand why that argument might have appeal. But the evidence—both in Australia and internationally—tells us that housing estates built as social housing alone, without the mix of a genuine community around them, too often concentrate disadvantage rather than relieve it. Housing should open doors, not reinforce barriers. That is why we are focused on building diverse, mixed communities that create opportunity and connection. A mixed development, with nearly a third social housing embedded in a broader community, delivers more homes faster in a form that builds a genuinely inclusive neighbourhood.

But building more homes is just the beginning, because more than 40 per cent of the people I represent rent and there is no point in building more homes if renting is not fair for them. I am pleased that last month I hosted Minister Chanthivong and Rental Commissioner Trina Jones to hear from local renters about their experiences. We heard that all the reforms that our Government is undertaking—including the no-grounds evictions reforms and longer term tenancies—are making renting fairer. Today the Smart Rental Bonds scheme is available to every renter across New South Wales so that they can transfer their bond from one home to the next instead of finding thousands of dollars up-front every time they move. This is exactly what the New South Wales Labor Government is doing to make renting fairer and to provide housing for more people.