Anti-Poverty Network SA

19/10/2026

💚 A big thank you from Anti-Poverty Network SA!

We'd like to say a huge thank you to everyone who came along to our Northern Branch Community BBQ at Fremont Park, Elizabeth East, on Sunday, 18 October!

It was great to see people coming together, enjoying some food, having a chat and spending time with others in the community.

A special thank you goes to our volunteers, The Playford Women's Shed, local businesses and everyone who helped organise and support the event. Days like these wouldn't be possible without people generously giving their time and effort, and we really appreciate it.

For those who might not know much about us, Anti-Poverty Network South Australia (APNSA) is a volunteer-run community organisation made up of people who have experienced poverty and financial hardship, alongside others who want to make a difference.

We advocate for a fairer South Australia by speaking up about poverty, housing affordability, welfare rights and the challenges facing people on low incomes. We also organise community events, share information and bring people together to support one another.
We believe everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect, regardless of their financial circumstances.

Interested in getting involved?

We're always happy to welcome new faces! Whether you'd like to volunteer, help with community events, support our campaigns or simply learn more about what we do, there's a place for you.

Membership is free, and you don't need to have experienced poverty yourself to get involved.

👉 Join us here: https://apn-sa.org/become-a-member/

Once again, thank you to everyone who joined us and helped make the day possible. It's the people who turn up, lend a hand and look out for one another who make these gatherings worthwhile.

We hope to see you at another event soon!

💚 Community. Dignity. Solidarity.

18/10/2026

It’s the end of another Anti-Poverty Week (though for many of us, every week’s Anti-Poverty Week). So, some reminders:

1. There’s nothing inevitable about the existence of poverty: it’s a deliberate choice by governments to make people live in poverty.

2. COVID’s proof of this. The overnight, temporary doubling of JobSeeker and other Centrelink payments, lifted huge numbers of people out of poverty, did wonders for their physical and mental health, their dignity, allowing people to make life-changing decisions (like fleeing violent relationships), that weren’t possible before.

3. It’s ironic that this temporary measure, from the Morrison Government, was the most significant anti-poverty measure in decades (and Morrison's permanent JobSeeker raise of $25/week was bigger than Albanese's $20/week raise).

4. That 90% of this extra money was ultimately withdrawn, during late 2020/early 2021, plunging huge numbers of job-seekers, sole-parents, students, and others back into crisis, was unforgivable.

5. Federal Labor (when in opposition) arguably could’ve been more outspoken and explicit about opposing this life-damaging cruelty.

6. Federal Labor (now in government) have had the opportunity to make poverty a priority, and over and over, they failed. A tiny $20/week JobSeeker raise in 2023, tiny increases to Rent Assistance, and nothing since (and no, indexation does not count, it is an automatic measure, and not a real raise, simply payments keeping up with inflation...barely...).

7. Yes, we can lift people out of poverty, but the Albanese Government has chosen to prioritise other things, like nuclear submarines (which we'll never get), subsidies for fossil fuel companies, and letting 1 in 3 companies pay no company tax.

8. A Prime Minister who isn’t urgently raising JobSeeker and other Centrelink payments above the poverty-line, should perhaps kindly refrain from waxing lyrical about their own low-income, public-housing background.

9. Poverty’s the health-destroyer, the life-shortener. The longer you’re poor, the harder it is to look after your health. Health issues accumulate. Years of having to avoid fresh food, delay medical appointments, because of a lack of money, takes its toll. Simply having to stress around-the-clock about money wears down your body as well as your mind.

10. Poverty’s a trap. Everything gets more expensive when you’re poor (think: crappy cars, poorer-value internet/phone plans, less-efficient heating/cooling). You fall more and more behind.

11. Every week should be Anti-Poverty Week.

16/10/2026

"I want the community to know that poverty limits your choices. I'm on the Disability Support Pension because of Bipolar Disorder, and I'm constantly forced to make choices like, do I pay for health insurance for myself or a vet membership for my cat, Ned Kitty. Each day, I'm making trades rather than being able to assign a portion of a reasonable income to each of my needs.

If I had a liveable income, I'd have money for entertainment. Currently, I'm only able to dedicate $7.10 a week to my wants, including entertainment.

