Your NNC: Blog
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Supporting our community during Homelessness Week September 2025 Homelessness Week is an important time of year on the NNC calendar, and this year we hosted Kindness in the Courtyard, an inclusive community gathering centred on the national theme #HomelessnessActionNow.
Our 2025 Homelessness Week event offered a welcoming space where people who are experiencing, or at risk of, homelessness could access essential services, enjoy food and music, take part in creative activities, connect with others and feel supported by our team. More than 120 guests attended, including people with lived experience of homelessness, local community members, service providers, partner organisations and volunteers. Some of the highlights included a free community barbeque, health checks, clothing distribution through the Thread Together mobile wardrobe, and haircuts provided by Ultimo TAFE students. The event was also supported by community partners including Wiseberry Real Estate, Fuel Bakery, Gift of Bread, Mountain Goat Brewery, Marrickville Metro and local schools, who made generous contributions of food, drinks and supplies. This year we also launched our ‘Kindness Kiosk’, a dedicated space at the event where volunteers distributed donated items including non-perishable food items, socks, beanies and other essentials. These items were sourced through donation drives, with boxes placed at Marrickville Metro, local schools including Camdenville PS, Newtown Performing Arts HS, one at our centre in Darley Street, and one at local business Liftronic, in the lead-up to the event. The community response to the Kindness Kiosk was overwhelmingly positive. Schools, local businesses and residents all contributed items and Woniora Road School even created thoughtful handmade kindness cards to accompany donations. One guest returned later in the day to personally thank volunteers for the care pack and haircut they had received, saying it made them feel “noticed and cared for.” From our experience running these events, we have found that combining practical support with social connection creates a welcoming, impactful experience. Guests were able to access vital services, enjoy creative activities and feel part of a caring community. We plan to continue this initiative in future, while expanding the Kindness Kiosk and refining activities to make the event even more special and inclusive. The Inner West has seen a marked increase in homelessness in recent years, driven by the housing shortage and cost-of-living pressures. The annual Street Count recorded 37 rough sleepers in 2025, up from seven in 2023. There is also a growing number of people living in vehicles, particularly women over 55, who are vulnerable due to financial insecurity and limited housing options. And while our Homelessness Outreach Worker role at NNC is currently unfunded, we continue to operate and sustain this vital position in recognition of the urgent need in our community. If you would like to donate to support this vital, life-saving work, you can do so here.
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