September 2024
OzChild
Chance to Shine Scholarship Program
Provides educational scholarships to vulnerable and disadvantaged young people who are currently supported by OzChild to ensure they have the necessary resources and opportunities to reach their full potential.
Western Chances
Geelong Chances Program Pilot
Western Chances supports talented and motivated students in the western region of Melbourne who may not otherwise have an opportunity to fulfil their potential and overcome barriers to educational and other success. Western Chances provides scholarships, opportunity programs, and access to mentors and networks. Students are nominated by teachers and are supported in secondary school and university.
Geelong Chances Program Pilot
In 2024, Western Chances expanded its reach to establish a three-year pilot program in Geelong. In the first year, Western Chances worked with six schools and awarded 37 scholarships. Newsboys has supported the second year of the pilot program.
June 2024
Brainwave Australia
Employment for young people living with a disability
Brainwave Bikes is a social enterprise that refurbishes and sells used bikes. The project provides accredited training and work experience for young people with disabilities, providing pathways to mainstream employment.
Helping Hoops
Croxton & Broadmeadows
Helping Hoops uses basketball to inspire, empower and support young people through free community-based programs that instil values and skills that benefit young people. Participants are generally from a refugee, migrant or asylum seeker background, have a disability, or are living in an inner-city Melbourne high-rise public-housing estate.
Mirabel Foundation
Intensive Support Program
Mirabel’s Intensive Support Program empowers young people who have been orphaned or abandoned as a result of parental drug use to overcome complex challenges, including deteriorating mental health, undiagnosed disabilities and low self-esteem.
Experienced youth workers work closely with 30 young people and their carers to address the presenting issues and establish goals for the future. A range of support is also offered to cater for individual needs and create opportunities to participate in the community.
Melbourne Youth Orchestras
Summer School Residential Camp 2024
Students from across Victoria take part in the annual MYO Summer School at Southbank so they can connect with peers from across the state. A residential camp is provided for young people from rural and regional Victoria to enable them to attend the MYO Summer School.
Ocean Mind
Surf Therapy Program
Combines the benefits of surfing with mentoring activities to improve the mental health of young people.
STREAT
Thyme Out
A STREAT Café, at the Parkville Youth Justice Precinct, provides intensive hospitality and horticulture training and employment to enable young people who are exiting the juvenile justice system to build their lives.
Very Special Kids
Very Special Kids provides holistic palliative care for Victorian children and young people with life-limiting conditions, and tailored support for their families – through life, death, and bereavement.
Mittagundi Adolescent Camp
The Mittagundi Adolescent Camp was introduced in 2015 as a result of feedback from adolescent siblings who suggested an adolescent-only camp. The camp, which now takes place every two years, involves about 18 siblings of kids with life-limiting conditions. The five-night outdoor program encourages participants to connect with nature and with each other, without technology and modern distractions.
It enhances individual resilience and fosters friendships.
Youth Advisory Group
To ensure the Very Special Youth program is meeting the emotional, spiritual and physical needs of young people, Very Special Kids established a Youth Advisory Group of up to 12 adolescents from diverse backgrounds. The advisory group provides feedback and guidance on the development of programs, as well as important personal development opportunities for young people who face many challenges.
Newsboys Foundation Trust Grants
Boys to the Bush
Bendigo
Through mentoring and bush camps, Boys to the Bush changes lives and creates positive futures for disadvantaged young males living in Victoria. This grant supported the expansion of Boys to the Bush to set up a base in Bendigo.
This grant is proudly supported by The Gruppetto Fund Extension, a sub-fund of Australian Communities Foundation.
April 2024
Live4Life
City of Latrobe & Hepburn Shire
A whole-of-community response to youth mental health and suicide prevention with a long-term change agenda. The Live4Life model aims to ensure that young people, teachers, parents, and entire communities in rural and regional Victoria are better informed about mental ill-health and more proactive in identifying the signs and symptoms of an emerging mental health issue before a crisis occurs.
Western Edge
Stronger Together – Edge to Edge
This youth-led Community Youth Theatre program is open to young people across Melbourne’s western suburbs, especially those from diverse and multicultural backgrounds, and those experiencing structural disadvantage. It runs for 20 weeks with weekly two-hour creative theatre workshops, across Footscray, St Albans and Wyndham, culminating in a public performance.
Westjustice
Legal Services for Young People in Out of Home Care
Works extensively with vulnerable young people through embedded outreach legal services delivered where the young people live, learn, work and socialise. Comprehensive legal services are offered to young people in out of home residential care.
