The Community Pantry provides much needed material aid to families and individuals experiencing difficulties in the local Hume community. The program started as a small support program for a handful of learners in our adult education programs who were experiencing significant poverty, and became a steady flow every week when the pandemic hit. As the ...
Banksia Gardens Community Services
Community Pantry

GOAL
$5,000
Field of Interest
- Individual/family services and support
- Social inclusion and justice
Target Population
- People experiencing socio-economic disadvantage or vulnerability
- Asylum seekers, refugees, migrants and people from CALD backgrounds

Since 1979 Banksia Gardens Community Services has delivered programs and services to low-income residents in the Public Housing Estate adjacent to our centre, to disadvantaged individuals, groups and communities in Broadmeadows, and to communities across Hume in Melbourne's north. We are a charitable organisation, a neighbourhood house, and a community services organisation assisting over 80,000 people annually.
Banksia Gardens' vision and primary objective is to eradicate poverty and disadvantage from our community. We provide education, training, community development and individual support programs for local residents, building social cohesion, and reducing disadvantage for people of all ages, cultural backgrounds and beliefs.
Project Summary
The Community Pantry provides much needed material aid to families and individuals experiencing difficulties in the local Hume community. The program started as a small support program for a handful of learners in our adult education programs who were experiencing significant poverty, and became a steady flow every week when the pandemic hit. As the cost of living pressures continue to impact the Hume community the demand of the program continues to exceed our supplies.
In the 2022-2023 financial year, the Community Pantry at Banksia Gardens supplied 12,500 packages of material aid (food and essential household items) to the community across our Broadmeadows and Meadows Heights sites.
Project Outcomes
As the demand for the Community Pantry continues to grow, our aim is to continue providing material aid packages (food and essential household items) to members of the local Hume City Council Community who need it the most. We prioritise community members with Health Care cards, Bridging Visas, those seeking asylum and international students.
Each week we provide over 100 material aid packages to local community members. We also hold periodic food markets and op shops to extend the reach of our support. With increased funding we will be able to increase the reach of this program even further.
Budget Breakdown
TOTAL BUDGET: $95,000
FUNDING
Funding source | Amount |
---|---|
Freemasons Foundation (confirmed) | $38,000 |
Donations (unconfirmed) | $10,000 |
Funding applications (unconfirmed) | $37,000 |
In-kind support (confirmed) | $10,000 |
Funding gap (unconfirmed) | $5,000 |
EXPENSES
Expense item | Amount |
---|---|
Wages (including on costs) - 2x part-time staff | $70,000 |
Material Aid Supplies (food and essential household items) | $15,000 |
Volunteers (in-kind) | $10,000 |
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