Hope Street Youth and Family Services

Hope Street Youth and Family Services Hope Street supports young people and young families who are experiencing homelessness.

Based in the northern and western growth corridors of Melbourne, we are one of the longest established specialist youth homelessness services in Victoria.

Jenny* was 19 when she came to Hope Street’s First Response Youth Service Refuge in South Morang in September 2025, arri...
15/06/2026

Jenny* was 19 when she came to Hope Street’s First Response Youth Service Refuge in South Morang in September 2025, arriving with a newborn baby. A First Nations young woman, she had spent much of her life in Child Protection and residential care.

Intergenerational trauma had shaped her journey, and pregnancy had brought further instability, yet Jenny was determined to create something different for her child.

Hope Street’s refuge includes an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander dedicated family unit, and it was here that Jenny and her baby spent several weeks. Surrounded by community, she began taking the lead in rebuilding her stability, supported by people who recognised both the weight she carried and the strength she held.

Staff observed that while Jenny was deeply committed to her baby, she needed support to build her parenting confidence. Hope Street coordinated a care team who met regularly to ensure Jenny and her baby received holistic, culturally grounded support. The focus was on making Jenny feel safe and comfortable on country and on site, so she could step forward with confidence.

Jenny chose to move into a mother–baby program, where she could strengthen her parenting skills with specialised support and early intervention. From there, long‑term housing was secured through Aboriginal Housing, a foundation she could continue building on for herself and her child.

Jenny arrived during one of the hardest periods of her life. She left with stable housing, stronger parenting support, and a culturally connected network, and most importantly, she left steering her own path forward.

Follow and share to help more young people access this vital support.

To donate to Hope Street, click on the link in the bio

Hope Street welcomes the Victorian Government’s $860 million investment to deliver 7,000 new social housing properties t...
12/06/2026

Hope Street welcomes the Victorian Government’s $860 million investment to deliver 7,000 new social housing properties through the Social Housing Growth Fund. We celebrate Treasurer Jaclyn Symes’ commitment to increasing supply and the crucial 10% allocation locked in for Aboriginal housing providers.

However, we must look at the harsh reality of the 10-year timeline for young people in immediate crisis.

Building 7,000 homes over a decade means on average 700 new homes per year across Victoria. With over 65,000 families and individuals currently on the social housing waitlist, this pace falls drastically short. If a 17-year-old is couch-surfing or sleeping in a car today, a house built in 2031 or 2035 does absolutely nothing to solve their emergency.

When supply is this restricted, the system enters survival triage, prioritizing chronically homeless adults and domestic violence victim-survivors. Because unaccompanied young people (aged 16–24) are often couch-surfing or trapped in hidden, unsafe situations, their homelessness remains invisible. On paper, they look less critical, meaning youth are constantly pushed to the bottom of the list.

To ensure young Victorians aren’t left behind in an endless queue, we are calling on the Government to make two urgent changes before the November election.

First, introduce a Dedicated Youth Quota to lock in a protected percentage of these 7,000 homes purely for unaccompanied young people.

Second, invest in youth‑specific crisis and supported housing so young people have a safe place to sleep tonight while long‑term housing is built over the next decade. This includes expanding youth refuges, youth foyers, and targeted early‑intervention programs that are proven to keep young people safe and connected to education, employment, and community.

👉 Like and share to make youth homelessness visible.

Hope Street is proud to share that our team raised $1,801 as part of the Steps for Homeless Youth 2026 campaign, contrib...
10/06/2026

Hope Street is proud to share that our team raised $1,801 as part of the Steps for Homeless Youth 2026 campaign, contributing to an incredible $163,000 total raised across the Property Industry Foundation’s annual event.

This annual event is one of the Property Industry Foundation’s major fundraising initiatives, bringing together companies across the property and construction industry who unite to create real housing solutions, and a tangible impact for young people experiencing homelessness.