December 2023
Banksia Gardens Community Centre
After School Program
The after-school study groups provide individual tutorials and recreational activities three times a week to help young people connect with their community, engage in education, finish secondary school and create expansive pathways for the future.
Melbourne Theatre Company
Youth Scholarship Course
Brings together 25 participants who are experiencing disadvantage and are aged 14-16 for a week of immersive theatre-making at the MTC with teaching artists. At the end of the week, the students showcase their work through a performance to parents, guardians, teachers and industry professionals. Online and follow-up activities with the participants are provided over 12 months.
Melbourne Youth Orchestras
Financial Assistance Program
Provides a financial assistance program for students from families experiencing financial hardship and those travelling from regional and rural areas helping ensure that no young musician is ever excluded from MYO programs due to disadvantage.
Righteous Pups Australia
The Wellness Warriors Project
Helps young people in central Victoria, who are deemed to be at significant educational and psychological risk, through an innovative therapy dog program. Young people work under the guidance of a counsellor and professional dog trainer to learn how to train assistance dogs and in doing so, develop their own self-awareness, self-confidence, and social skills.
September 2023
Australian Ballet School
Bursary Program
The Bursary Program aims to ensure that financial constraints do not prevent talented students from training at the Australian Ballet School. Without the financial assistance provided by the Bursary Program, many ABS students – particularly those from rural and regional Victoria – would not be able to attend the school and reach their potential.
www.australianballetschool.com.au
OzChild
Chance to Shine Scholarship Program
Provides educational scholarships to vulnerable and disadvantaged young people who are currently supported by OzChild to ensure they have the necessary resources and opportunities to reach their full potential.
Yalari
Six-year Boarding & Tuition Scholarship for Victorian Indigenous Student
Provides Indigenous young people from remote, rural and regional communities with scholarships to attend leading Australian boarding schools. Newsboys is proudly supporting a Victorian student at Geelong Grammar School.
June 2023
Brainwave Australia
Employment for Young People with a Disability
Brainwave Bikes is a social enterprise that refurbishes and sells used bikes. The project provides accredited training and work experience for young people with disabilities, providing pathways to mainstream employment.
Mirabel Foundation
Intensive Support Program
Helping remove the barriers to education and community participation for 30 young people with complex and challenging behavior.
Melbourne Youth Orchestras
Summer School Residential Camp
Students from across Victoria take part in the annual MYO Summer School at Southbank so they can connect with peers from across the state. A residential camp is provided for young people from rural and regional Victoria to enable them to attend the MYO Summer School.
Ocean Mind
Surf Therapy Program
Combining the benefits of surfing with mentoring activities to improve the mental health of young people.
STREAT
Thyme Out
A STREAT café at the Parkville Youth Justice Precinct provides intensive hospitality and horticulture training and employment to enable young people who are exiting the juvenile justice system to build their lives.
Very Special Kids
Sibling Program and Youth Advisory Group
Providing opportunities for siblings to meet and connect, through their shared experience of living with a brother or sister with a life-threatening condition or dealing with the loss of a sibling. The program comprises a variety of planned activities in a caring and safe environment and is guided by the newly established Youth Advisory Committee.
April 2023
Helping Hoops
Croxton & Broadmeadows
Helping Hoops uses basketball to inspire, empower and support young people through free community-based programs that instil values and skills that benefit young people. Participants are generally from a refugee, migrant or asylum seeker background, have an intellectual disability, or are living in an inner-city Melbourne high-rise public-housing estate.
Youth Live4Life
City of Latrobe and Hepburn Shire
A whole of community response to youth mental health and suicide prevention with a long-term change agenda. The Live4Life model aims to ensure that young people, teachers, parents, and entire communities in rural and regional Victoria are better informed about mental ill-health and more proactive in identifying the signs and symptoms of an emerging mental health issue before a crisis occurs.
Polyglot Theatre
Rumba Shopfront
Collaborate with Rumbalara Football Netball Club in Shepparton to empower Indigenous young people through an art-meets-sport public installation project. The work helps to build community and cultural connections.
Western Edge
Stronger Together – Edge to Edge
This youth-led Community Youth Theatre program is open to young people across Melbourne’s western suburbs, especially those from diverse and multicultural backgrounds, and those experiencing structural disadvantage. It runs for 20 weeks of weekly two-hour creative theatre workshops, across Footscray, Werribee, St Albans and Laverton North culminating in a public performance outcome.
