About Our CEO
Jackson has spent more than 15 years working with non-for-profit and community organisations. Including senior roles with Tennis Australia, the Australian Football League (AFL) and the Australian Sports Commission. He has been actively involved with the Trish MS Research Foundation, The Salvation Army, Set Free Care, Property Industry Foundation, Common Ground Queensland, and several other charities.
After sport, Jackson transitioned into local and state government roles, supporting various politicians and councillors. More recently, he led policy and strategic engagement for Q Shelter for four years before becoming the CEO of National Shelter, Australia’s peak housing body.
Jackson has a Master’s in Business Administration (SCU), several accreditations from the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD) and studied politics and policy at Deakin University.
Safety and Security
for People on Low Incomes
National Shelter is a non-government peak organisation that aims to improve housing access, affordability, appropriateness, safety and security for people on low incomes. Since 1976, National Shelter has worked towards this goal by influencing government policy and action, and by raising public awareness about housing issues. National Shelter’s aim is to work towards every Australian having access to housing that is:
Affordable
People should not be left in poverty after they have met their housing costs
Adequate
Everybody is entitled to housing that meets basic standards of decency and their own basic needs
Secure
People should not live under threat of loss of home and shelter
Accessible
Access to housing should be free from discrimination
In the right place
Housing should be located close to transport, services and support networks, job opportunities, and social and leisure activities
Meet their lifecycle needs
People have different housing needs at different stages of their lives, and housing should be available to meet these changing needs
Authentic engagement and consultation are at the heart of National Shelter’s approach, which is strongly demonstrated by its governance – the National Shelter Council a dynamic and diverse coalition comprising:
CEOs from each of the State and Territory Shelter organisations
- Homelessness Australia
- Australian Community Housing (formerly Community Housing Industry Association (CHIA))
- National Association of Renters’ Organisations (NARO)
- Tenants’ Union representatives
- National Aboriginal Torres Strait Islander Housing Association (NATSIHA)
- St Vincent de Paul Society
- Australian Housing Urban Research Institute (AHURI)
- Other national peak bodies and sector leaders on invitation and for specific/specialised policy areas
This structure ensures that National Shelter’s advocacy is grounded in lived experience, regional diversity, frontline expertise and academic and research rigor. It enables a whole-of-system perspective, from homelessness services and community housing providers to tenant advocacy and urban planning.
This approach to collaboration is now seen as essential to building knowledge and capability, unlocking capital, scaling delivery, and ensuring equity across the housing continuum
The Council transforms National Shelter from a single peak body into a networked, consultative and well-regarded peak, that can speak with authority and unity across Australia’s housing system. National Shelter is actively shaping the housing landscape by bridging sector expertise, community insight, and political engagement.
A Platform for Reform
National Shelter’s 2025 Policy Platform outlines five transformative priorities:
- A legislated National Housing and Homelessness Plan
- A long-term social and affordable housing supply pipeline
- National minimum standards for renters
- Tax reform to ease housing inequality and generate revenue for affordable housing supply
- A national framework for inclusionary zoning
These priorities reflect extensive consultation across its member network and are informed by decades of policy development, research, and community engagement, and align with or compliment the policy positions of partner peak organisations and industry bodies.
Complementing Other Peaks
Rather than duplicating the work of other peak bodies, National Shelter acts as a connector and amplifier, as well as focusing on the policy and planning areas which are “outside” the remit of other housing and homelessness peaks or industry bodies. Its federated model allows it to surface local insights while contributing to national policy coherence. It complements the work of Homelessness Australia, ACH (formerly CHIA, and PHA), ACOSS, and others by focusing on housing justice, renter rights, systemic planning, and affordability for those most at risk.
This collective action and impact ensure that all policy areas are covered by robust advocacy that aims for a housing system which includes and considers the housing needs of all Australians.
