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?

Western Sydney’s everyday heroes were in the spotlight at the 9th Annual ZEST Awards on 15 February, celebrating exceptional people and projects in the community.   Led by Western Sydney Community Forum with major partners Western Sydney University, National Australia Bank, City of Parramatta Council, and Wentworth Community Housing, the ZEST Awards showcase Western Sydney’s inspiring stories of resilience, strength and innovation. 

The Communities of Change Roadshows are underway, delivering key insights from the Communities of Change Report, throughout the local government areas of Western Sydney. The Roadshow sessions are an opportunity to ask questions and discuss the report with WSCF specialists and facilitators, specifically relating the data to current and future service delivery in local government areas. 

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.