February 2023
Melbourne Theatre Company
Youth Scholarship Course
Brings together 25 participants who are experiencing disadvantage and are aged 14-16 for a week of immersive theatre-making at the MTC with teaching artists. At the end of the week, the students showcase their work through a performance to parents, guardians, teachers and industry professionals. On-line and follow up activities with the participants are provided over 12 months.
December 2022
Banksia Gardens
Stronger Foundations Study Program
The after-school study groups provide individual tutorials and recreational activities three times a week to help young people connect with their community, engage in education, finish secondary school and create expansive pathways for the future.
Melbourne Youth Orchestras
Financial Assistance for Young Musicians
Providing a financial assistance program for students from families experiencing financial hardship and those travelling from regional and rural areas helping ensure that no young musician is ever excluded from MYO programs due to disadvantage.
Mallee Accommodation & Support Program (MASP)
Youth Mentoring Program
Fifteen young people in the Mallee region, who are dealing with complex life issues, are mentored over nine months culminating in a seven-day hike through the Flinders Ranges in South Australia. Participants discover their inner strength, gain insight into their lives, build support networks and life-changing friendships.
Righteous Pups
The Wellness Warriors Project
Helping young people in central Victoria who are deemed to be at significant educational and psychological risk through an innovative therapy dog program. Young people work under the guidance of a counsellor and professional dog trainer to learn how to train assistance dogs and in doing so develop their own self-awareness, self-confidence, and social skills.
Westjustice
Poverty is not Destiny – Out of Home Care and In Custody Legal Clinics
Working extensively with vulnerable young people through embedded outreach legal services delivered where young people live, learn, work and socialise. Comprehensive legal services are offered to young people in residential care and custody.
September 2022
Centre for Multicultural Youth (CMY)
The Wimmera Project
The program provides support to multicultural young people in Horsham and Nhill so they can engage with their community and develop leadership skills. The program also helps build the capacity of local services so the services can understand and respond to the needs of multicultural young people and their families.
OZChild (Children Australia)
Chance to Shine Scholarship Program
Provide educational scholarships to vulnerable and disadvantaged young people who are currently supported by OzChild to ensure they have the necessary resources and opportunities to reach their full potential.
Western Edge
Partner up for Youth Mental Health
This collaborative program aims to provide the best possible care for young people between the ages of 11-21 who have been severely impacted by the pandemic, as the number of young people with mental health issues is at an all-time high. The program provides mental health training, resources and support for Western Edge and Polyglot artists and arts workers who are employed to provide safe, positive, and uplifting arts experiences for young people.
Wellsprings for Women
Girls on the move
Working with young women aged 15-21 years from migrant and refugee backgrounds to create pathways for participation in sports and physical activities.
June 2022
Brainwave Australia
Employment for Young People with a Disability
Brainwave Bikes is a social enterprise that refurbishes and sells used bikes. The project provides work experience and training for 30 young jobseekers aged 18-21, providing pathways to mainstream employment.
Edenhope College
Hands on Learning (HOL)
Establishment of the Hands on Learning program at Edenhope College. HOL assists students to build wellbeing, engagement, and attendance by creating opportunities for students to discover their talents and experience success through authentic hands-on projects.
Horsham Special Developmental School
Hands on Learning (HOL)
Establishment of the Hands on Learning program at the Horsham Special School. HOL assists students to build wellbeing, engagement, and attendance by creating opportunities for students to discover their talents and experience success through authentic hands-on projects.
I CAN Network
Deepening our Impact with Autistic Young Victorians
I CAN Online School Lunchtime Groups is a pilot program – a hybrid of the I CAN Online and I CAN School programs – held during lunchtimes to support young people struggling to reconnect with their education. Participants will also have an opportunity to connect face-to-face via AWETISM 2022 Expo.
Ocean Mind
Surf Therapy Program
Combining the benefits of surfing with mentoring activities to improve the mental health of young people.
STREAT
Thyme Out
A STREAT café at the Parkville Youth Justice Precinct has been established. The program provides intensive hospitality and horticulture training and employment to enable young people who are exiting the juvenile justice system to build their lives.
Very Special Kids
Bereaved Sibling Therapeutic Group and Sibling Days
Bereaved Sibling Therapeutic Group sessions create a safe space for siblings to acknowledge, explore and express their grief and bereavement experience, which is critical to normalising the emotions and experiences of participants.
