Emergency Relief

Support is available for people with immediate and acute financial needs, such as emergency accommodation, food and travel assistance.

We provide support for individuals facing immediate financial hardship, offering assistance with food and travel.

Our emergency relief service also includes referrals to social and emotional health services at Nunkuwarrin Yunti, as well as information, referrals, and advocacy for services provided by other agencies.

Types of assistance

The following are examples of the types of Emergency Relief assistance that we can provide to people in need:

  • Funeral transport assistance through either Traveller’s Aid or other funding (criteria apply).
  • Support to connect with housing advocates for external housing options.
  • Advocacy services to help negotiate with utility companies.
  • Essential material support, including food and clothing.
  • Provision of toiletries and personal hygiene supplies.
  • Referral and brokering services to address the underlying causes of financial crisis, such as financial counselling.

All of our emergency relief support is dependent on resources available.

Support not provided by Emergency Relief

  • Payment of any type of fines and infringement notices (parking fines, traffic infringement notices, including speeding fines etc.)
  • Payments to any type of lending agency or pawnbroker to retrieve goods (Cash Converters etc.)
  • Cash payments

If you are linked with Alcohol or Drug Support Case Worker, you may be eligible for support to manage your fines. To find out more visit the Know Your Options website.

Criteria for assistance

Funding is limited so we must be careful to ensure support is provided to those who are most in need.

Below are some considerations that determine whether, or to what extent, we can provide assistance:

  • We prioritise exceptional and unforeseen circumstances that are outside of the control of the client and that require immediate assistance, or where funds are not able to be sourced from another agency.
  • Assistance can be refused on the basis of evidence of previous assistance within a reasonably short time frame.
  • You can access the service every three months, unless there are unforeseen circumstances that requires urgent support.

How to access Emergency Relief

If you’d like more information about our Emergency Relief service you can:

If an Emergency Relief worker is not available when you call or visit, they will try to meet with you or call you back within 24 hours. Thank you for your understanding. We’re working to assist everyone we can, and prioritise providing thorough and personalised support.