That's barely enough for a hot drink at a cafe. If I want to go out for dinner with friends, I need to save up. I'd love to be able to go to the movies regularly, as that's something I really enjoy, but it's a rare luxury." - Daniel, Disability Support Pensioner, aged 50.

None of this has to be this way, though. Poverty is destructive, but also preventable, we all know.

The Albanese Government could lift people out of poverty. And it must.

Check out our 2026 Anti-Poverty Week Factsheet here:

https://apn-sa.org/2026/10/11/anti-poverty-week-2026-factsheet

15/10/2026

"I want the community to know that living in poverty absolutely impacts your health. Having to space out doctor and specialist appointments so you can afford transport costs and prescriptions means you never get the proper care in a timely manner, which often means health outcomes are worse.

Payments are so far below the poverty-line means I can’t afford to eat and take care of my medical needs. I have to choose between the two. Nobody should have to make these choices.

If JobSeeker was a liveable income, I could get my health issues sorted, and actually have a chance at working. Poverty is holding me back while making my health worse. Everyone should be able to afford a home, food, and healthcare." - Mel, public housing tenants, in their 40s.

Poverty is making us sick. But it is a political choice. It was always a political choice. The Albanese Government, like governments before it, have chosen to keep millions of people in poverty.

Check out our new Anti-Poverty Week Factsheet here:

https://apn-sa.org/2026/10/11/anti-poverty-week-2026-factsheet

15/10/2026

"Living in poverty is exhausting. I can never properly relax because the next expense is always in the back of my mind. Poverty makes you question your personhood. You start to wonder, "have I done something to deserve this?"

But the truth is that no one deserves to live in poverty. No one should have to choose between food, shelter, warmth, or medicine.

If I had a liveable income, I could pay my bills on time, every time. I could afford to throw away the clothes that I've sewn back together countless times. I could make a doctor's appointment when I'm sick without second-guessing if it's the right call.

I could feel like a person again, instead of a machine running on fumes." - Oli, JobSeeker, aged 30.

Poverty is a political choice. It was preventable under Abbott, Turnbull, and Morrison. It is just as preventable, under Albanese.

Check out our Anti-Poverty Week Factsheet, '5 Facts, 5 Stories, 5 Actions', here:

https://apn-sa.org/2026/10/11/anti-poverty-week-2026-factsheet

13/10/2026

Nobody Deserves Poverty!!!

12/10/2026

There's no doubt about it: poverty is sabotaging the lives and destroying the health of millions people in this country.

You all know it. You've seen it, in the people in your life, and maybe in yourself.

Poverty's devastating. And it's preventable.

Like other Federal Governments, the Albanese Government has chosen, over and over, to keep people in poverty. It's unforgivable.

So we've got to keep fighting, as we do every year, for a livable, dignified income, for every single person in this country.

Check out our new Anti-Poverty Week Factsheet here:

https://apn-sa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Anti-Poverty-Week-2026-Factsheet.pdf

11/10/2026

Today we released our new Poverty Factsheet: '5 Facts, 5 Stories, 5 Actions'.

Once again, we have a Federal Government that knows that poverty is destroying the health and shortening the lives of people, and that this could be prevented.

Poverty is not inevitable. It is a political choice.

The Albanese Government could lift people out of poverty. It could do a number of things for low-income people, but chooses not.

Check-out our Factsheet here:

https://apn-sa.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/10/Anti-Poverty-Week-2026-Factsheet.pdf

11/10/2026

This year marks 90 years of the SA Housing Trust!!

We think that's an important moment, for celebrating what public housing has achieved for SA, and the people who've lived in it, and for building public pressure for tens of thousands of extra public homes we need, to fix the housing crisis!!

We're holding a community conference on Saturday December 5 in Port Adelaide, featuring current and former public housing tenants, and a wide range of voices who want to rebuild our public housing estate.

We hope you'll join us at Public Housing: 90 Years Of Home, Community, And Opportunity!!

Book your tickets (free for low-income people), and put December 5 in your diary!!

11/10/2026

Hey folks as part of anti-poverty week our friends at The Antipoverty Centre will be holding an online event. Tickets are free of course. Join in on the conversation. Get your tickets here https://events.humanitix.com/compounding-poverty

Not all poverty is equal. We need you in the fight against racist policy, complex rules and "debt recovery" policies that hit some of us harder than others.