A Refuge Renewed

The kitchen and living area were the rooms most recently painted at the refuge, which is a crisis accommodation and intensive case management service for men aged 25 and over, many of whom take up residence there after finding themselves in the vicious cycle of homelessness. Residents can call Liverpool Men’s Centre home for up to three months, while they engage with specialist supports and endeavour to secure more stable housing, with one-on-one support from their case managers continuing after they move out.

Habit for Humanity have steadily been working their way through the property at regular intervals since 2019, mobilising groups of volunteers to undertake home and garden maintenance, ensuring every resident who comes through the refuge feels welcome and safe. Like the Society, Habitat for Humanity believe that a well-cared-for environment and support from community are foundational in assisting a person through their recovery from homelessness, trauma, and displacement.

Together, the Society and Habitat for Humanity have formed a mutually rewarding, practical collaboration. Nofa Winterstein, the Society’s Manager of South West Support Service,  said, “It is much more than a home improvement project. We see how it inspires dignity and respect among the men. Not only do they benefit from improved facilities, but they also see goodwill and care shown to them by their community in a time of need.”

Ms. Winterstein has served at Liverpool Men’s Centre for 10 years, and throughout the Habitat for Humanity partnership, her team have delighted in welcoming volunteers, keen to give back, to the refuge to paint, build, and tend to the gardens. Both parties joyfully witness how this ongoing project that revitalises the space positively impacts residents and volunteers.

Of Habitat for Humanity, Ms. Winterstein said, “We have a great working relationship and understanding. The way Habitat for Humanity go about their volunteering with us is very uplifting, not only for our service and the people who stay here, but also for the volunteers. Both our organisations share the belief in giving people a hand-up, not a hand-out.”

Perhaps it is this common ground that makes the partnership such a good fit. The Liverpool refuge is just one of the Society’s accommodation services making an impact in the south-western Sydney area. The NSW Government’s annual street count found there was a 75% growth in the number of people sleeping rough in this region between 2023 and 2024, and the dominant but under-reported form of homelessness, people living in severely crowded dwellings, is rapidly increasing. 261 people were assisted by Liverpool Men’s Centre between July 2023 and June 2024, with 56% of those people known to be in stable accommodation, such as public housing and the private rental market, by the end of their support period.

With the refuge’s upkeep and regular TLC provided by Habitat for Humanity, Ms. Winterstein’s team focuses on providing important specialist services to help vulnerable people out of their crises, including sustaining tenancy, a soft-entry skills hub and drop-in support for basic needs.

For Habitat for Humanity's volunteers, the opportunity to serve people experiencing hardship provides more than a sense of fulfilment, though this is certainly one of the benefits. Peak body, Volunteering Australia, produced a 2021 research report, ‘Evidence Insights: Volunteering and mental health’, in which it is indicated that the key mechanisms linking volunteering to better mental health are social interaction and sense of purpose.

Volunteering in community creates opportunities for social interaction, and evidence suggests that giving support to others is a particularly beneficial form of social connection. It creates a positive emotional state and replaces stress-causing emotions, such as anger and loneliness. Volunteering Australia’s 2024 report also discusses the ‘wellbeing dividend,’ and states that because volunteering improves wellbeing and supports social cohesion, the rate of volunteering is a powerful indicator of the wellbeing of communities.

With good health being enjoyed by the community at Liverpool Men’s Centre, the Society and Habitat for Humanity plan to replicate their project in the Society’s neighbouring services in south-western Sydney, expanding their approach to uplifting spaces and people. Once the staff office is completed at Liverpool, Habitat for Humanity will move onto St. Jude’s Refuge in Bankstown, helping the Society welcome single men and couples experiencing homelessness into a safe and dignified shelter, where hope may be recovered.

Seeking help? Contact Liverpool Men's Centre and St. Jude's Refuge by phone (02) 9822 4903 or email shsliverpool@vinnies.org.au