Staying at McAuley House Ballarat meant Mary* could finally rest after spending months moving between different motels and across Melbourne. or signup to continue reading The house in Ballarat is run by McAuley Community Services, which also runs a facility in Footscray. The Ballarat facility accommodates up to eight women who are or at risk of homelessness.
Despite the continuous calls for more housing support across the sector, each year McAuley has to secure funding to keep the doors open. Mary left her home because of family violence, and reached out to crisis accommodation for help. Before coming to Ballarat, she was .
Often she could only stay in one place for a maximum of two weeks before having to move on to another location, because of funding constraints. "It is not a good experience," she said. "You are lost, you don't know where you are and you are being pushed from one place to another.
" In the last year 19 women have stayed at McAuley House in Ballarat. Women can be referred through the hospital system, self-referral or by other organisations McAuley chief executive Jocelyn Bignold said once the women knew they were able to stay for a longer time period they were able to focus on other parts of their lives. This included having more time to get into long-term accommodation, improving their health, fitness and creating a sense of belonging in the community.
"Often they are absolutely exhausted when they get here and they can stop and rest and think about what it .