Jason Clare, Member for Blaxland, and Daryl Melham, Member for Banks, today congratulated four local community groups that would be provided with over $625,000 over three years in funding to support young people in Bankstown.
The funding includes:
- $240,000 to St George Community Housing to roll out their YFutures Project to mentor young people at risk of homelessness;
- $137,955 to White Lion Incorporated to fund their employment program to help vulnerable young people to find a job;
- $45,000 for Chester Hill Neighbourhood Centre to help support young people stay in school; and
- $205,608 for Bankstown Multicultural Youth Service Incorporated to assist young people at risk of unemployment attain Certificate 2 training and offer mentoring programs to help them find a job.
“The best thing we can do to support young people is help them find a job, keep a job and make sure they have a safe place to live. These projects will do just that. These four community groups are an important part of our community,” Mr Clare said.
Member for Banks Daryl Melham said the support and mentoring programs that these groups will run can often make the difference in a young person’s life.
“This funding is all about practical ways to connect local youth with local employers and traineeships,” Mr Melham said.
The funding was recently announced today by Minister for Human Services Senator Kim Carr. The projects are being funded from the Australian Government’s $25 million Local Solutions Fund, which helps communities find solutions to joblessness and poverty.
“We know that if we get in early we can help improve people’s chances of getting a job,” Senator Kim Carr said.
Local Advisory Group Chair, Cathy Quinn said the projects were selected to support a variety of youth issues in Bankstown.
“We felt these particular projects would provide a collective impact approach. They work in sync to help young people both in the early stages – when problems start to occur – right through to more entrenched youth issues, like long term unemployment,” Ms Quinn said.
For more information on the Local Solutions Fund and to learn more about how local communities can get involved visit humanservices.gov.au/bfls or speak to the Bankstown Community Action Leader, Carol Gereige on 0429 395 970.
Media contacts:
Chris Zogopoulos (Jason Clare) 9790 2466
Gwen Price (Daryl Melham) 9774 2111
