Since the budget announcement on Tuesday night, I have been reflecting on what all this means for the community and human services industry, and more importantly for the people of Western Sydney that we support. On budget night, I saw a shift in the national narrative with the Government’s approach to people experiencing vulnerabilities. I saw a shift in how income support and rental assistance was viewed, that it is a security safety net for times when people are in need and at times of crisis.

As I tuned into the NSW Government’s Budget 2020-21 announcement on Tuesday, I couldn’t help but hold a level of anticipation. Amid recent announcements that Australia is facing a recession, I needed to know as I scanned the influx of media announcements – was Western Sydney going to be a ‘winner’ in this year’s budget?

The NSW Government released its much-anticipated Budget this week. I was excited. We had the recent signing of the Western Sydney City Deal. We saw a strong public discourse of governing ‘with heart’.  And we have an election(s) looming. I was excited and keen to hear how this would all play out in reality, to get to the heart of priorities across Western Sydney and beyond, in NSW. What I found is that this Budget, in the main, begins to address some of the infrastructure priorities of the region but has some considerable way to go before it gets close to being a Budget that will foster, sustain and improve community wellbeing and liveability.

Joint Media Release St Vincent de Paul Society NSW and Western Sydney Community Forum Parramatta, 23 May 2018:  The release of a major report on the changing landscape of Western Sydney reveals important insights which could impact future planning and investment in community health and wellbeing. The ‘Communities of Change: Western Sydney Now and Into the Future’ report, a collaboration between Western Sydney Community Forum and St Vincent de Paul Society NSW, highlights areas of potential shortfalls in investment and service delivery.

WSCF CEO Billie Sankovic was a panellist at Catalyst West this week, in a collaborative event which brought together  350 representatives from government, industry and the community in discussions that focused on the region's future over the next 20 years. Delivered by Western Sydney University and event sponsors, this collaborative forum opened the floor to a number of distinguished speakers, thinkers and innovators, driving discussion and provoking thought on ways to positively direct potential, during the anticipated growth period projected for western Sydney.

Nepean Food Services (NFS) is thriving community service, providing meals and social support for our aged people and people living with disability. Based in Sydney’s Greater West they have a service reach that extends much further inland and across Sydney. The organization is widely recognized for its excellence, and was inducted into the Western Sydney Community Forum’s ZEST Awards Hall of Fame in 2015. Ditte Kozak is the Manager at NFS and has worked with the organization for 25 years.