Media Release by The Hon Jenny Macklin MP

Supporting Australian families and communities

The Australian Government has provided $7.8 million to extend 105 projects that are strengthening families and communities across the country.

Supporting young parents and their children, helping drought affected families and encouraging leadership and volunteering are among the projects being funded.

These community projects provide on the ground, practical help for people facing social and personal challenges.

For example, in the Central West of New South Wales the Shine for Kids Cooperative is helping families break out of the criminal justice cycle.

In South East Queensland, 200 young mothers and pregnant teenagers are receiving help to complete school.

In South Australia, the Grandparents as Parents project helps families raising children for the second time while in the Victorian Mallee region around 600 drought affected families are getting help.

The organisations being funded by the Government have shown they can deliver local solutions to make a real difference in people’s lives.

The projects are located throughout Australia – with 33 in NSW, 24 in Victoria; 16 in Queensland; 14 in Western Australia and 10 in South Australia. Tasmania and the Northern Territory both have three while the ACT has two.

All of these projects have demonstrated their capacity to produce practical and tangible improvements for their communities and the extended funding will allow them to continue their work.