In mid-2025, meetings conducted in seven regional cities and in South East Queensland heard directly from frontline workers, community sector leaders and volunteers in the sector. This report collates feedback and data to provide an overview of emerging and growing challenges for the sector. The results show a sector in need of support.

Despite being a critical service that provides immediate food relief and other essential items to those in acute need, emergency relief services are themselves experiencing precarity. To better understand this precarity of and the factors underpinning it, this research was conducted through a study into eight Uniting emergency relief services in Victoria and Tasmania.

Disability service providers face financial losses, policy uncertainty and unfunded burdens like crisis response with most unable to sustain services at current prices. This report warns without urgent structural reform the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS) risks losing quality providers and urges governments to ensure sustainable pricing and targeted support to secure disability services.

The community services sector in Australia plays an essential role in enabling individuals and communities to reach their full potential. However, the sector is experiencing increasing challenges in attracting and retaining workers. This research sought to understand the barriers and enablers of a sustainable workforce – focused on aged care and youth worker roles.

This scoping review of Trauma-informed Care and Practice (TiCP) resources was conducted to guide the development of the next generation of resources tailored to the community-managed organisations (CMO) sector in New South Wales. It identifies which elements of existing resources continue to offer value and relevance, ensuring future resources remain responsive to the evolving needs...