Victorian emergency relief centres lose federal government funding
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Emergency relief centres across Victoria are facing a financial crisis as the federal government plans to slash their funding at the end of this month.
Among the hardest hit will be Horsham's Christian Emergency Food Centre, in western Victoria, which has fed those in need across the Wimmera since 1998.
"People can come to us, just walk in and say what they need, and they can walk out with packed boxes of food so that they can eat straight away," client assessment manager Bev Miatke said.
From next month, the service will no longer have funding under the federal government's Financial Wellbeing and Capability Activity grant.
The grant was a five-year contract, which means the relief centres must wait until at least 2030 to reapply.
Ms Miatke said her organisation had been given "no explanation" as to why its grant application was unsuccessful.
"There's just so many sad cases out there, where if we hadn't intervened families and children wouldn't have got the help that they really needed, and it's just heartbreaking to think that we wouldn't be able to do that help in the future."
Ms Miatke said that money translated into about $500,000 worth of benefits to clients when it was coupled with donations from local businesses and residents. Last year, about 3,000 people came to the centre.
She said the service would not be able to survive on donations alone.
"A lot of the financial assistance that we also give to clients, which is medical prescriptions, help with getting fuel for getting to medical appointments, some help with utility bills. That's going to gradually go down and down and down until there may not be any help there," Ms Miatke said.
In a statement, the Department of Social Services said funding for food relief had doubled, while funding for emergency relief had increased across Australia.
The department said people seeking emergency relief support could contact one of the five providers that deliver services in north-west Victoria, which included those in Ararat and Mildura.
But Ms Miatke said those services were simply too far away.
"If they haven't got money to put food on the table for themselves and their children, how are they going to afford fuel to even do the one hour [trip] to Ararat … and then an hour drive home again, or the four hours to the only other organisation that was funded, which is in Mildura."
It has also had to cut funding to the volunteer-led Stawell Inter Church Council Cottage in western Victoria, which received nearly $50,000 from Uniting Vic.Tas last financial year.
"From the end of this month, we will have no government funding for those who are in need in Stawell," church council spokeswoman Mary Rita Thomas said.
"This must be a mistake. We've had no warning. We've had no notification."
Last financial year, the centre helped 292 households with 661 people, 22 per cent of whom were aged under 17.
One third of the people the centre helped live with a disability.
"We're being there in a very humble way, but we will have to do that with less [without the funding]," Ms Thomas said.
"[This] will mean that children will be going to bed hungry, people with disabilities will be in all sorts of strife, parents whose children are suddenly terribly ill will be running backwards and forwards to doctors and going out of town."
Uniting Vic.Tas senior manager for the Wimmera Louise Netherway said the local model of delivering help to those in need was working.
"Due to this funding change, it's causing some disruptions for us now as we adjust and try and rethink how we're going to deliver that emergency relief across the region," she said.
"We understand the government has provided funding for emergency relief to other not-for-profit organisations; however, we are disappointed that Uniting has missed out in this instance."
By Nethma Dandeniya
Among the hardest hit will be Horsham's Christian Emergency Food Centre, in western Victoria, which has fed those in need across the Wimmera since 1998.
"People can come to us, just walk in and say what they need, and they can walk out with packed boxes of food so that they can eat straight away," client assessment manager Bev Miatke said.
From next month, the service will no longer have funding under the federal government's Financial Wellbeing and Capability Activity grant.
Bev Miatke says she was given no explanation as to why the federal funding application was unsuccessful. (ABC Mildura-Swan Hill: Peter Quattrocelli)
The grant was a five-year contract, which means the relief centres must wait until at least 2030 to reapply.
Ms Miatke said her organisation had been given "no explanation" as to why its grant application was unsuccessful.
"There's just so many sad cases out there, where if we hadn't intervened families and children wouldn't have got the help that they really needed, and it's just heartbreaking to think that we wouldn't be able to do that help in the future."
Feeding the needy for almost 30 years
The food centre received about $80,000 in previous years from the Commonwealth grant.Ms Miatke said that money translated into about $500,000 worth of benefits to clients when it was coupled with donations from local businesses and residents. Last year, about 3,000 people came to the centre.
Bev Miatke packs food boxes for clients at the Horsham Christian Emergency Food Centre. (ABC Mildura-Swan Hill: Peter Quattrocelli)
She said the service would not be able to survive on donations alone.
"A lot of the financial assistance that we also give to clients, which is medical prescriptions, help with getting fuel for getting to medical appointments, some help with utility bills. That's going to gradually go down and down and down until there may not be any help there," Ms Miatke said.
The department said people seeking emergency relief support could contact one of the five providers that deliver services in north-west Victoria, which included those in Ararat and Mildura.
Christian Emergency Food Centre in Horsham will lose its federal government funding at the end of this month. (ABC Mildura-Swan Hill: Ed Gannon)
But Ms Miatke said those services were simply too far away.
"If they haven't got money to put food on the table for themselves and their children, how are they going to afford fuel to even do the one hour [trip] to Ararat … and then an hour drive home again, or the four hours to the only other organisation that was funded, which is in Mildura."
Uniting merger
Uniting Vic.Tas said it would close or merge eight of its services in Bendigo, Blackburn, Broadmeadows, Epping, Footscray, Geelong, Ringwood and St Albans.It has also had to cut funding to the volunteer-led Stawell Inter Church Council Cottage in western Victoria, which received nearly $50,000 from Uniting Vic.Tas last financial year.
Volunteers helping out at the Horsham Christian Emergency Food Centre. (ABC Mildura-Swan Hill: Peter Quattrocelli)
"From the end of this month, we will have no government funding for those who are in need in Stawell," church council spokeswoman Mary Rita Thomas said.
"This must be a mistake. We've had no warning. We've had no notification."
Last financial year, the centre helped 292 households with 661 people, 22 per cent of whom were aged under 17.
"We're being there in a very humble way, but we will have to do that with less [without the funding]," Ms Thomas said.
"[This] will mean that children will be going to bed hungry, people with disabilities will be in all sorts of strife, parents whose children are suddenly terribly ill will be running backwards and forwards to doctors and going out of town."
Uniting Vic.Tas senior manager for the Wimmera Louise Netherway said the local model of delivering help to those in need was working.
"Due to this funding change, it's causing some disruptions for us now as we adjust and try and rethink how we're going to deliver that emergency relief across the region," she said.
"We understand the government has provided funding for emergency relief to other not-for-profit organisations; however, we are disappointed that Uniting has missed out in this instance."
By Nethma Dandeniya
