Building community health, wellbeing and connection
By addressing health, social, and cultural needs, our community programs are changing lives and celebrating Darebin’s diversity. Here are three of our community projects. Building connections through cooking and eating together, sharing skills and knowledge, and strengthening ties to culture and community, each project has made an impact. Designed and led by the participating community members, these programs have seen friendships formed, healthy habits created and better health and wellbeing outcomes for all involved.
Eat Well Live Well
Eat Well Live Well saw local voices, shared decision-making, and strong neighbourhood connections come together to improve health and wellbeing in the community. Supported by Darebin City Council, the program was led by Your Community Health in partnership with Neami National, Housing Choices Australia and DIVRS.
A co-design group of residents and partner organisations shaped every element of the project. Together, they created monthly shared lunches, the Find Free Food in Darebin map, a recipe book of their favourite dishes, and a walking group that reclaimed local streets as safe, inclusive spaces. These activities supported healing, belonging and personal growth — even inspiring a 96-year-old to become a kombucha-making expert!
Sharing their experience of the project, participants spoke about the knowledge they gained on good health and nutrition, as well as the physical and health benefits they felt. They shared how they had gained confidence and were more socially connected, with the regular project meetings and activities giving them chances to build relationships. The project also helped them learn about other local community organisations with services that could support them.
Our Place Our Purpose
For over three years, Our Place Our Purpose was a beacon of connection and inclusivity in East Preston and East Reservoir. Led by Your Community Health in partnership with DIVRS, and supported by Darebin City Council, the project was guided by a 14-member community advisory committee from two neighbourhoods. Their insights shaped and informed all project initiatives
Over the course of the project, Our Place Our Purpose hosted 1,100 outreach activities, made 400 health and wellbeing service referrals, and completed 21 co-designed initiatives to tackle racism and social isolation by strengthening neighbourhood bonds.
Some of its most important initiatives include the:
- Let’s Talk Money workshop, helping women understand budgeting, banking, tax and more
- School Cooking and Connection Program bringing families together for hands-on cooking sessions, nutrition workshops, and tips for cooking nutritious meals and preparing healthy lunchboxes on a budget
- In Her Shoes: Women in Darebin Unmasking Racism, a video co-designed with courageous local women who shared their personal experiences to highlight the devastating impact of racism
- Colours of Unity Parade, which saw 85 community members take part in performances celebrating their Somali, Sudanese, Vietnamese, Filipino, Mandarin-speaking, Palestinian, Syrian, Ethiopian and Lebanese cultures.
Our Place Our Purpose strengthened social connections and wellbeing, and boosted community capacity to address discrimination. All participants shared that they felt more connected, belonging, cultural appreciation, wellbeing, and enjoyed the opportunities to lead local projects. The key initiatives mentioned above fostered cultural pride and helped participants feel more confident seeking local services. A long-term, co-designed, and culturally safe approach proved essential in building trust, amplifying women’s leadership in diverse communities, and promoting inclusion and empowerment.
Naarm Tiddas Aboriginal Cooking Group
In a warm, supportive and culturally sensitive space, Naarm Tiddas gave Aboriginal women an opportunity to co-design a practical cooking class project through yarning sessions with YourCH staff. The women’s knowledge, skills, passions and ideas were integral to shaping the project: they chose the recipes they wanted to learn, shared their own recipes and cooking skills, and shared stories about food and family. Each session was a celebration of culture and community. The women explored a mix of familiar and new recipes, sometimes incorporating bush foods like saltbush from our wulempuri barring garden. Sessions on food education were included too, covering topics like common food allergies, freezing foods safely, identifying ingredients from the ‘Glow, Grow and Go’ food groups and understanding the unit costs of processed food.
In the final celebration session, the women were presented with aprons and a recipe book with all the resources from the education sessions. Reflecting on the project, the women involved said they felt more confident to explore available and unfamiliar ingredients, and better able to make food choices that improve their health. However, the biggest benefit of the project for them was social connection. As one participant wrote, the highlight was ‘being part of the sisterhood and forming new friendships’.
The program was a partnership between our Aboriginal Health, Community Programs, and Dietetic teams. We are now looking at opportunities to continue Naarm Tiddas in future.
