Appeals play a crucial role in supporting youth homelessness services by helping secure vital funding. Donations help to provide shelter, support, and therapeutic care for young people and children experiencing homelessness and/or trauma. Your support through our annual appeals directly contributes to creating safer futures for vulnerable youth. Together, we can make a real difference.
Annual Appeals
Donate to help us provide therapeutic care to Victoria’s most vulnerable young people.
Simple, Secure Giving That Makes a Real Impact
previous appeals
After losing both parents, Jamilla migrated to Australia as a young girl, hoping for a better future with extended family. Instead, she was subjected to something no child should ever face. Confined to a home, forced to carry out chores for hours on end, denied proper food and healthcare, Jamilla was a teenage girl living in modern slavery.
One day, Jamilla confided in a schoolteacher and reported the abuse she was experiencing, which included an overseas trip being arranged against her will, a planned forced marriage. Australian Federal Police stepped in following a report from Jamilla’s school, and they connected her with Lighthouse’s Young Women’s Freedom Program: the only program of its kind in Victoria. The young Women’s Freedom Program began in 2018 to support girls experiencing and at risk of forced marriage, modern slavery and other forms of gender-based violence.
At the age of 16, Maggie never imagined that she would ever be at risk of homelessness. Sadly, repeated patterns of family violence saw her life change forever, and her world fell to pieces.
She was referred to Lighthouse’s therapeutic program and was welcomed into her new home. She slowly began to heal with the help of Lighthouse’s Care team and Clinicians. The trajectory of her life began to slowly change.
How Your Donation Supports Youth Homelessness Initiatives
Lighthouse Homes are dedicated residences where young people live and are supported Therapeutic Lighthouse Carers and the wider Lighthouse Care Team. These homes offer a nurturing and supportive environment for children and young people.
The Lighthouse Model of care (LMC) is a treatment approach that sees, recognises, and responds to complex features in young people. It integrates trauma-informed practice, attachment theory, and contemporary psychoanalytic theory to create a holistic therapeutic treatment environment in which the mental and physical wellbeing and social and emotional capacities of young people in Lighthouse homes are developed and enriched.
Lighthouse recognises that community is essential to the wellbeing of young people, and that connecting a young person to community creates spaces to develop their social skills and a sense of belonging. We offer two community support programs: Community Connect and On For Life.
Donate today
In Australia, youth homelessness is a pressing issue, with over 45,000 children, babies and young people without a safe home on any given night. Homelessness not only affects young people’s immediate well-being but also negatively effects their education, employment opportunities, and mental health.
Become a Lighthouse Keeper
By becoming a regular giver, you’ll join our incredible group of ‘Lighthouse Keeper’ supporters. Your ongoing donations ensure that our life-changing programs can continue and that we can keep our homes open, all year round.
Giving $15
Giving $15Can help provide fresh groceries and essential supplies for a Lighthouse home.
Giving $50
Giving $50Can provide a welcome backpack (toiletries, socks, underwear and a teddy bear) for a new young person moving in to our care.
Giving $100
Can provide counselling and group therapy to help our young people process the trauma of homelessness.
Lighthouse Foundation is also a deductible gift recipient (DGR). The minimum tax-deductible donation amount to Lighthouse Foundation is $5.
Your personal data will be used to process your donation, support your experience throughout this website, and for other purposes described in our privacy policy.
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Help us to break the pattern of youth homelessness in Australia.
Thank You For Helping Lighthouse Foundation End Youth Homelessness
In the words of our Founder, Susan Barton AM, “Children don’t heal in systems, they actually heal in communities. Lighthouse Foundation is a supportive community that provides vulnerable young people with the time and space, and support for them to heal and thrive.”
Our heartfelt gratitude extends to all who have supported the Lighthouse Foundation’s cause. Your support fuels our mission and provides vulnerable young people with the essential support and care they need to heal and thrive. Together, we can break the cycle and end youth homelessness forever.
At Lighthouse Foundation, we offer support, guidance, and homes to vulnerable young people.. Your contribution matters—consider donating to our youth homelessness charity to help vulnerable young people heal and thrive and break the cycle of homelessness forever. today.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is youth homlessness?
Youth homelessness is the experience of young people, typically aged 12 to 25, who lack stable and secure housing.
Who is Lighthouse Foundation?
Lighthouse Foundation transforms lives, supporting vulnerable children and young people to overcome adversity through our holistic, evidence-informed Lighthouse Model of Care. We’re here to ensure children and young people who have experienced homelessness and/or trauma have a safe place and the therapeutic relationships they need to heal, grow, and thrive.
How prevalent is youth homelessness in Australia?
Right now, in Victoria, over 7,600 young people are experiencing homelessness. Australia is facing a heartbreaking rise in homelessness, with 1 in 7 individuals affected being under the age of 12.
Is my donation tax deductible?
Yes! Lighthouse Foundation is endorsed as a Deductible Gift Recipient, meaning all donations over $2 are tax deductible
What exactly are Lighthouse Keepers?
Lighthouse Keepers are our regular givers. This involves an automatic debit from their nominated bank account every four weeks. The support from our regular givers ensures that the lights are on in our homes, all year round.
How does donating to Lighthouse Foundation end youth homelessness?
By donating to Lighthouse, you’re ensuring that we are able to continue providing our life-changing programs to youth at risk of, or experiencing, homelessness.
How else can I get involved to Lighthouse Foundation?
There are many ways to get involved with Lighthouse Foundation – we are always looking for volunteers for our Community Committees, as well as community fundraisers ready to take on a challenge and corporate partners to help support our mission.