Hope Street is also honoured to be a past beneficiary of the Property Industry Foundation, which provided a capital grant toward our First Response Youth Service in Whittlesea , support that was especially vital during the post‑pandemic period of escalating construction costs. The Foundation’s unique fundraising Steps for Homeless Youth 2026 model brings the industry together to have a tangible impact on youth homelessness.

As part of this year’s campaign, the Hope Street team joined around 745 steppers in Albert Park on 22 May in the 5km walk to support young people experiencing homelessness.

A huge shout‑out to our amazing Hope Street Steppers:

😄 Georgina Sullivan (Team Leader)

😁 Emilie Theunissen (Case Manager)

😀 Donna Bennett (CEO)

We also want to thank the many friends and supporters of Hope Street who donated, shared the event, and helped spread the word. But the work doesn’t end here. Youth homelessness is not just a sector issue; it’s a community issue.

We need the broader community, businesses, and everyday Victorians to be part of the solution. When we walk, donate, advocate, or simply pay attention, we help build a society where young people have a safe place to call home. To donate to Hope Street, click on the link below:

Family Violence and Young People was the theme of the recent All Staff Forum. The day brought staff together for hands‑o...
10/06/2026

Family Violence and Young People was the theme of the recent All Staff Forum.

The day brought staff together for hands‑on activities, team building, and plenty of opportunities to reconnect with colleagues across different sites and programs.

As part of our commitment to continuous learning, the team also strengthened their understanding of the principles of MARAM (Multi-Agency Risk Assessment and Management), ensuring we remain up to date and confident in applying them in day‑to‑day practice. MARAM training supports practitioners to engage with their responsibilities and to better identify, assess, and manage family violence risk for young people.

We also deepened our knowledge of the legal processes young people often face, and how we can best support them to navigate these systems successfully. Hope Street was delighted to welcome a guest speaker, Carmella Acciarito, founder of Domestic Family Violence Lawyers who provided a legal and trauma‑informed perspective that complements frontline practice. A lawyer’s insight is vital for our work, helping clarify the legal steps involved and what contributes to a successful case outcome for young people.

The forum was a great success, providing staff with valuable knowledge, practical tools for supporting young people who have experienced family violence, and a meaningful opportunity to connect across teams.

Thank you to everyone who attended and contributed to making the day so informative and engaging!

What will you do to celebrate National Reconciliation Week (27 May – 3 June) - a time for all Australians to reflect, l...
03/06/2026

What will you do to celebrate National Reconciliation Week (27 May – 3 June) - a time for all Australians to reflect, learn and take action towards reconciliation.

At Hope Street, we are proud to continue supporting and strengthening our relationships with First Nations communities.

To celebrate National Reconciliation Week, Hope Street hosted a morning tea at our South Morang site, bringing together the Hope Street and the Margaret Tucker Hostel teams in recognition of the strength and importance of our partnership.

Hope Street staff also attended the Evolve Communities National Reconciliation Week webinar. We listened, learnt and celebrated with Aunty Munya Andrews (Aboriginal Elder) and Carla Rogers (Evolve) in reflecting what we can all do to demonstrate our allyship and deepen our cultural awareness.

With National Sorry Day last Tuesday, Hope Street Youth and Family Services acknowledges the strength, resilience and su...
01/06/2026

With National Sorry Day last Tuesday, Hope Street Youth and Family Services acknowledges the strength, resilience and survival of Stolen Generations survivors and recognises the ongoing impacts of the forced removal of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children from their families, communities, Country, language and culture.

At Hope Street, we are committed to creating culturally safe and inclusive spaces for young First Nations people, families and communities.

National Sorry Day is an opportunity for all non-Indigenous Australians to reflect, learn more about the history of the Stolen Generations, but more importantly, to be aware and take action every day so everyone can stand alongside First Nations communities in the journey toward healing and reconciliation.

Federal Government has officially delivered $60 million to provide a National Youth Housing Supplement in the Budget. S...
24/05/2026

Federal Government has officially delivered $60 million to provide a National Youth Housing Supplement in the Budget.

