SYDNEY STREET CHOIR

The Sydney Street Choir was established in 2001 to support men and women who have, for a variety of reasons, found themselves homeless or at risk of homelessness. The Sydney Street Choir provides a therapeutic music program which promotes social engagement, independence and self-management. It is an innovative service aimed at restoring dignity to the lives of members of our community through music.

PAYCE Foundation supports the Sydney Street Choir in a number of ways. In addition to a multi-year funding arrangement, PAYCE Foundation has worked with the Sydney Street Choir board to develop a strategic plan and identify the organisation’s needs and future priorities.

One challenge identified by the board was its financial sustainability. With no recurrent funding secured, developing a business model that would sustain the organization into the future was a key priority. The Sydney Street Choir Corporate Challenge (SSCCC), launched in 2017, was a joint effort by the Sydney Street Choir and PAYCE Foundation to respond to this need. The SSCCC aimed to increase awareness around homelessness and its causes, improve the public profile of the Sydney Street Choir, promote the Sydney Street Choir’s corporate choir program and raise funds to support the organisation’s development.

The SSCCC encouraged corporate Australia to open its doors (both literally and symbolically) to the Sydney Street Choir and the issues of homelessness and social disadvantage. Participating corporate organisations formed choirs that rehearsed and ultimately performed with the Sydney Street Choir in a public performance in Martin Place during Homelessness Week. Each organisation did its own fundraising and to date the 2017 campaign has raised over $30,000 for the Sydney Street Choir.

SSCCC aims to become an annual campaign that will generate sufficient funds to support the sustainability and growth of the Sydney Street Choir