Sibling Days connect young people to their peers with similar lived experiences, encouraging creative expression of emotions and helping foster self-esteem and confidence.
Youth Live4Life
Southern Grampians and Baw Baw Shires
A whole of community response to youth mental health and suicide prevention with a long-term change agenda. The Live4Life model aims to ensure that young people, teachers, parents and entire communities in rural and regional Victoria are better informed about mental ill-health and more proactive in identifying the signs and symptoms of an emerging mental health issue before a crisis occurs.
Newsboys Foundation Trust Grants
Boys to the Bush
Victoria’s Men of Tomorrow
Through mentoring and bush camps, Boys to the Bush changes lives and creates positive futures for disadvantaged young males living in Northeast Victoria. This grant supported the expansion of Boys to the Bush to set up a base in Wangaratta.
This grant is proudly supported by The Gruppetto Fund Extension, a sub-fund of Australian Communities Foundation.
Ocean Mind
Surf Therapy Program
Combining the benefits of surfing with mentoring activities to improve the mental health of young people.
This grant is proudly supported by The Gruppetto Fund Extension, a sub-fund of Australian Communities Foundation.
April 2022
Melbourne Recital Centre
Newsboys Foundation Regional Music Award
Supports a dedicated and gifted musician who studies at a regional or rural Victorian government school to access a week-long, personally-designed, intensive musical learning program at the Melbourne Recital Centre.
Regional Master Class Program
The regional master class program takes musicians to country Victoria to provide tuition for young people within their community.
www.melbournerecitalcentre.com.au
Outer Urban Projects
Access and Outreach
Supporting high-needs participants by reaching out and providing access to OUP’s dance, music, and writing workshops. The workshops are taught by artists who reflect multi-cultural communities in Melbourne’s outer north. Priority access is reserved for young people who are socially disengaged, have disabilities, are refugees and or recently settled young immigrants.
Phunktional
The River Spirit Film Project
With the support of Elders and the wider community, Phunktional has created a place-based project in Robinvale since 2009. Young people are supported to express their ideas and create short films. Phunktional’s work in Robinvale focuses on improving wellbeing and connecting young people with elders, their culture, and the broader community.
Polyglot Theatre
Rumba Mall
Collaborate with Rumbalara Football Netball Club in Shepparton to empower Indigenous young people through an art-meets-sport public installation project. This helps to address some of the complex risks young people face such as cultural disconnection and exclusion from the broader town community.
The Mirabel Foundation
Mirabel Intensive Support Program
Helping remove the barriers to community participation each year for 30 young people with complex and challenging behavior.
February 2022
Berry Street
Berry Street Education Model: Collective Leadership Program
Providing a whole-school approach for staff to learn effective strategies to support young people who have experienced trauma, engaging with and encouraging them to succeed.
December 2021
Breakaway Youth
Summer and Winter Camps for School Success
Preparing young people from Melbourne’s north for school success via a supportive outdoor adventure program that fosters a sense of belonging.
Melbourne Youth Orchestras
Financial Assistance for Young Musicians
Providing a financial assistance program for students from families experiencing financial hardship and those travelling from regional and rural areas helping ensure that no young musician is ever excluded from MYO programs due to disadvantage.
WEstjustice
Proverty is not destiny – Out of Home Care and In-Custody Legal Clinics
Working extensively with young people through embedded outreach legal services delivered where young people live, learn, work and socialise. Comprehensive legal services are offered to young people in care and custody.
September 2021
Banksia Gardens
Stronger Foundations Study Group
Through study groups, individual tutorials, and recreational activities, helping young people connect with their community, engage in education, finish secondary school and create expansive pathways for the future.
Children Australia (OzChild)
Chance to Shine Scholarships
Provide educational scholarships to vulnerable and disadvantaged young people who are currently supported by OzChild to ensure they have the necessary resources and opportunities to reach their full potential.
Western Chances
Scholarships
Providing new and renewal scholarships to support the education of about 18 talented young people from culturally diverse backgrounds who are experiencing financial disadvantage and other barriers to education.
July 2021
Ardoch
Pathways Beyond School
Over three years from 2019-2022, supporting more than 6,000 students in partner secondary schools in North Geelong, Frankston North, Melbourne’s West and Greater Dandenong to build confidence and prepare for their futures.
Kids Under Cover
Education Scholarships for Young People Exiting Youth Justice
Provide young people formally at risk of homelessness with critical financial relief to offset the basic costs of their education and training.
