St Vincent de Paul Society Australia genetic logo

The St Vincent de Paul Society offers over 200 services that help people in need.

Safeguarding

Find Help

Membership NSW

Volunteering NSW

Careers NSW

Join the Social Justice Network

Vinnies Service Medallion

Vinnies Youth NSW

Donations of goods and services NSW

Gifts in Wills

Philanthropy

Fundraise for Vinnies NSW

Clothing drives, toy collections and food hampers

Corporate partnerships NSW

Financial donations NSW

Sponsorship NSW

Cause related marketing campaigns NSW

Workplace giving - community support NSW

Vinnies and the Return and Earn Scheme

Vinnies Bag O Rags

Vinnies re/CYCLE range

Vinnies Used Cooking Oil Recycling (VUCOR)

Get involved

Get Involved

<h1>Vinnies Shops</h1>
Everything you buy or donate inspires change in your local community.

Vinnies Shops

Shops

Social Justice Statements

Reports and Submissions

Modern Anti-Slavery Statements

Reconciliation Action Plan

Uluru Statement Resources

Energy NSW

Disability Inclusion Action Plan

Advocacy

About us

Contact Us

History NSW

NSW Strategic Plan

Leadership NSW

Policies NSW

Mission and Formation

About Us

News and stories

NSW Media Releases

Vision Magazine

Impact Magazine

NSW Blog

Your Kind of Good Magazine

NSW Disaster Reports

NSW Annual Reports

News and Stories

| Vinnies

Home

ACT & surrounds

New South Wales

Northern Territory

Queensland

South Australia

Tasmania

Victoria

Western Australia

National Council

SVdP Housing Australia

Housing highlighted at Social Justice Forum

St Vincent de Paul Society members from across the state converged on Mary MacKillop Place in North Sydney for a day of advocacy and connection as part of the 2022 Social Justice Forum.
Initially scheduled to take place last October only for the COVID-19 Delta variant to force most of NSW into lockdown, the belated event presented members and social justice advocates with the opportunity to take a broader look at the factors that lead people to seek assistance and discuss the Society’s social justice priorities.

Rich Text

Image

Beginning proceedings with a Welcome to Country from Yvonne Weldon and a spiritual reflection by Sister Carmel Hanson, an opening address from Brooke Simmons, Vice President Social Justice, highlighted the opportunities for change presented by the recent Federal Election.
Jack de Groot, St Vincent de Paul Society NSW CEO, facilitate a panel discussion on working to shape more just and compassionate communities. Speakers included Jihad Dib MP (NSW Member for Lakemba), Father Peter Smith (Promoter of Justice and Peace for the Archdiocese of Sydney) and Alice Salomon (Uniting).
Break-out sessions were held on issues including the Uluru Statement from the Heart, responding to domestic violence and coercive control, understanding climate equity and natural disasters, centring the voices of people with lived experience, and building local relationships for change.
Having launched the ‘Build Homes, Build Hope’ campaign at the previous Social Justice Forum in 2019, the afternoon session focussed on the Society’s continued call for governments to increase the supply of social housing.
John Engeler, Shelter NSW CEO, provided a snapshot on the state of social housing in NSW, followed by a presentation from Michelle Fonti on the actions taken by the Society during the last three years of the ‘Build Homes, Build Hope’ campaign.
Members concluded the day by discussing campaign actions in the lead-up to the State Budget and NSW Election in 2023. One action agreed upon was a campaign to send handwritten letters to Dominic Perrottet, every day, leading up to the NSW Election in March.
To find out more about our advocacy work, contact: <a href="mailto:social.justice@vinnies.org.au">social.justice@vinnies.org.au</a>.