The workload on our frontline essential workers has been relentless over the past 7 months. They are the carers that have kept vulnerable people safe, yet they are often people who do not prioritise their own wellbeing. That’s where we have stepped in with an innovative new program. SmartCare raises funds and awareness for staff wellbeing programs.
We are excited to announce that just two months after launching SmartCare we have just made our first round of SmartCare Grants across five states. Fifteen organisations were funded with $47,000 worth of grants, impacting an estimated 540 staff.
Frontline homelessness case work is often distressing and enormously challenging work which can result in anguish, stress and a feeling of hopelessness for workers. Staff burnout happens regularly. Then along came COVID-19.
Young people in their teens and twenties maybe less likely to contract or be at risk from COVID-19, but many will be affected by the societal and financial fall out for years to come. This pandemic has and will have a dramatic impact on young people’s lives, that why this week we made four grants to youth based organisations from our COVID-19 Emergency Response Fund. Read More
Christmas is only a few weeks away and it’s a mad dash to the end of the year. Our annual DineSmart campaign is in full swing at 118 participating restaurants/cafes across four States. At the same time we have been busy finalising our CafeSmart 2019 collection and allocating our next round of Community Grants. This is what our work is all about… Read More
This year, on the 9th of August, over 800 cafes, businesses and coffee roasters teamed up with their customers to raise just over $200,000. It was a massive community effort and by working together we are going to impact hundreds of lives. Thanks to everyone who got involved.Read More
On the 3rd of August, 815 cafes and 50 Coffee Roasters teamed up with their customers to raise over $205,000 for local grassroots homeless projects. It was a massive community effort and by working together we are going to impact many lives.Read More
Back in late 2014, after 18 months works, we launched our own crowdfunding platform, StreetSmart Projects. The concept was simple – to empower smaller grassroots homeless services to engage and connect with the StreetSmart supporter community to crowdfund important projects in the community. The pilot platform ran for 12 months raising over $35,000 for 10 projects. Organisations such as Dandelion Support Network, The Footpath Library, Safe Futures and Emerge Womens and Childrens Network all successfully used the platform and each of the 10 projects reached its funding goal. In a number of cases we raised considerably more than the $ target through donations direct to the organisation, in kind support and additional support.
Today is Day 1 of our 13th DineSmart event. Hooray!
As celebrations for the festive season gather momentum (YIKES!) around the country, we’re calling on our supporters to ‘Dine Out Help Out’ at 126 restaurants around the country and chip in a micro donation to help fund grassroots homeless projects. It’s a gentle nudge to us all at a time of year that can get a touch self indulgent.
Last year over 100,000 tables added their $2 donation and contributed to local social impact through our community grants. These grants may seem small but are vital at a time when funding to homeless services has been cut and demand increased.