Ardoch Closure 

After 36 years of operation, Ardoch is closing its doors on December 20th.  

In 1988, Ardoch started as a charity that supported homeless youth to stay in school. Over time, we evolved. We expanded into providing breakfast, books and resources, then, as more organisations stepped up to provide these, we shifted into providing programs. These included programs to support literacy, numeracy, creativity, wellbeing and exploring career pathways, as well as excursions for children and young people who would otherwise miss out. We worked closely with our school partners to find and deliver programs that aligned with curriculum and reflected what the students needed. 

 We were fortunate to receive funding from the Victorian and Federal Government at times, but mostly the hundreds of thousands of children Ardoch was able to support has been because of philanthropic, corporate and individual support. Ardoch brought together volunteers, funders, schools and young people to create some remarkable change.  

We cannot express how much we have appreciated your support.  

The unfortunate reality we face is that Ardoch has been experiencing significant financial difficulties, which have been brought about for a range of different reasons, some longstanding, some more recent, but not from any wrongdoing. The Board considered many different options for the organisation’s future but, unfortunately, decided to wind down the organisation at the end of the year, rather than continue into 2025 and risk further shocks in a constrained fundraising environment. After Ardoch’s long and impactful history, this is not a decision the Board made lightly.  It is especially difficult because the needs have never been higher.   

We are continuing to deliver all our 2024 programs, as planned, until the end of the year, motivated by the desire to have as much impact as possible before we close our doors.  

 The good news is that some of our programs will continue with other organisations. EdConnect Australia has committed to continuing our Education Volunteer, Literacy Buddies and Numeracy Buddies programs. We are in promising discussions with other organisations who may be interested in continuing with some of our other programs.  

We are grateful to EdConnect and those orgainsations for creating an opportunity to continue the Ardoch impact and legacy.  

 We are grateful for your generous support and the wonderful working together to help children and young people experiencing disadvantage to realise their potential through education. We hope you can continue to shine the light, with EdConnect and other organisations, on future possibilities for these students.   

If you would like to know more, please take the time to look at this video.