Philanthropic Partners

MacKillop is grateful to The William Angliss (Victoria) Charitable Fund for its ongoing support of our Way Out There (WOT) program. WOT helps young people prepare to transition from residential care to independent living in the community. WOT also provides a 10-week practical life-skills education and mentoring program.

Thanks to funding from the Catholic Diocese of Ballarat Foundation, MacKillop will deliver a Paw Pals school holiday program to support local students struggling with school and learning. The program will be created to address increasing rates of school refusal, disengagement and/or disruption during classes, and learning challenges triggered by intellectual disabilities like ADHD and ADD.

Thanks to ongoing funding from the Dimmick Foundation, senior students attending MacKillop’s school at Geelong will receive additional support to enhance learning outcomes. The Foundation is a much-valued supporter of our education programs in Geelong.

Thanks to support from the Flora and Frank Leith Charitable Trust, MacKillop provides culturally-diverse supported playgroups in Melbourne’s western metropolitan region. The playgroups are a valuable early intervention service that supports vulnerable and disadvantaged families overcome language and cultural barriers and link them to important services such as maternal and child health support, Centrelink, early learning and other services when needed, including family violence assistance.

Thanks to funding from the Geelong Community Foundation and Perpetual Trustees (The Percy Baxter Charitable Trust), MacKillop Education will establish a therapeutic hub at its Geelong school. This dedicated space will be used by therapeutic and allied health professionals to offer accessible, safe, and non-judgemental support for families/carers, along with guidance on referral pathways. Importantly, it will also serve as a welcoming point of connection, helping to build a strong school community where families feel supported, engaged, and more likely to encourage regular school attendance.

Funding from the Give Where You Live Foundation will support the MacKillop School in Geelong school and its Bittersweet food truck to support local communities attending the Whittington Neighbourhood House, particularly those experiencing food insecurity. As part of the initiative, students will provide free soup to locals, supporting their community while developing a strong sense of social responsibility.

Australia has one of the highest child drowning rates in the world, with drowning being the leading cause of death and injury among children aged 0-5 years. MacKillop is grateful to O’Brien Real Estate Corporate for funding to support our foster carers cover the cost of swimming lessons for the children in their care.

Thanks to funding from Perpetual Trustees (The Percy Baxter Charitable Trust) and Geelong Community Foundation, MacKillop Education will establish a therapeutic hub at its Geelong school. This dedicated space will be used by therapeutic and allied health professionals to offer accessible, safe, and non-judgemental support for families/carers, along with guidance on referral pathways. Importantly, it will also serve as a welcoming point of connection, helping to build a strong school community where families feel supported, engaged, and more likely to encourage regular school attendance.

Thanks to funding from the Geelong Community Foundation, MacKillop Education will establish a therapeutic hub at its Geelong school. This dedicated space will be used by therapeutic and allied health professionals to offer accessible, safe, and non-judgemental support for families/carers, along with guidance on referral pathways. Importantly, it will also serve as a welcoming point of connection, helping to build a strong school community where families feel supported, engaged, and more likely to encourage regular school attendance.

Petstock Foundation has been a major supporter of MacKillop’s innovative Paw Pals program since it started in 2019. The canine-assisted education program supports at-risk children and young people to engage or re-engage in learning. With a therapy dog by their side, students are happy to head back to the classroom. Thanks to the ongoing support of Petstock Foundation, Paw Pals is now available for at-risk students in the the Melbourne, Geelong and Ballarat regions.

Australia has one of the highest child drowning rates in the world, with drowning being the leading cause of death and injury among children aged 0-5 years. MacKillop is grateful to The Phillips Foundation for funding to support our foster carers cover the cost of swimming lessons for the children in their care.

Funding from Queensland Gives has been used to develop and grow MacKillop’s innovative canine learning program, Paw Pals, to help disadvantaged kids re-engage with education.

Thanks to funding from the Rotary Club of Geelong East, the MacKillop School has been able to upgrade the generator for its Bittersweet food truck. The new, larger generator will help to improve Bittersweet’s operational reliability and efficiency.

Since 2017, students attending the MacKillop School in Geelong school have been a part of an exciting education initiative called the Bittersweet project. Starting as a small onsite café, Bittersweet expanded in 2024 with the launch of a mobile food truck. Funding from the Smartgroup Foundation supports the project to continue providing educational and work experience skills.

Funding from Trinity Families has supported MacKillop’s Strengthening Families Service program with assistance to support disadvantaged families living in the City of Casey and Shire of Cardinia.

Over the past couple of years, this funding has provided significant assistance for families struggling to access many community services due to financial hardship and current cost of living challenges.

Thanks to funding, families have been able to access specialist education support for their children; medical and dental bills assistance; emergency accommodation and food relief.