On June 4 2020 the Federal Government announced the HomeBuilder scheme will provide all eligible homeowners with a grant of $25,000 to build a new home or substantially renovate an existing home until December 31 2020. 

Home owners are subject to eligibility criteria, i...

Blessing Bags is committed to ensuring our volunteers and clients are safe from covid-19. Since the beginning of the outbreak we have been proactive in adopting covid-safe practices to ensure we can continue to provide bags while our volunteers are in safe environments...

Since our last update, both Federal and State Governments have announced numerous financial packages to support Australians during the crisis. Here’s the latest on rental and housing initiatives in Victoria.

Rental moratorium announced

Since the Federal Government announ...

With toilet paper shortages and panic buying leaving soup kitchens short of supply, Victoria’s most vulnerable have already been hit hard due to the COVID-19 outbreak. With thousands of Australians jobless because of the virus, they’re grappling with months of financia...

Content warning: Death, violence against women 

Courtney Herron's Vigil, Image curtesy of Jason Edwards and the Herald Sun 

In late May, Melbourne woke up to the news that another woman lost her life at the hands of a man.

She was found just 2km away from the place wher...

Amongst the joy of the New Year, there are a handful of reports of the ongoing criminalisation of people experiencing homeless. In Queensland, a man seeking shelter at a bus station was fined $652 for ‘illegally camping’. Instead of directing the man to a safe space, h...

There’s no place like home: The housing Crisis in Victoria and Homelessness

Everyone has the fundamental right to access secure and affordable housing. The latest census1 by the Australian Bureau of Statistics showed us that the number of people experiencing homelessnes...

 Image: John Englart (Takver)/Flickr CC-by-SA

Fleeing war and persecution to an unknown land on the other side of the world is daunting and strenuous. The resettlement process for refugees in Australia is full of uncertainty and protruding barriers. Gaining access to sa...

 Image: Getty Images

“How long are you planning on being homeless for?” Is a real question a woman was asked by two policeman as she sat on a park bench in the early hours of the morning.1 Placing the blame neatly over the individuals head for their situation by authori...

Image by Tom Rumble on Unsplash​ 

The people who line the streets of Melbourne’s CBD and surrounding areas highlight the complex situation that is homelessness for most Melbournians. People living in their cars, jumping from one friend’s house to another or seeking temp...