West Welcome Wagon is pleased to share that we have received funding from Sustainability Victoria on behalf of the Victorian Government.
The funding enhances our ongoing sustainability efforts in rehoming preloved goods to asylum seekers and refugees living in our community in Melbourne’s western suburbs. The project is supported by the Circular Economy Communities Fund delivered by Sustainability Victoria under the Victorian Government’s circular economy plan, Recycling Victoria: a new economy.
The Circular Economy Communities Fund provides $5.4M in grants to support local community groups, social enterprises and other not-for-profit businesses working to reduce waste and improve recycling.
West Welcome Wagon was one of 39 successful projects in the second round of the Circular Economy Communities Fund.
Funded projects focus on waste reduction by sharing, repairing and re-purposing through community initiatives, which will help boost Victoria’s economy through local circular economy projects and the creation of new jobs.
What exactly will the funding support?
It will help support the ongoing costs essential to West Welcome Wagon services, including the employment of a warehouse coordinator, operation and maintenance of our delivery vans, contributing to rent for our warehouses and general overheads. These are all necessities to ensure our work can continue for those in our community who require West Welcome Wagon’s support.
Through generous donations from members of the community as well as businesses, the preloved items are stored in our warehouses before we can match them to a household. The unique system of West Welcome Wagon ensures that we only accept goods that we know our community members will require. This helps to reduce waste and ensures that all recycled goods will be rehomed.
About West Welcome Wagon
West Welcome Wagon is a volunteer-run not-for-profit dedicated to providing material aid and support to asylum seekers and refugees in Melbourne’s west. We assist over 600 active households of newcomers in need from over 30 different countries, providing them with good quality donated items such as furniture, bedding, clothing, children’s toys, appliances and kitchenware.
West Welcome Wagon is continuing to grow through the generous help of volunteers in the community, so find out how you can get involved too!
