The Albanese Labor Government is supporting communities across Australia to be strong and resilient.

Assistant Minister for Social Security, Ageing and Women, Kate Thwaites, and Federal Member for Robertson, Dr Gordon Reid, today met with the FunHaus Factory in Gosford to hear firsthand about the YAAS – Young, Authentic and Social – arts and culture pilot project for local youth.

FunHaus Factory have received $538,572 through the Strong and Resilient Communities (SARC) program, which is supporting young people across Australia through community-based projects that encourage greater social participation and reduce isolation.

The project supports young people in the Central Coast to overcome isolation, encourage participation, develop personal skills and build a sense of belonging through participatory opportunities in creative and inclusive contemporary workshops, events, performances, and celebrations.

Assistant Minister Thwaites said, “The Albanese Labor Government is proud to support the FunHaus Factory to deliver the YAAS – Young, Authentic and Social – program right here in Gosford.

“Organisations like FunHaus Factory do great work in their local communities, supporting young people to get involved and build a sense of belonging in their community. That’s why our Government has invested close to $45 million in supporting strong and resilient communities since 2022.”

Dr Gordon Reid MP said, “The FunHaus Factory do amazing work supporting our Central Coast youth, and I look forward to this new round of funding helping even more people in our region thrive.

Creative Director, Glitta Supernova adding “YAAS! (Young, Authentic, and Social) is today a nationally acclaimed, innovative award-winning youth program that owes its existence to vital federal support. This backing has empowered marginalized youth on the Central Coast through ongoing creative and community-focused initiatives.

Since its launch, YAAS! has expanded across the coast, directly impacting hundreds of young people and enabling partnering across multiple schools and leading organisations. Primarily serving youth aged 12-17 whom identify as LGBTQIA+, First Nations, living with disabilities. YAAS! has fostered game changing measurable and meaningful impacts across youth confidence, community connection, and overall wellbeing. 

This ongoing government support ensures that marginalised young regional people can thrive, have safe spaces, build real friendships, and gain life-long resilience skills, ultimately we are together creating a more inclusive and vibrant future for Central Coast youth to succeed either locally or globally as valued, confident participators in society.”

Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth said organisations funded under the Strong and Resilient Communities (SARC) grant program deliver targeted services to help build capacity at a local level.

“Our Government is committed to building strong and resilient communities, and to helping Australians who need a little extra support,” Minister Rishworth said.

“To build stronger and more resilient communities we need to invest where there is the most need and the opportunity to make the biggest difference to the future
of community members.”

“We know that the successful organisations are well placed to help some of our most vulnerable, including young people, people with disability, unemployed people, First Nations Australians and women.”

The funding builds on the Labor Government’s record to help Australians doing it tough when they need it most, including:

• providing every Australian taxpayer a tax cut
• increasing Commonwealth Rent Assistance for nearly one million households
• boosting funding for emergency and food relief services, along with financial counselling
• extending the freeze on deeming rates for 876,000 income support recipients.

More information about the SARC Activity is available on the Department of Social Services website.