As National Volunteer Week (18-24 May) calls all Australians to make 2026 ‘Your Year to Volunteer’, the St Vincent de Paul Society is celebrating the extraordinary contribution of its tens of thousands of volunteers amidst a growing challenge - its volunteer numbers are declining, and the average age is rising. The Society’s National President Mark Gaetani said National Volunteer Week gives...

The Federal Budget has drawn a measured but hopeful response from both the St Vincent de Paul Society and Catholic Health Australia who have welcomed reforms they believe could improve the lives of Australians facing housing stress, poverty, illness and ageing. However, both organisations have also warned that much more needs to be done to ensure vulnerable people are not left behind. In a ...

As winter approaches, the St Vincent de Paul Society is calling on Australians to support the Vinnies Winter Appeal 2026, with new data showing the increased depth of financial pressure now facing households already struggling to get by. A new YouGov survey commissioned by St Vincent de Paul Society found more than half of Australians (55 percent) say they have had to reduce spending on ess...

The meeting reignited critical discussions regarding Australia’s housing and homelessness crisis. Photo: Phil Bayne. A recent meeting between Catholic Social Services Australia (CSSA) CEO Dr Jerry Nockles and Ben Rimmer, Director-General of the Housing Group in the Federal Department of Treasury, has reignited critical discussions regarding Australia’s housing and homelessness crisis. Du...

An invitation to listen and to act. Image: Australian Catholic Bishops Conference. Australia’s Catholic bishops have urged courage and tenderness in addressing the nation’s cost-of-living crisis in their latest social justice statement, The Cost of our Living: Economic and Social Justice for the Common Good. “Across Australia, many of our sisters and brothers are burdened by the rising c...

SVDP WA President Danny Cloghan speaks at the 160th Anniversary Mass on 25 October at St Mary’s Cathedral. Photo: Supplied. By Jamie O'Brien Twenty-twenty-five marks a remarkable milestone for the St Vincent de Paul Society in Western Australia in celebrating 160 years of steadfast service to those in need. The celebrations culminated with a moving Mass at St Mary’s Cathedral on 25 Oc...

This revitalisation month includes a heartfelt invitation for those not yet involved in the Society to consider how they might be able to put their faith in action and in a practical way show a profound commitment to the dignity of every human person and the call to solidarity.

The majority of Australia’s homeless are not sleeping in doorways or tents in parks, but in less conspicuous settings, such as cars, couch-surfing or low-cost boarding houses or motels.

The Australia Institute’s report found people were overwhelmingly supportive of government measures to reduce child poverty, with four-in-five (81 per cent) agreeing that household income support payments should be set at a rate that did not cause any child in Australia to live in poverty.

St Vincent De Paul Society National President Mark Gaetani has said the annual report by the AIHW is further confirmation that the country’s homelessness situation is exceedingly bleak and shows few if any signs of improving.