So, what does this actually mean for young people? Right now, there is a hidden structural flaw called the "Youth Housing Penalty." Because young people receive significantly lower income support payments like Youth Allowance, the rent they can pay to community housing providers is much lower than other tenants.

This has historically made it financially unviable for providers to house them, unintentionally locking young people out of stable social housing.

This new $60 million National Youth Housing Supplement changes the rules of the game by directly unblocking that barrier. Paid to housing providers to bridge the rental gap, the supplement will scale up over the next four years to support more than 4,000 young people across Australia to access safe, secure, and permanent social housing.

The harsh reality is that this budget completely missed a vital systemic reform: there was no real base rate increase to Youth Allowance. While the supplement helps 4,000 lucky young people secure a spot in community housing, it does not assist with the other high costs of essential items for living while in a tenancy – food, electricity, gas, clothing, education to name a few, increasing the risk of not being able to maintain the community housing rent.

For the thousands of young people who are not able to get into social housing, they are left completely stranded.

This means that while lucky few get a tenuous lifeline, they are still forced to survive below the poverty line, facing real risk of re-entering homelessness and joining thousands of their peers who are in immediate crisis with no reprieve from homelessness and its traumatic rippling impact.

The $60 million supplement is a historic victory to build on, but the battle for systemic income reform is far from over.

Hello Friends and Supporters of Hope StreetIn a strong follow up from last year, the Hope Street Steppers are about to h...
22/05/2026

Hello Friends and Supporters of Hope Street

In a strong follow up from last year, the Hope Street Steppers are about to hit the track and walk for the Property Industry Foundation's Steps for Youth Homelessness event!

As we prepare to begin to our walk, I would like to make a last request for donations of as much as you can to support this incredibly worthy cause which is close to our hearts as supporters of young people facing homelessness.

If you can, please dig deep and make a donation to our team's fundraising efforts via the link provided: https://give.pif.com.au/fundraisers/HopeStreetSteppers814

Please forward to your friends and ask them to forward to their friends and family members. It would be great to raise as much money as possible in support of this fantastic cause.

👟 THE COUNTDOWN IS ON: THIS FRIDAY! 👟 This Friday, 22 May, the Hope Street Steppers are heading to Albert Park Lake for ...
18/05/2026

👟 THE COUNTDOWN IS ON: THIS FRIDAY! 👟

This Friday, 22 May, the Hope Street Steppers are heading to Albert Park Lake for the Property Industry Foundation’s Steps for Homeless Youth fundraiser.

Our incredible team is ready to smash out 5km to raise vital funds for young people experiencing homelessness.

Meet the Hope Street Steppers: 😄 Georgina Sullivan (Team Leader) 😉 Michael Gallagher (Case Manager) 😁 Emilie Theunissen (Case Manager) 😀 Donna Bennett (CEO)

How you can back the team today:

💰 Donate: Every dollar counts, and donations of $2 or more are entirely tax-deductible!

📲 Share: Forward our fundraising links to your colleagues, family, and friends. A quick share helps us reach more people!

Creating "Space" for Healing ✨ This month, Hope Street young people and staff came together at our South Morang Refuge f...
18/05/2026

Creating "Space" for Healing ✨

This month, Hope Street young people and staff came together at our South Morang Refuge for a truly fantastic Art Therapy Workshop! 🎨

Organised by Hope Street’s specialist Youth Reconciliation Practitioner (youth counsellor), the session brought everyone together to connect, unwind, and express themselves. Guided by the young people's choice, the workshop centered around the theme of "Space."

They kicked things off with a mindful grounding exercise, followed by a self-driven art project exploring what "Space" means to each individual. It was an incredibly successful, thought-provoking, and enjoyable experience for everyone involved.

A massive thank you to Cody for facilitating such a meaningful and inspiring session! 🙌💛

Address

233 Sydney Road
Melbourne, VIC
3056

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

Telephone

+61383119610

Website

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