Today in Parliament, Abigail passed a motion commending Neighbourhood Centre Week and the invaluable place-based frontline support they provide to local communities every day.

Abigail said:

I move: 

(1) That this House notes that:

• the week from 12 May to 16 May 2024 is Neighbourhood Centre Week, which celebrates the invaluable place-based frontline support that the over 1,000 neighbourhood and community centres (NCCs) across Australia provide to communities every day, 
• NCCs have existed in NSW since as early as the 1960s, born out of community movements for civil rights, social change and resident rights to fill a need in the community that had not been met, 
• NCCs are now known for their focus on community development and ensuring the long-term wellbeing and resilience of communities, and while centres have adapted over time to meet changing community needs the inherent principles and motivations have remained the same,  
• NCCs provide vital frontline services for communities including domestic and family violence services, trauma-informed counselling and care, crisis housing and homelessness support, flood and bushfire recovery, disability supports, early intervention services, referrals and more, 
• these centres are often the first service that vulnerable people engage with when seeking help, and often provide wraparound care and services for individuals and families to help them heal, recover and prosper, 
• Local Community Services Association (LCSA) was founded in 1974 as the peak coordinating body for locally-governed not-for-profit NCCs in NSW, with the purpose of supporting and representing centres to build stronger, more inclusive communities. Today, LCSA’s network of 175 NCCs is the largest community-led infrastructure network in NSW, each of which are uniquely placed to know and respond to the needs and aspirations of their communities, 
• according to LCSA:
  • every week, 72 thousand people walk through the doors of 175 NCCs across NSW,
  • NSW is one of the only states and territories in Australia that does not provide core funding to NCCs, despite the continued efforts of LCSA in requesting the NSW Government provide this funding in each year’s state budget,
  • only 27% of NCC staff are full-time employees, with funding often short-term, inflexible and not inclusive of funding for staffing, infrastructure or operational requirements, and 
  • because of a lack of recurrent core funding, many NCCs in NSW currently have only one staff member onsite per day which often results in either an unsafe working environment or closing their doors to the public at short notice,
• in its pre-budget submission for the NSW 2025-26 Budget, LCSA has requested an annual Social Infrastructure Investment, separate and in addition to program funding, into existing and new NCCs:
  • annual core funding of $316,388 per NCC, coming to an annual total of $55.4 million for 175 NCCs across NSW, and 
  • $5 million Community Investment Fund: a one-off Fund to which organisations can apply to either top up their baseline funding or create new NCCs, and 
• LCSA has also recommended the NSW Government provide funding in the NSW 2025-26 Budget for: 
  • a one-off Loneliness Investment Fund of $3.7 million,
  • two dedicated positions at LCSA to support capacity building of the sector for $244,697 per year, and
  • a tripling of funding to Early Intervention and Prevention at a cost of $641.7 million, currently delivered by the Department of Communities and Justice through the Targeted Earlier Intervention program and Family Connect and Support services. 

(2) That this House commends all NCCs across NSW for the important, dedicated and irreplaceable support and expert care they provide in their communities every day to vulnerable people who may otherwise slip through the cracks. 

Motion agreed to.

Read the transcript in Hansard here.

28 May 2025