Alison Penfold (Lyne, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) recognises:

(a) the vital role of neighbourhood and community centres in providing essential social services to individuals and communities in need, particularly in the regions;

(b) neighbourhood and community centres provide critical relief and emergency support where other services do not exist; and

(c) the hard work and dedication of the staff and volunteers who work tirelessly and selflessly for others;

(2) expresses concern that many centres are underfunded and heavily reliant on ad hoc competitive grant funding from state and Commonwealth governments; and

(3) calls on the Government to provide long-term operational funding and dedicated infrastructure funding to secure the future of neighbourhood and community centres and the services each provide to people in desperate need of help.

I rise today to highlight the extraordinary work of community and neighbourhood centres across the midcoast and the growing challenges they face as they support Australians doing it tough. I moved this motion to recognise the life-saving work of neighbourhood and community centres in my electorate, including the Forster Neighbourhood Centre, the Bucketts Way Neighbourhood Group, the Dungog Shire Community Centre, Mid Coast Outreach and the Manning Valley Neighbourhood Services. Each does invaluable work and provides vital services, including emergency relief, advice and referrals; child and family support; no-interest loan schemes; and various community programs.

At the Dungog Community Centre, demand for support continues to rise as cost-of-living pressures bite deeper into regional households. As the centre has made clear:

We are seeing more people than ever before who have never needed help—families, workers, older Australians—now coming to us because they simply cannot make ends meet.

Yet, despite this surge in demand, funding remains short term and uncertain, making it difficult to plan and deliver sustainable services.

At the Forster Neighbourhood Centre, the housing crisis is no longer abstract; it is immediate and visible. The centre reports that housing stress and homelessness are now the No. 1 issue that they're dealing with. They're seeing people sleeping in cars, couch surfing or facing eviction with nowhere to go. These are not isolated cases; they are becoming the norm.

In Gloucester, the Gloucester neighbourhood centre is grappling with the realities of serving a dispersed, often isolated, population. As they've said:

We are expected to do everything—from food relief to disaster recovery support—with limited staff and heavy reliance on volunteers.

And those volunteers are stretched to their limits. Meanwhile, Mid Coast Outreach are taking services directly to people across vast regional distances, often at significant cost. They note:

The cost of delivering outreach services across our region is rising rapidly, particularly fuel and transport, while demand continues to grow.

Across all these organisations, the story is the same: demand is surging, needs are becoming more complex, and yet the resources available to meet those needs are not keeping pace.

The Bucketts Way Neighbourhood Group has had $100,000 worth of federal government funding received via the Salvation Army cut. This in turn means that the Bucketts Way Neighbourhood Group has had to cease its safety net program, which enabled the provision of fuel vouchers, online grocery shopping cards and pharmacy relief to those experiencing serious financial hardship. The cuts by this government have had a real and immediate impact.

The Forster Neighbourhood Centre does not receive core operational funding; therefore, their hub is staffed by volunteers five days of the week. They are also not funded to provide crisis support, but, because they have a physical location and a door that is always open, they are increasingly doing the work of the services that are funded. This has to change.

For the current financial year, Foster Neighbourhood Centre is tracking an increase of 50 per cent in requests for assistance. Consequently, with more presentations and requests for assistance and yet less funding, these centres are increasingly being forced to shift from early intervention to crisis response. They are filling the gaps left by a fragmented system. They are supporting people who have nowhere else to turn, and they are doing so with extraordinary dedication but with very limited means. With such a small amount of income, some community and neighbourhood centres estimate they are achieving well over $1.5 million in social value for their communities. This needs to be recognised and resourced appropriately by both levels of government.

If we are serious about supporting regional communities, then we must recognise that community and neighbourhood centres are not optional extras. They are essential infrastructure. Core operational funding for neighbourhood and community centres is crucial to support regional communities now and into the future. They are often the last line of defence for vulnerable Australians, and they deserve funding certainty, workforce support and recognition equal to the role they play. When these centres are strong, our communities are strong, but, when they are stretched to breaking point, it is the most vulnerable who pay the price.

I look forward to having engagement with the Minister for Social Services. I appreciate that her office has been willing to engage with me on these important matters. I like to think that they are beyond politics, because we are trying to support those who need our support the most.

