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“It breaks my heart when I have to give a young person a sleeping bag and tell them to sleep close to our building for safety because no matter how hard we try, we cannot get them into any accommodation for the night.” |
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"I said: What are you doing here? You haven’t worked on the street in years. She said: ‘Times are tough. So I decided to return and work on the streets for a couple of weeks, to get some money and get us by over the next few months. It is only for a couple of weeks – just enough so I can keep my kids in school’.” |
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“There is a high risk of violence or exploitation with young homeless people in my area – especially in winter. I know of instances where young women have exchanged themselves just for food.” |
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“You watch a young intoxicated girl who has just come into the city for the night with her friends, getting targeted by the guys in the park. You can only hope that she has listened enough to us to realise the danger and she will get on that last train home and return to her family.” |
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“I watched this angry young man full of aggression, put down his beer can and pick up the brush and begin to paint. A couple of minutes later he began to smile and talk.” |
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“I watched with pride as she graduated from high school and saw her joy when she was accepted into university. I cannot thank enough a group of strangers who banded together and believed in her enough that they opened their hearts and wallets, giving her an education and a chance in life.” |
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Community Ownership in the City of Frankston
Open Family Australia has established a development committee to raise funds to support a Community Read more
Who We Are
For more than 30 years, Open Family Australia has been providing a range of Outreach services Read more
When I was a little girl I wanted to be so many things
A teacher, a policewoman, a singer ... but what I really wanted to be was Read more
Mum and I were fighting all the time and it wasn’t a happy place for me anymore. I had told Mum that one of her relatives had sexually abused me. I don’t know why but she didn’t believe me. I think that is what hurt me the most – I’m her daughter and she is supposed to protect me but when I finally got up the courage to tell her what had been going on, she turned her back on me.
In 2007, Open Family Australia secured funding through the Property Industry Foundation for the refurbishment and fit out for a mobile youth outreach service for Sydney. Recognising that Sydney's CBD is well catered for by other agencies, Open Family Australia decided to launch this service into Sydney's western suburbs, frequenting hot spots in the Warwick Farm, Liverpool and Fairfield regions. 
The Melbourne Chatterbox operates three nights a week in Melbourne's CBD and inner suburbs. The service is manned by a team of volunteers headed up by Open Family Australia's Volunteer Coordinator and Chatterbox Volunteer Committee. The service has been operational in Melbourne since 2002 and is proudly supported by Cabrini Health, the Tattersalls Foundation and PFD Foods.
Our recycled boutique stocks a large range of quality women's, men's and children's clothing and accessories as well as books and bric 'a' brac.
Open Family Australia works in Victoria and NSW, providing Outreach support to young people at risk in these communities. 
Assertive Outreach is a model that offers youth focused services to street frequenting young people in the environments where they congregate. This model of providing comprehensive ongoing support in all aspects of a young person’s life, rather than just concentrating on one issue is successful, as it provides the young person with support from a worker who is available for all their needs and who also works to integrate them into mainstream society.
Stories from The Street