The 123 Community Hub is a community meeting place for residents of Broken Hill, providing a range of beneficial services and activities that will strengthen the local community.
The 123 Community Hub was born after Home in Place staff in the remote New South Wales town of Broken Hill identified the neighbourhood around Creedon Street as a suitable location for a community hub due to its distance from facilities, and relatively high concentration of social housing.
The subsequent $100,000 conversion of a vacant Housing NSW property into the 123 Community Hub was funded entirely by Home in Place, as are the ongoing operations.
The hub was designed to reduce antisocial behaviour by offering positive lifestyle activities for local residents as well as serving as a central point for support agencies to provide outreach services. The benefits of the hub were felt immediately, with crime rates in the surrounding area plummeting and police call outs to the area declining sharply.
In addition to the reduction in crime, Home in Place staff members from Broken Hill also noted an increase in engagement with tenants. A large part of the successes of the 123 Community Hub stems from Home in Place’s understanding of the community in Broken Hill. Regular meetings are held by the Local Advisory Work Group, which includes tenant representatives and representatives from the local indigenous community.
Activities on offer at the 123 Community Hub include cooking lessons, quit smoking programs, Strive to Drive programs, art programs, after school activities, health screening, financial and budgeting help, women’s groups, deadly dads programs and legal and consumer advice.
The success of the 123 Community Hub has been recognised within the community housing sector with the facility picking up an Australian Business Award for Community Contribution, as well as an Outstanding Achievement award from PowerHousing Australia.
The Pantry
The Pantry at the 123 Community Hub in Broken Hill is an essential resource for individuals and families facing financial difficulty. It provides access to low-cost or free groceries, thanks to partnerships with organisations like Foodbank.
Open every Thursday from 10 am to 2 pm, the Pantry has become a vital support system for the community.
Modeled after the successful Pantry at Home in Place’s The Meeting Place in the NSW Central Coast, it ensures ongoing support for those who need it most.
The Pantry is located at the back of the hub at 123 Creedon Street Broken Hill and is open every Thursday from 10am to 2pm.
About FoodBank
Foodbank is Australia’s largest food relief organisation. Foodbank provides 77 million meals a year (210,000 meals a day) to more than 2,400 charities around the country. Some of the food that Foodbank distributes is past its ‘Best Before date, however, they worked with manufacturing partners to ensure that product is still safe to consume and the quality will not be unduly effected.