David Batt (Hinkler, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Steve Georganas (Adelaide, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Neighbourhood and community centres are very vital parts of our communities. Often, you will see that neighbourhood and community centres, when there's an issue in the area or surrounding that area, are usually used as meeting hubs to raise issues or to have public meetings or to get the neighbourhood, the suburb and the community informed about particular issues. They play an important role in our electorates. Across Australia, particularly in our regions, local neighbourhood houses and community centres provide essential social services to people who might otherwise have nowhere to turn, with information hubs and with community meetings informing people. As a member of parliament, I've used many, many community hubs and neighbourhood houses and community centres for forums for informing people—for example, informing people after the budget of what's in the budget for pensioners or informing people what's in the budget for health. We've done many of these forums over the years, usually in a particular community centre in my electorate.

One of the great community centres in my electorate is the fantastic Western Youth Centre, which operates as a community centre. It has everything from kinder-gym to sporting clubs, people using the facilities, drop-in centres and a whole range of things, and we just announced $7.3 million in funding at the last election for the upgrade of this centre, because it provides such a vital role in the community. Another one is the Unley Community Centre, and, again, they were granted over nearly $2 million so they can actually get some infrastructure in place and be able to house their community centre, but also, importantly, they have an Unley community museum which allows the public from the area to exhibit certain historical items. It gets the community involved. It was great news that we announced that funding, and, in fact, we went to the first sod turning not that long ago. This is a way of supporting and ensuring that community centres are viable and that they have the proper infrastructure in place, and this Labor government is certainly focused in that area.

When there's a crisis in some places—maybe not so much in city electorates like mine, but out in the regions—community centres are the go-to place, and we've seen it. When we look at the floods and fires, we constantly see community centres housing people through emergency housing, feeding people and just being the centre where they will get the information of where they can get services from or being where, perhaps, Centrelink turns up for extra payments et cetera for those people who are in crisis. In many communities, especially outside the major hubs, they are the only places providing relief and emergency support.

What makes this even more remarkable is that these centres are driven by people—by people that are involved in the community and by staff and volunteers who work tirelessly and selflessly, not just providing those emergency services that I spoke about but every day in communities—everything from cooking classes to kinder gyms to mums drop-in centres and parents drop-in sporting clubs, a whole range of things. I've seen it when I move around my electorate and see the many different community centres—for example, Payinthi, the Prospect community centre, which is a great drop-in centre. It is also housed next to the library, so people can go in, do research and meet with other like-minded people. The Unley Community Centre, which I spoke about, has a variety of activities—social groups, cafes focusing on seniors and community connections. Then we have the Goodwood Community Centre under the auspices of the Unley council. It's a little bit separate but offers a variety of activities, social groups and cafes. It also houses the Greek Pensioners Society, which meets every so often, with 100 to 150 people. They have this massive cook-up of lunch. Many ministers have come through there with me when I've been taking them through the electorate, and I've got to say they all leave very well fed. Deputy Speaker, if you're ever in my electorate, please come along.

The Fullarton Park Community Centre is a magnificent centre in my electorate that offers a whole range of events and art exhibitions. There's the Kilburn Community Centre and, of course, the Glandore Community Centre, which houses Coast FM, a voluntary radio station. So community centres play a very important role. (Time expired)

David Batt (Hinkler, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise in support of the motion brought to the House by the member for Lyne. In regional Australia, neighbourhood centres are an essential service—the heart of our communities. They foster safety, connection and social capital. They're the places where community connections happen. They are especially called upon to stand up and support communities during times of crisis, so now, more than ever, we need to provide them with adequate support. This is underlined as we endure the cost-of-living crisis, the fuel chaos and, in recent times, natural disasters.

Parliament must recognise the vital role of neighbourhood and community centres in providing essential social services to individuals and communities in need. We must recognise that neighbourhood and community centres provide critical relief and emergency support, and let us acknowledge the hard work and dedication of the staff and volunteers. Often, the staff are not paid at the levels they deserve due to the limited funding received. This motion expresses concern that many centres are indeed underfunded and heavily reliant on ad hoc competitive grant funding. Further to that, I join the call for the government to provide long-term operational funding and dedicated infrastructure funding.

