Through out 2025-26, we continued to create opportunities for women to build confidence, strengthen connections and develop leadership skills, while ensuring their experiences inform advocacy, influence policy and drive systems change. Through empowerment programs, storytelling initiatives and sector engagement, we amplified women's voices and championed their right to be heard, valued and represented in decisions that affect their lives.
As Patron of the Women's Housing Company, I am proud to support an organisation that is not only providing safe and affordable housing for women, but is also committed to ensuring women's voices are heard and valued in the conversations that shape our communities and our future.
Throughout my career, I have been passionate about creating opportunities for women to lead, influence and contribute. Through initiatives such as Her Voice, the George and Jaqui Maree Stamas Fellowship, and Scholarship Program, WHC is investing in the next generation of women leaders, supporting women with lived experience and emerging leaders to develop their skills, build their confidence and amplify their voices. These programs reflect a belief that women are not simply recipients of services, but experts in their own lives whose experiences and insights can drive meaningful change.
I congratulate the Board, staff, tenants and partners who have helped advance this important work over the past year. Together, we are creating pathways for women to not only access housing and support, but also to participate, lead and influence the decisions that affect their lives and communities.
$ +
In 2025/2026, WHC launched The George and Jaqui Maree Stamas Fellowship, a 10-week trauma informed, group-based program designed to support women who have experienced homelessness, domestic and family violence and prolonged instability. This fellowship aimed to rebuild confidence and take meaningful steps towards personal and economic independence. The program was delivered through a sequenced learning journey, intentionally designed to build confidence first, then clarity and finally future planning.
Throughout the 10 weeks 11 women engaged in weekly group sessions, individual life coaching, goal setting activities and creative storytelling. The goals of this program were to increase participants self-confidence and sense of personal agency, strengthen control over life decisions, improve clarity of personal and professional goals, build practical skills, reduce social isolation and foster meaningful peer connection and ultimately support pathways towards employment, education, volunteering or leadership within the community.
In its pilot year, the George and Jaqui Maree Stamas Fellowship was hugely successful, with results indicating consistent improvement across all outcome domains from program entry to completion with particularly strong gains in confidence, agency and social connection. The Fellowship will run again in FY2027.
Launched in partnership with The Hon. Ros Kelly in 2025, Her Voice provides a safe and supportive space for women with lived experience of housing instability, domestic and family violence and other significant life challenges, to reconnect with their voice, confidence and sense of self. Through this program, participants build communication skills, strengthen self-belief and become advocates for themselves and their communities.
In 2026/2026 Her Voice continued to demonstrate the power of storytelling to raise awareness, challenge perceptions and deepen understanding of the housing challenges faced by women. Through a series of events and partnerships, women’s stories reached new audiences, opening pathways for advocacy, collaboration and meaningful action, while reinforcing WHC’s commitment to embedding lived experience at the heart of our work.
Our Purposeful Pathways Program supports women to build confidence skills and a renewed sense of purpose as they recover from homelessness, housing insecurity and family violence. Through trauma-informed mentoring, career planning and personalised support, participants are encouraged to identify their strengths, set achievable goals and take meaningful steps towards education, employment, volunteering and greater independence.
"When Miranda first walked into Women's Housing Company for her initial appointment, she shared a simple but powerful concern: "I think I want to work, but I'm scared about how to start".
Arpita, WHC's Purposeful Pathways Coordinator, works alongside women every day as they rebuild confidence, reconnect with their strengths and take steps towards the futures they want for themselves.
Throughout 2025-26, WHC used its expertise, lived experience insights and sector influence to advocate for stronger investment in women’s housing and more gender-responsive policy. Through government submissions, industry engagement, conferences and collaborative partnerships, we championed housing solutions that recognise the unique challenges women face and promote safe, affordable and appropriate housing at every stage of life.
Housing systems are not gender neutral. Throughout the year, WHC continued to be a leading voice for women in housing policy and reform. We advocated for a housing system that recognises the unique ways that women experience housing stress, homelessness and housing insecurity. Our advocacy highlighted the needs of women escaping domestic and family violence, older women, women with disabilities, low-income workers and women with complex support needs.
Our key advocacy priorities included:
Our work gained sector recognition this year through award nominations and finalist placements that showcased programs addressing domestic and family violence, tenant empowerment, social inclusion, employment pathways and recovery from homelessness and trauma. These included Her Voice, Woollahra DFV Accommodation and Support Program, Purposeful Pathways and the George & Jaqui Maree Stamas Fellowship.
WHC was named a finalist at the Zest Awards for both Her Voice and Purposeful Pathways Program, recognising the value of holistic, trauma-informed programs that support confidence, education, connection and long-term independence.
The recognition provided valuable opportunities to showcase effective housing and support models, strengthen awareness of the need for investment in women-centred solutions, and build partnerships that support improved housing outcomes for women across New South Wales.
Through participation in sector conferences, policy forums, roundtables and industry briefings, WHC strengthened its voice in discussions shaping the future of housing and homelessness services. Our team shared insights and contributed to policy development in conversations across government, community housing, development and industry sectors, ensuring that the experiences and housing needs of women remain visible in policy and funding decisions.
A sense of purpose can be transformative. Through the Women’s Housing Company’s Purposeful Pathways program, women facing a range of personal, social and economic barriers are supported to build confidence, develop new skills and pursue education, employment and volunteering opportunities that help them achieve their goals. Arpita, WHC’s Purposeful Pathways Coordinator, works alongside women everyday […]
When Miranda first walked into Women’s Housing Company for her initial appointment, she shared a simple but powerful concern: “I think I want to work, but I’m scared about how to start.” Although she had always embraced opportunities with passion and dedication, Miranda carried the weight of a negative past work experience that had shaken […]
What starts as a simple craft session at Liverpool Women’s Health Centre often becomes the first step towards something much bigger for Women’s Housing Company tenants. Funded by Women’s Housing Company and hosted at Liverpool Women’s Health Centre, a weekly craft group provides a welcoming space where women can build confidence, form friendships and access […]
