Helping Hands: A Homelessness Week Series
For over 200 years, Wesley Mission has walked alongside people experiencing hardship, offering services that span mental health, aged care, financial counselling, and crisis accommodation. At its core, Wesley Mission exists to do all the good it can for those in greatest need and in recent years, that need has grown rapidly as the homelessness crisis deepens across the country.
In coastal regions like the Mid North Coast of New South Wales, the struggle is particularly visible. For young people, especially those without family support or financial stability the risk of homelessness can come quickly and unexpectedly. In Coffs Harbour, Bellingen, and Nambucca, Wesley Mission is one of the few frontline organisations providing consistent, wraparound support for youth in crisis.
Wesley Youth Accommodation Service (WYAS) holds a specialist homelessness services contract in the region. Their team operates a 24/7 youth refuge in Coffs Harbour and provides outreach support across surrounding communities, including Macksville and Woolgoolga. But their work goes far beyond just offering a roof over someone’s head.
Wesley Mission’s approach is grounded in dignity and empowerment. “We allow young people to be themselves or to find themselves,” said David Allen – Executive Manager for Community and Family at Wesley Mission. “It’s about giving them full ownership of their decisions, and helping them move from crisis to stability, and eventually, towards a future they can believe in.”
At Wesley when a young person first makes contact whether through a referral or emergency intake, the priority is safety. Staff assess immediate needs and help secure safe accommodation, either at the refuge or an appropriate alternative. From there, the focus shifts to stabilising their situation with short-term goals, such as re-engaging with school, finding employment, or accessing income support.
But what truly sets Wesley Mission apart is its commitment to the long game. “Once the immediate crisis is addressed, we begin working on long-term goals like helping them finish education or find a career, not just a job and start to ‘up-sell hope’ for the young person to lean into an achievable vision of their future with a real pathway to that goal,” Daivd said.
One such pathway has led to a remarkable success story. A young person, first referred to the youth refuge in June 2020, has since completed Year 12, secured full-time employment, and begun an apprenticeship through the local TAFE. With support from WYAS and a transitional housing partner, they maintained stable tenancy, adjusted to shared living arrangements, and gradually moved towards independence. They now support themselves entirely through their own earnings, no longer require Centrelink payments, and are seeking private rental accommodation. In May this year, they were awarded a local Rotary Award for Pride of Workmanship – a moment of recognition for years of effort, resilience, and support.
Across New South Wales, Wesley Mission provides a range of homelessness services for individuals and families, from a 40-bed crisis refuge in Surry Hills to family homelessness support across the Central Coast, South West Sydney in Fairfield/ Liverpool, and Western Sydney in Cumberland.
In addition to accommodation, the organisation distributes personal wellbeing packs and emergency relief items such as backpack beds, thermal wear, and hygiene essentials most recently reaching hundreds of people sleeping rough in Western Sydney, Newcastle, Taree, and Coffs Harbour.
Many of the young people supported by Wesley have experienced trauma at home with family breakdowns, abuse, rejection due to gender or sexual identity, or living with adults struggling with addiction or unmanaged mental illness. For them, Wesley Mission is not only a source of shelter but often the first place where they feel safe, seen, and supported.
Homelessness in winter is a test of how society treats its most vulnerable. And while frontline missions continue to do what they can, with warmth, food, care, and conversation, they also remind us that the solution lies in more than just good intentions.
It lies in action.
As Homelessness Week (4–10 August) approaches, this year’s theme, “Homelessness Action Now,” calls for urgent, practical support. To mark the week, the Uniting Church has launched #Paws4Change in partnership with Parramatta Mission, Wesley Mission, Wayside Chapel and The Bill Crews Foundation. This social media campaign highlights the deep bond between unhoused people and their pets with the aim to raise awareness about homelessness
What You Can Do Today:
While there’s no one-size-fits-all solution to homelessness, there are many ways to show up:
- Donate funds to our Front Line Services – Wesley Mission, The Bill Crews Foundation, Wayside Chapel and Parramatta Mission to help support their action.
- Collect blankets, jackets, socks, and toiletrie
- Volunteer your time, skills, or even just your company.
- Organise workplace fundraisers or community drives.
- Share stories from #Paws4Change Campaign and raise awareness on social media.
- Practice kindness. A warm smile, a simple hello, or a hot drink can mean more than you imagine.
- Share this article to help raise awareness