To illustrate the amazing work that these hubs deliver, in the past few weeks, the Bundaberg community has experienced its third major flood in 16 years, with more than 250 homes and businesses inundated. The Bundaberg & District Neighbourhood Centre stood up. It provided a place for one of the city's two recovery hubs. Open 16 days straight, it became a home for the Red Cross, Lifeline, Regional Housing and the Community Recovery team. It's a place to serve the community—and serve it did in our greatest time of need. Bundaberg's neighbourhood centre goes beyond emergency support. Extensive programs provide a place with purpose for people in my electorate: migrant services, loan support, tax help, disability support, playgroup, assistance in technology and even a sewing circle. Is there anything these centres won't do when the need is identified?

We need to do better for these hubs. I thank Corrie McColl, the Bundaberg centre's manager, and Praveen Mathew, the multicultural program coordinator, for their leadership and commitment to our community. It was great to be at the Bundaberg centre's AGM last year, and I appreciate the opportunity to regularly catch up with the team to hear firsthand about funding shortfalls and the reliance on donations and charities, and to work with them on creating a more resilient community. It's always heartening to learn about the hardworking volunteers and staff who go above and beyond.

And the support doesn't stop in Bundy. This year, I've had several visits to the neighbourhood centre in Hervey Bay—a great chance for me to see the different services on offer. I've met with the CEO, Tanya Stevenson, and committee member and past president Bernard Whebell and toured their centres. I want to highlight the Neighbourhood Hive, a converted warehouse space encouraging creativity, learning and collaboration, particularly targeting youth. I want to offer my wholehearted support for the current funding request of just over $1 million to upgrade the facility to be able to deliver services all year round. Through the Hive, the neighbourhood centre offers industry training, youth assistance and events to combat loneliness. Then there is the main hub for the neighbourhood centre in Pialba. What impresses me so much is the level of information made available to all members of the community through this centre. This centre develops and delivers programs and services in response to community needs. Let's lock this funding in and give certainty to yet another service with a proven track record.

In Hinkler we also have the Childers Neighbourhood Centre, which is delivered by the local council and managed by Debra Murphy and her fantastic team. As it is council run, it works under a slightly different model to the Bundaberg and Hervey Bay hubs, but what remains the same is the commitment to community connection. I note the recent adoption of wellbeing workshops, painting sessions and, for the kids, Lego activities and wet-play days. It's help with a tax return, an art class, a morning tea, a friendly face in your time of need, support as a new Australian, an ear to listen when you don't have anyone else, or a referral that could make your life better. That is what a neighbourhood centre supports.

So, with a backdrop of escalating cost-of-living pressures and rapidly growing populations in places like Hinkler, let us understand and be clear that a community is at its best when it's strong and connected. The staff and volunteers of our neighbourhood centres believe that everyone matters. Neighbourhood centres serve as welcoming spaces that reduce isolation. Neighbourhood centres build resilience and are ready to respond when crises hit. The coalition is committed to protecting Australians' way of life and restoring their standard of living. We must ensure these community hearts beat strongly forever.

Luke Gosling (Solomon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I spoke last week in this place about the Northern Territory government finally announcing a tender process for a youth engagement hub at a new location in Leanyer in Darwin. We announced the youth engagement hub as an election commitment in 2022, almost four years ago. Ever since the Youth Shack at Casuarina closed, there had been a great need for a place that young people could drop in to hang out, to play some sport and to connect with mentors and services. Working with the then Territory Labor government, after significant consultation, a site was selected at the old Casuarina fire station. This site was chosen due to its centrality, including its proximity to the Casuarina Square shopping centre and bus services, as well as youth mental health services such as headspace, in areas where young people live and study and work. A key element of the concept for this location was the interest from the Casuarina Square's owners, Sentinel, to provide internships and traineeships at the retail areas for those young people. That would allow them to engage effectively with appropriate supports but also be within walking distance of those employment opportunities.

