With 200 neighbourhood houses across the state in danger of closing, the Echuca Neighbourhood House has joined the fight for more funding.

Neighbourhood Houses Victoria is funded by the Victorian Government through the Neighbourhood House Co-ordination Program.

However, many houses are struggling to provide services due to increased community need caused by cost-of-living pressures, while having to deal with cost increases themselves.

Through its ‘Keep our doors open’ campaign, NHV is calling on the government to increase the NCHP by $11.7 million.

Echuca Neighbourhood House manager Sarah Peake said she and her team were no strangers to the financial pressures of keeping their doors open.

“We have to find funding basically just to keep our light switches on and pay our water bills and our food bank program, that’s not even funded,” she said.

“We had an issue, I think it was April last year, where we were only three (or) four weeks out from having to shut the doors because funding is incredibly tight.

“We’re not at that point now where we’re about to shut up our doors or anything, but that’s why the Echuca Neighbourhood House is pushing this campaign so hard.

“Without this increase in money ... there’s a lot of houses, us included, that may not be able to keep their doors open.”

Of the 401 houses in Victoria, there are 25 that don’t receive any funding and 75 per cent of the houses that do receive support are only funded for 25 hours or less.

NHV data shows that for every dollar of funding received from the state government, communities benefit to the tune of $21.94.

Community members are encouraged to show their support by filling out postcards sharing why the houses matter.

Postcards from around the region will then be delivered to state Member for Murray Plains Peter Walsh in December, in a bid to take their message to parliament.

Ms Peake said the local community had already begun to rally behind the cause.

“I think it’s really important that the government recognises how essential neighbourhood houses are,” she said.

“The campaign's been running for one week and already half of our postcards have been filled out, and some of the messages that are on those postcards just really hits home as to why neighbourhood houses are essential in communities.”

To support Neighbourhood Houses Victoria in continuing to deliver much-needed services, community members can visit Echuca Neighbourhood House to fill out a postcard.

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Saturday, 30th October 2027

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