Lismore took a huge step towards housing a good proportion of its homeless population from early January 2026, when the nearly $4 million hub officially opened on McKenzie Street, near Lismore Square, on Wednesday.

NSW Minister for Housing and Homelessness Rose Jackson, Minister for Recovery and Member for Lismore Janelle Saffin, Lismore Mayor Steve Krieg and Social Futures CEO Tony Davies cut the ribbon and toured the new 54-room facility.

The old Fromelles Manor RSL retirement facility has been part of Lismore's history, from squash courts, a private hospital, to an aged care facility and now a homeless hub that will provide much-needed crisis accommodation for individuals and families experiencing housing insecurity and homelessness in Lismore and the Northern Rivers. 

As we know, the state government has been spending large amounts of money on housing those sleeping rough in motels throughout Lismore. This new Lismore hub offers a greater chance of helping people transition into permanent housing. It is a collaboration between the NSW Government and Community Housing Provider Social Futures, supported by more than $1 million in funding from the Homelessness Innovation Fund (HIF) and $2.9 million in funding through the Commonwealth’s Crisis and Transitional Accommodation Program (CTAP).

The hub features 54 self-contained en-suite rooms, alongside a range of communal spaces, including a playroom for children, interconnecting rooms for families, and private consultation rooms. If needed, families can live in a separate wing in the hub.

(A single room in the new Lismore homeless hub)

Fourteen of the 54 new rooms are dedicated to women aged 55 and older, which is the fastest-growing group of people at risk of homelessness in NSW.

Tony Davies said that 20% of the state's homeless are in the Northern Rivers and explained why older people are experiencing increased homelessness.

"We're seeing increasing numbers of older people. So, older women over 50 are definitely around the country, the fastest-growing group of people who are experiencing homelessness. Something we have seen is increasingly elderly people, well into their 70s and 80s, who are also losing rentals.

"What we've sometimes seen is that people had a long-term affordable rental. Then the property might be sold, and the new owner will put the rent up to the current market rate. And for some of these people that have been living there in their community for decades, they lose their rental, they might be faced with the rent to stay where they are is equal to their pension. So we're seeing that definitely single older women who are surviving on pensions, and even elderly couples. So it's a growing issue."

There has been concern about the new facility being in the middle of a residential area, with immediate neighbours supportive of the concept but cautious as to the outcomes and how it may affect their lives.

Ella Buckland's house backs onto one of the new common rooms. Ella is hopeful that the new homeless hub delivers in exactly the way that was explained to her by Social Futures.

"It hasn't opened yet, but I don't know how I feel about it yet. I think that there's an element of not in my backyard that I had momentarily when I heard of it. But obviously, I'm not sort of ideologically opposed to something like this.

"However, they've been great during the whole process. Really open with their communication. I've requested that there's a fence, obviously, to protect my daughter's privacy in the backyard. I have requested that the security cameras are turned inward and the lights don't shine in our house.

"They've agreed to those terms for all of us, the local residents. Barry showed us through and talked a lot about his other facility and how great that was working, so I am hopeful that it lives up to its promises. If it doesn't, Barry will hear from me."

Why will the homeless hub be a success?

This facility is purpose-built, so it offers all the wraparound support new residents will need to transition them into permanent housing, unlike motel accommodation, which only offers a roof over people's heads.

"What we wanted to do was find a way to break the cycle, so we'll be providing wraparound support. People will come in here, they'll have a safe place to stay, and we've already seen with the service we're operating in South Tweed, you can just see people relax once they know they're safe, that they're not worrying about getting through the night without violence. Are they going to have to be protected?

"So, that wraparound support includes case managers to help them deal with any Centrelink issues, any debt issues, to help get them onto the public housing waiting list, or to reconnect with family, to get the medical support, and might be mental health support and the other support team needs. And what that does is it creates a foundation so that people are actually able to get back into the workforce, get some income, and actually get back into housing," Tony Davies explained.

Minister Rose Jackson said, "So we're talking 24/7, on-site support. We're talking life skills. There's kitchens and laundries where people can learn how to look after themselves and live independently. There's case workers who can work through people being on the public housing waiting list, accessing mental health services if they need, accessing substance abuse services if they need, there'll be counselors and other people to work through people who might be experiencing mental health challenges or some sort of anti social behavior issues to help them regulate that better and be able to permanently and stably support themselves.

(A communal area and the kitchen)

"Because that's the goal here. What we want to do is say, okay, something's going on in your life, and you've ended up experiencing homelessness. We're going to give you that roof over your head in a stable, supported, secure environment, and then let's talk through what's led you to that situation and start systematically resolving those issues, whether they're mental health, whether they're substance abuse, whether they're financial issues, gambling addiction, all of that will be identified and then people be connected in with services that can respond to their individual needs."

What is the biggest challenge?

Tony Davies said that one of the biggest challenges will always be securing long-term housing. There have been some good signs from the facility that Social Futures is operating in Tweed; they are getting people moving roughly in equal numbers into private rental and into public housing.

Therein lies the biggest challenge: the lack of housing, either private or public.

As we know, there are a limited number of private rentals in the market, and those that are available are out of reach financially at $600 plus a week. The 50 Build to Rent properties in East Lismore are 12 months away from being completed, everything going well, with a percentage allocated to affordable rents.

Public or social housing is also not in plentiful supply. Homes NSW has been redeveloping two sites in East Lismore, building 16 units on Caldwell Avenue and Walker Street, and another 6 units on Dibbs Street. Social Futures is currently redeveloping another housing site in Goonellabah, Phillip Street, moving from an established 7 units to 16, with a mix of social and affordable housing.

The Lismore App has heard that Homes NSW will also be involved with the new North Lismore development, now that the state government has finally purchased the land. That means there will be a social housing component.

"All of the Homes New South Wales engagements do deliver a social housing outcome. We're looking for absolutely every opportunity that we can. We've actually got the largest pipeline of social housing in a regional area here in the Northern Rivers and the north coast. So we're really focusing on this. We've already seen some new homes coming online in Lismore and surrounding areas, and there absolutely will be more to come over coming years," Minister Jackson said.

The lack of housing options means the transition process will be slow, so residents may well find themselves using the homeless hub for longer than ideal.

"The reality is, we are able to support people for extended periods here. We don't intend it to be permanent housing. We're looking for those long-term solutions through social housing, but there's no cut-off, there's no cap, there's no Well, you've done your time, here's the door.

"The support that's available on site is meant to work through. Some people will maybe only need a little bit of support. That's great. Some people might need to stay for a little bit longer, and that's okay too," Minister Jackson stated.

Between now and early January, the offices that will be used by the wraparound services will be completed and the first residents will move in soon after.