A consultation process was undertaken for the model of care of these young people and the design of the site. That was all done and developed. The Darwin Men's Shed was at the old Casuarina fire station at the time. I made a commitment for a million dollars, and they were moved to a temporary site to allow the old Casuarina fire station to be razed to the ground—it was full of asbestos—so that the site could be prepared for the building of the youth engagement hub. Everything was in place. It was a shovel-ready site. But then came the NT government election. Enter the CLP NT government. On the basis of a shonky petition, they decided to move the youth engagement hub, even though it was shovel ready. The petition was a sham and wasn't reflective of the community that that these young people lived in. Shameful! It was all counter to the stakeholder engagement report that was commissioned previously. I'm talking about 450 stakeholders.

The aim, of course, of the youth hub is to improve the wellbeing of our youth, and it will also help to reduce youth offending rates, which has been and continues to be a major issue for the local community. The shame of this was that the Casuarina fire station site was shovel ready, and we could have been opening it about now instead of starting a new process, 18 months later, all over again. But we are where we are. The Northern Territory government must deliver on this objective of supporting our young people with the required funding and services as a matter of priority. The federal government funding is still there for the build, but we've wasted a lot of time. I will move on, but the original plan was for a dedicated, fit-for-purpose facility with safe indoor and outdoor spaces and long opening hours to better service the needs of young people in our community. And, as I said, we would have been able to open it about now.

We need a dedicated permanent structure to deliver the opportunity for young people, the hub model, with the co-location of NT government agencies and non-government agencies that deliver those youth services. A one-stop youth engagement hub is exactly what we need. It is still some time away. To have that engagement with the students and young people and flexible learning models, the youth hub will work with young people from 10 to 17. There will be scope for families to become involved. If there's a young person that attends a youth engagement hub, they may bring younger siblings in. It will engage with the families. Providing a safe and engaging space for children and young people is so important, linking them to support services where needed and linking those families in, as I said, and encouraging them to also engage with our young people.

Leon Rebello (McPherson, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to support this motion and to recognise the extraordinary role that neighbourhood and community centres play, not just in times of crisis but every single day in communities like mine on the southern Gold Coast. These centres are often the quiet backbone of our communities. They're where people turn when life becomes overwhelming, when they need food on the table, support for their mental health, help navigating services or simply a place where someone will listen.

On the southern Gold Coast, we're fortunate to have a network of dedicated community organisations and neighbourhood centres that step in where other services simply don't reach. From Palm Beach Neighbourhood Centre to the Varsity Lakes Community Resource Centre, these centres are often the first and sometimes the only point of contact for vulnerable Australians, and their importance becomes even more evident in times of disaster. On the Gold Coast, during ex-tropical-cyclone Alfred, we saw firsthand just how vital these community centres and organisations are. While the winds were still howling, rain was falling and power was out for days, community centres opened their doors. They became safe havens, coordination points and lifelines. They distributed supplies, checked in on isolated residents and provided real-time information when people needed it most. Importantly, they offered reassurance—a human connection at a time of uncertainty and fear.

But, despite all this, many of these centres are operating under immense strain. They're underfunded and overstretched, and they're often forced to rely on short-term competitive grants just to keep their doors open. What we're seeing now is that we are left hanging when it comes to whether this government will fund the Stronger Communities Program that these community centres and neighbourhood centres often rely on and benefit from. We can't expect organisations that provide essential frontline support to operate in a constant state of uncertainty, never knowing if they'll have the resources to continue to do their work six months down the track. The staff and the volunteers who power these centres deserve better. They're people who go above and beyond every day. They work tirelessly, often with limited resources, driven not by profit but by a deep commitment to their communities. On the southern Gold Coast, I've seen this dedication firsthand, meeting with volunteers who give their time to supporting others.

Investing in community centres is not just the right thing to do; it's the smart thing to do. When government supports these centres, we strengthen our communities, we reduce pressure on other services, and we ensure that there's help that's available early before problems escalate to a crisis. This motion rightly acknowledges the indispensable role of neighbourhood and community centres. It highlights the challenges they face, and it calls for the long-term support that they so clearly need. I commend the member for Lyne for bringing this motion forward, and I encourage the government to listen and support it.

Andrew Wilkie (Clark, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned, and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.

Sitting suspended from 13:30 to 16:00