Victorian Council of Social Service

13/10/2026

This time last week, almost 300 people from across Victoria’s community sector came together for our Community Sector Summit. Thank you again to everyone who joined us and helped make the day so special.

With less than seven weeks until the election, we’ll keep making the case for essentials for everyone. Don’t forget to sign the petition and get involved in the sector campaign here: essentialsforeveryone.org.au

09/10/2026

📢 This week at the 2026 Community Sector Summit, VCOSS launched 𝐄𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐨𝐧𝐞.

Every Victorian should have the essentials for a life lived with dignity, hope and opportunity. As a united sector, we’re asking every party to commit to prioritise policy that ends poverty, and pay what it takes to fund the services that deliver the essentials.

Explore the campaign, see what the parties are committing to, and add your voice: essentialsforeveryone.org.au

08/10/2026

At the 𝐕𝐂𝐎𝐒𝐒 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐮𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐒𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫 𝐒𝐮𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭, we heard from Victorian political leaders on issues that matter most to Victoria’s community sector.

As part of our series sharing key announcements from the political addresses at the Summit, we’re continuing in order of appearance.

📣 Next up, Leader of the Greens Ellen Sandell MP.

𝐕𝐂𝐎𝐒𝐒 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐌𝐬 𝐒𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐥𝐥’𝐬 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐢𝐭𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐕𝐢𝐜𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐚 𝐨𝐟𝐟 𝐠𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐟𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐥 𝐟𝐮𝐞𝐥 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.

This commitment recognises that climate change hits people on low incomes first and hardest: through extreme heat, disasters and rising energy bills. And as more households leave the gas network, those who can’t afford to switch are left paying more for dirtier energy.

A clear path off fossil fuels is important. The next step is making sure no one is left behind: setting exit dates for coal and gas, and fully funding electrification, solar and batteries for social housing. We also need financial measures in place so low-income renters and homeowners can make the switch.

Energy is essential. Every Victorian deserves a home that’s safe and affordable to power in a changing climate.

07/10/2026

At the VCOSS Community Sector Summit, we heard from Victorian political leaders on issues that matter most to Victoria's community sector.

As part of our series sharing key announcements from the political addresses at the Summit, we’re continuing in order of appearance.

Next up, Deputy Leader of the Opposition David Southwick.

VCOSS welcomed David Southwick’s commitment that, if elected, a Liberal/National Government would deliver a Victorian Homelessness Strategy.

Mr Southwick elaborated that if elected, the Coalition would review of high-rise tower redevelopment program and conduct an audit of vacant social housing properties.

The commitment to a strategy is important recognition from the Victorian Opposition of the need for more social housing to end homelessness. The next step is a target of building 8,000 new social homes a year for the next decade, to bring Victoria's social housing up to the national average.

Housing is essential. Every Victorian deserves a safe place to call home.

07/10/2026

At the VCOSS Community Sector Summit, we heard from Victorian political leaders on issues that matter most to Victoria's community sector.

Over the coming days, we’ll be sharing key announcements from the political addresses at the Summit - starting with the first speaker, in order of appearance.

First up, Premier Ben Carroll

VCOSS welcomed the Premier's commitment to four-year funding terms for community services if re-elected.

This is terrific news for the sector. Longer-term funding is something the sector has been advocating for tirelessly - it would reduce staff churn, give organisations greater certainty to plan, and deliver better outcomes for their communities.

Community services are essential services. This commitment is a big step towards government paying what it takes for the sector to get Victorians through tough times.

06/10/2026

What a day!

Thank you to everyone who joined us at today’s Community Sector Summit, and everyone who made it possible.

Particular thanks to:

* Wurundjeri Elder Aunty Irene Morris for welcoming us to Country
* Patricia Karvelas for steering the morning’s conversations
* Our panellists Dr Stephane Shepherd, Dr Shelley Bowen and Amanda McKenzie for a wide-ranging and insightful panel discussion.

Thanks also to HESTA for supporting the day, and to My Story for a powerful performance.

And thank you to the Premier, the Hon Ben Carroll MP; the Deputy Leader of the Opposition, David Southwick MP; the Leader of the Victorian Greens, Ellen Sandell MP; and Georgie Purcell MP (Animal Justice Party) and Rachel Payne MP (Legalise Cannabis Party) for giving the sector your time.

It was great to hear from the people hoping to lead our state in the next term. There were some bright spots from across the parties, and we were particularly pleased to hear the Premier’s commitment to move community organisations onto four-year funding terms. It’s an important step towards the long-term funding certainty our sector needs.

The community sector’s Essentials for Everyone campaign has only just begun. Find out more and sign the petition.

Advocating for the increasing number of Victorians who face poverty and entrenched disadvantage, and the sector that's there to support them.

06/10/2026

Great to get this commitment for our sector at the 2026 Community Sector Summit, thanks to Council to Homeless Persons and all our other members for your tireless advocacy on behalf of your communities👏

At the Victorian Council of Social Service Community Services Summit today, Premier Ben Carroll committed that if his government is re-elected, they will shift community sector organisations from 1 to 4 year funding agreements. This is great news for Victorians.

It will give homelessness service providers and other community organisations more certainty, make it easier to plan for the future and help retain staff and organisational knowledge. And that means better outcomes for the people we support.

We urge the other major parties to match this commitment, for the good of Victoria.

30/09/2026

Thank you to Cafs for hosting our team and our University of Melbourne Faculty of Arts interns yesterday in Ballarat.

Touring the Cafs History and Memory Centre was a powerful experience. The centre honours the people who lived at the Ballarat Orphanage and Ballarat Children's Home. It was shaped with former residents, and it speaks honestly about the past.

We're grateful to the Cafs team for their generosity, and for sharing how their history informs the work they do with children, young people and families today. As we reflect on 80 years of VCOSS and Victoria's community sector, stories like these remind us why truth-telling matters.

29/09/2026

Thank you to Women's Health Grampians for welcoming our team to Ballarat.

As we mark 80 years of VCOSS, we've been gathering stories that have shaped Victoria's community sector - like this wonderful organisation carrying on the legacy of Lisa Lodge.

Our members hold so much of this state and this sector's history, thank you for sharing it with us.

We were delighted to welcome the Victorian Council of Social Service team and their The University of Melbourne Faculty of Arts interns to our Ballarat office as part of their work capturing 80 years of VCOSS and Victoria’s community sector.

It was especially meaningful to share the history of our building, formerly Lisa Lodge, established in 1970 by eight Ballarat women determined to provide better support and opportunities for vulnerable young women.

A wonderful reminder of the long history of women, community and social change in Ballarat, and the work that continues today.