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                    What we are doing

                    We support people who are at risk of homelessness and show leadership by gathering data, sharing what we know and advocating boldly for change.

                    ​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​There is a lot of great work happening in the community, and to show our ongoing support, we fund and partner with a range of organisations that support people experiencing or are at risk of homelessness.

                    Our work to prevent and help end homelessness

                    • Our daily support team links people sleeping rough to support services, health and housing to find permanent pathways out of homelessness.
                    • We convene the Melbourne Service Coordination Project, which brings together Homes Victoria and 14 agencies working with people sleeping rough.
                    • We lead the ‘By Name List’, which gathers data about homelessness and links people to the support they need and ultimately into permanent housing.
                    • We have Australia’s first dedicated Library Social Worker to provide support and referrals to people experiencing homelessness.
                    • We partner with and fund organisations to prevent homelessness and support people at risk of homelessness:
                      • Salvation Army Melbourne Project 614 – provides support by supplying meals, clothing and counselling and working with clients to help create pathways out of their current state of marginalisation.
                      • Melbourne City Mission Frontyard Youth Services – a specialist youth service located in Melbourne’s CBD. Young people can find emergency accommodation, get quality case management from staff and access a range of co-located and visiting services. The team supports young people to meet their physical, emotional and social needs and develop pathways out of homelessness.
                      • cohealth Central City Community Health Service – a holistic health service for people experiencing homelessness in the CBD. cohealth provides dietitian services, drug and alcohol counselling, homelessness allied health, homelessness mental health service and homelessness support services. It is underpinned by a human rights framework and trauma-informed practice.
                      • Salvation Army Youth Street Teams – volunteers who connect with intoxicated young people who have become separated from their friends and vulnerable to potential assault, abuse. The team operates on Friday and Saturday nights between 10pm and 5am.

                    More initiatives to help end homelessness

                    • We’re teaming up with government, local businesses and charities, corporates and philanthropists to make room for people experiencing homelessness and find permanent pathways into housing.​
                    • We publish our annual Helping Out Guide for those experiencing homelessness, outlining where to find low-cost food, accommodation and health services. 
                    • We connect grassroots organisations that work with people experiencing homelessness to better support those sleeping on the streets. 

                    Programs we fund

                    Inner Melbourne Community Legal

                    Launch Housing

                    Melbourne City Mission

                    Pets of the Homeless

                    Salvation Army

                    Pathways Innovation Fund

                    ​Our Pathway​s Innovation Fund has provided grants to 10 projects that make an enduring difference to homelessness in Melbourne. The program was established in 2017 at the Lord Mayor's Charitable Foundation with $1.2 million funding from Council. Two new projects funded in 2018-19 include:

                    • Cohealth – Street Doctor Project
                      The Street Doctor Project uses a mobile bus to provide an assertive outreach medical clinic. It provides people experiencing homelessness with access to a GP and other health support. The project allows healthcare professionals to  to pro-actively address chronic health issues, develop strategies to live healthy lives and support the journey out of homelessness and into housing. The mobile clinic is located at key City of Melbourne sites one day per week. The service includes a GP, nurse, social worker and additional on-site GP services at central city community health service. 
                    • Vincentcare – Grassroots Organisations Project
                    • Grassroots organisations providing goods and services to people experiencing homelessness often do so in isolation from housing and other support services. This means that the crucial, long-term support needed to help individuals exit homelessness is not provided. This project will harness the goodwill of local operators, ensure that their efforts are collaborative, integrated and coordinated and reduce duplication of services. It will support grassroots organisations to work alongside homelessness services and increase their understanding of working safely in public spaces.

                    More information

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