The TOP 10 BEST Community Services in Lake Illawarra NSW

Shellharbour Hospital was officially opened in January 1986 and is located 24km south of Wollongong in the Illawarra and Shoalhaven Local Health District. The hospital is a busy acute care facility which provides emergency services, elective surgical services, general medical, antenatal and primary family health care, satellite renal dialysis and adolescent and adult mental health services on site. It is an accredited health care facility with the Australian Council on Health Care Standards (ACHS) and is recognised as providing a high standard of care to the community. Shellharbour Hospital (Class C1) is a 197 bed facility providing a comprehensive range of inpatient, outpatient and community-based services. The inpatient services include aged care, medical, surgical, mental health and acute medical assessment inpatient beds, plus a Day surgery Unit. The operating suite performs mainly low risk general, laparoscopic, gynaecological, ophthalmic, dental and minor orthopaedic surgery. Outpatients services include: Infectious Diseases Clinic, Dental, Renal, Pre admission and anaesthetic, Cardiology Clinic (including stress testing), Occupational Therapy, Physiotherapy Clinic, Speech Pathology, Respiratory Clinic, General Surgery Clinic, Antenatal Clinic, Geriatric Clinic, Pulmonary Rehabilitation, Asthma Clinic, Plastics Clinic, Diabetes Clinic. Shellharbour Hospital plays a role in the Northern Illawarra Hospitals Group Bed Management Policy by providing services and support to the other hospitals in the hub to enhance patient flow. This hospital is fully accredited by the Australian Council on Healthcare Standards (ACHS).

Ability Options provide employment and disability services. We support people who need assistance to achieve their aspirations and inclusion in the community. We operate services to support people with disabilities and those whose lives are changed as a result of accidents, unemployment and disadvantage. Our disability services support people with accommodation, respite care, support co-ordination, community services and therapy. Our employment services assist job seekers, including parents, indigenous communities, school leavers and people with disability to find work and maintain work. We pride ourselves on delivering a person centred approach which emphasises the individual's right and opportunity for choice and self-determination, empowering people to achieve their aspirations and goals and to live life to their full potential.

At Happy Breeze, Occupational therapy (OT) is a healthcare profession focused on helping individuals participate in the activities of daily life (occupations) that are meaningful and important to them.Our mission is to empower individuals of all ages to lead independent, fulfilling lives by providing personalised therapeutic solutions that focus on enhancing physical, emotional and cognitive well-being.

Afford provides disability accommodation and housing, community connection, disability supports and employment services so that people living with disability can live the lives they choose and feel and be connected in their communities. Our impact also goes beyond our delivery of services – we partner across the sector to ensure the voices of people with disability are heard and valued. Afford is one of Australia’s largest and most established disability service providers, with a 70-year history of working with our clients, their families and carers to achieve their goals, be empowered to make great choices and realise opportunities and aspirations in life and work. We offer Supported Independent Living (SIL) solutions, Short-term accommodation (STA), Community Services and Employment Services, including DES and SLES. Afford also provides NDIS Support Coordination and Allied Health.

Youth service providing programs and activities for young people

Dads4Kids is a harm prevention tax-deductible charity founded 1 May 2002, with a mission to turn the tide of fatherlessness. The Dads4Kids Weekly Email Newsletter was launched on Father’s Day the same year, and it continues to this day. Research shows that the Dads4Kids weekly newsletter is the largest, longest-running weekly fatherhood email newsletter in the world. We have reached tens of thousands of men with the message of excellence in fathering. In August 2002, Dads4Kids inaugurated a National TV Community Service Ad Campaign to encourage and inspire Aussie dads. These Excellence in Fathering Campaigns run by Dads4Kids have continued on TV every year, garnering tens of millions of dollars in free advertisements, and have been seen by 21 million Australians, in some cases hundreds of times.

Aged Care Services & Support.

At Elouera Home Support, we are passionate about making a difference in the lives of our clients and their families and providing dependable and personalised in-home support services. Our story began with a simple desire to give back to our community and support those in need of care and companionship. As we witnessed the challenges faced by families caring for their loved ones, we knew that we had a responsibility to step up and provide meaningful and compassionate support. With this goal in mind, we started Elouera Home Support in July 2022 with a commitment to delivering high-quality home care services that our clients could rely on. As we grow and expand our services to better meet the evolving needs of our clients, our mission remains the same – to provide dependable and personalised in-home support services that promote a better quality of life for our clients and their families. Today, we are proud to be a positive influence in our community, supporting people to live healthier, more fulfilling lives, and to remain connected with their community. We are grateful for the trust and confidence that our clients and their families place in us, and we remain committed to providing personalised, compassionate care that makes a real difference in their lives.

SAHSSI is a not for profit Specialist Homelessness Service supporting vulnerable women and families in the Illawarra and Shoalhaven regions In October 2014, two Women’s Refuges merged to create Supported Accommodation and Homelessness Services Shoalhaven Illawarra (SAHSSI). SAHSSI has over 30 years of continuous experience, primarily working with women, with or without children, affected by homelessness or domestic and family violence. We are constantly seeking innovative strategies that will enable us to provide a clear and effective pathway for those using our services to live healthy, connected and productive lives in secure, long term accommodation. SAHSSI is a local organisation supporting local women. Responsibility for the governance of the organisation rests with our management committee, comprised of individuals reflecting a skilled and diverse cultural mix relevant to our organisation’s local needs. SAHSSI is also a registered charity with the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC), and a Registered Community Housing Provider.

Southern Youth and Family Services (SYFS) is an independent community-based charitable organisation located in South Eastern and Southern NSW covering Illawarra, Shoalhaven, Eurobodella, Bega Valley, Goulburn Mulwaree, Queanbeyan Palerang and areas of Snowy Monaro. Our primary purpose is to relieve the poverty, misfortune and distress of children, young people, adults and community members who are disadvantaged, homeless or at risk of homelessness.

Wollongong Youth Services (WYS) is an organization in Wollongong, New South Wales, Australia that is dedicated to supporting and empowering young people in the local community.

Core Disability Network was established in early 2020. We saw how the big NDIS providers were treating their participants and their staff and knew we could do better. From humble beginnings, we have grown to become a well known provider of disability support services . Locally owned and operated, our staff are on the ground in our locations. We believe that supporting participants is at our core, so all of our staff work closely with clients at all levels within the organisation. Our staff are made up of individuals with backgrounds in education, health and community services. All of our staff undergo regular training to ensure we remain up to date with best practice.

Illawarra Multicultural Services (IMS) is a non-profit, community-based organisation that provides information and help to migrants, refugees, humanitarian entrants and those who are of culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds living in the local government areas of Wollongong, Shellharbour, Kiama, Shoalhaven and Wingecarribee. Our services are confidential and free of charge. Here at IMS, we can assist you in your own language using interpreters.

Bolsta Fundraising develop innovative digital products for volunteer communities to make fundraising easier, fully compliant and most importantly, more profitable.

Welcome to Wollongong Botanic Garden! We officially opened to the public in January 1971. Visit us to explore amazing open spaces, learn about conservation and sustainable living, or just relax and take in some of nature’s finest work.