StreetSmart was founded by Adam Robinson in 2003. It was while working at a small youth service in Dandenong, in the outer suburbs of Melbourne, he gained first-hand experience of the vital work of grassroots organisations, embedded in their local communities, and the many barriers to funding that they face. The aim of founding StreetSmart was to play the unique role of simultaneously raising vital funds for these important smaller local organisations, strengthening them through collaboration and connecting them to their community and helping break down inaccurate prejudices about people experiencing homelessness. To date StreetSmart has supported over 1000 community partners and we still operate at a local, grassroots level to fund critical services. Adam is still part of the team at StreetSmart.
All about StreetSmart
We believe no one should be without a safe and secure place to call home.
We Believe
We believe everyone should have a safe and secure place to call home. It is a basic human right. Ending homelessness will take a whole of community response.
We Empower
Through innovative campaigns we enable and empower communities to raise vital funds and awareness to bring about change for people experiencing homelessness or at risk.
We Support
We keep it grassroots, we keep it local. We seek out, support and partner with small organisations and projects, in the communities where funds are raised.
Our Start Up Story
Supporting Grassroots Services
The team at StreetSmart believe everyone should have a safe and secure place to call home. Funds raised through our innovative campaigns are distributed through our Community Grants and Material Aid Programs, often privileging locality where donations are fed back into projects as close to where they are raised as possible, and target smaller services who work to support people experiencing homelessness.
At StreetSmart, for the past 20 years, we have championed and supported local grassroots organisations. We know local leaders, volunteers and community groups are best placed to identify what support their communities need, and have solutions and mechanisms in place that work for them and their community. They are the lifeblood of so many suburbs, towns and regions and play a critical role in creating caring and resilient communities.
We see the role of StreetSmart as a supportive ally for those on the frontline of service delivery to the most vulnerable in our community. These front-line services are often under-resourced, have limited fundraising capacity and find making formal applications for funding challenging. We support these organisations to plug funding gaps, run core programs and enable them to innovate and test new ideas. We listen to their ideas and needs and support them to deliver critical services and change. Collaboration and listening are core to our community impact and we deeply respect the vital work of frontline workers.
We Believe
Status: StreetSmart Australia is a Public Benevolent Institute with DGR 1.
National Board
of Directors
Barry Moore (Chair)
Jennifer O’Donnell (Treasurer)
Katarina Throssell (Secretary)
Adam Robinson (Founder / Board member)
Damien Farrell (Board member)
Anna Lyons (Board member)
Siba Diqer (Board member)
Staff
Members
Geoff Hills
Isabella Stanley
Liz Bayrak
Cynthia Mac Caddon
Benjamin Bugeja
Adam Robinson
Geeta Buttery
Sustainability & Social Impact
At StreetSmart our team supports all 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals and believes in the power of community to make the goals a reality. We are playing our part in creating the world we want to live in.
We want to use our work and our influence to advance human rights, protect the environment, uphold labour standards, end corruption and be a force for good.
Importantly, our grant making directly contributes to the aims of thirteen of the SDGs. To find out more click here.
Acknowledgement of Country
As an organisation that operates from inner Melbourne, we acknowledge the peoples of the Kulin nation, the Traditional Owners of this land. We pay our respects to their Elders, past and present. StreetSmart delivers our work on unceded land across Australia which always was, and always will be, Aboriginal land.
As an organisation that works to bring about change for people experiencing or at risk of homelessness, we believe that First Nations peoples are unacceptably over-represented among those who experience housing insecurity. StreetSmart believes in supporting First Nations led solutions to homelessness. Read our full statement and learn more about how our work supports First Nations led Organisations.
Sponsors and Partners
The work of StreetSmart Australia is made possible through the vision and financial support of a number of private philanthropists, corporate partners and pro-bono partners.
Whistleblower Policy
View our Whistleblower Policy HERE
Grant Making
StreetSmart plays a unique role in the homelessness sector providing funding and support for smaller community-based and grassroots homelessness and community services. Please read our full Grant Making Guidelines HERE
Work for us
There are currently no positions available.