Mimi’s House, a social venture in the Moreton Bay area, has become the first Queensland venture to be included in the Social Ventures Australia (SVA) venture philanthropy portfolio.

Year 12 attainment in Deception Bay is lower than in the rest of Queensland (33% vs 80%). Students are also meeting the National Minimum Standard (NMS) in their year 3 and 5 NAPLAN results at a lower level than other suburbs, and youth unemployment is very high at 17.6%. Up to 5% of children in Queensland schools are categorised as red zone, meaning they are highly vulnerable and at risk children of falling through the school system.[i] SVA is seeking to address disengagement from learning of highly vulnerable and distressed children through its funding and support of Mimi’s House.

Mimi’s House, a program of Hope Centre Services, is an early intervention program that supports primary school aged children at risk of falling out of the school system, to re-engage with school and learning through skill building activities, discussion, mentoring and nurturing. By creating a safe and calm environment, the program fosters confidence, emotional regulation and re-engagement with learning.

These children, who are finding it difficult to develop emotionally, socially and academically at school, often present with high levels of anxiety, difficulties concentrating and engaging in class. The causes include intergenerational trauma, home environments that produce toxic levels of stress, poor nutrition, sleep deprivation and poor personal hygiene.

The program provides children with the aspiration and hope for a better future and aims to break the cycle of welfare dependency. Approximately 50% of the children in the program are Indigenous and/or Pacific Islander, with the remaining children from low socio-economic families.

SVA CEO Rob Koczkar commented:

SVA is delighted to be working with Mimi’s House, a fantastic Queensland initiative that has already supported over 150 children since its inception in 2012. We are looking forward to working with the Moreton Bay community to tackle some of the serious social problems that exist.

Commenting on the venture philanthropy portfolio, Rob said:

Our venture philanthropy portfolio enables funders to have access to outstanding social ventures, and allows them to amplify their impact with sector wide collaboration. By understanding the philanthropic, impact and business goals of our partners, we can create positive social outcomes. We have more initiatives in the pipeline and we will continue to work with our partners in Queensland to fund these high impact ventures and to help people in need across the state.

The venture philanthropy partnership with Mimi’s House was announced at an event in Brisbane, where guests heard from Grant Austin, Mimi’s House Co-Founder:

The partnership with Social Ventures Australia provides a fantastic opportunity for our Mimi’s House team to assist the children and families of the Moreton Bay region in an even greater way. It will enable an instant increase in care from the beginning of 2017 and allows a strong foundation to be built for the future.

Mimi’s House will use the funding to expand its services to full capacity, operating five days a week; expand its family support offering to ensure the families also receive the necessary care; and expand the second year mentoring program, which ensures continuity of support for children post the Mimi’s House program. Pending positive outcomes results, they endeavour to replicate the model into other disadvantaged communities. The program aims to support 50 vulnerable children per annum with SVA’s support, an additional 20 children per year from its existing operations.

The SVA venture philanthropy services enable a community of engaged philanthropists to support high impact social ventures that improve the lives of people in need in Australia. The venture philanthropy portfolio has raised over $50 million in philanthropic funding, and has worked with over 80 ventures to build capacity and develop high impact models. The focus areas include access to great education, pathways to fulfilling jobs, social and affordable housing, and working with First Australians.

[i] NAPLAN 2015 Outcomes, Moreton Bay Education – School Completion, Australian Social Trends March 2011 Year 12 Attainment and How to adopt a school-wide approach with PBL