SunnyKids is a children's

charitable organization A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, Religion, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definitio ...

on Australia's

Sunshine Coast, Queensland The Sunshine Coast is a peri-urbanisation, peri-urban region in South East Queensland, Australia. In 1967, it was defined as "the area contained in the

ormer Abalone ( or ; via Spanish , from Rumsen ''aulón'') is a common name for any small to very large marine gastropod mollusc in the family Haliotidae, which once contained six genera but now contains only one genus, ''Haliotis''. Other commo ...

Shires of Shire of Landsborough, Landsborough, Shire of Maroochy, Maroochy and Shire ...

. The organization helps accommodate women and children escaping

domestic violence Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes r ...

and

family violence Domestic violence is violence that occurs in a domestic setting, such as in a marriage or cohabitation. In a broader sense, abuse including nonphysical abuse in such settings is called domestic abuse. The term "domestic violence" is often use ...

History

The organization was founded in 1998. By 2003, SunnyKids was providing 7000 nights of accommodation per year, 75% to children, many representing the third or fourth generation of their family to live in refuge. Although 75% of people living with domestic violence in Australia are children, government practice has been to support only adults, viewing children as "accompanying" their parents. The logic behind this idea is that if the parent is helped, any dependent children will also have benefited, and therefore children do not require direct service. Between 2003 and 2009, SunnyKids developed integrated support systems and child-focused programs. During this time accommodation provision grew to 10,000 nights per year At this time, the organisation began to gain a national profile as its services and programs won recognition in multiple award programs. SunnyKids annually provides over 10,000 nights of emergency accommodation, 75 per cent of which is for children. Government subsidies are primarily directed towards supporting parents. Child specific supports are funded through donations and fundraising.SunnyKids/QLD State Government Service Agreement

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sunnykids, The Children's Charity Children's charities based in Australia Non-profit organisations based in Queensland