Homeless get personal lockers and mailboxes at key Salvation Army site in Melbourne CBD

A new initiative supported by business and government will give Melbourne’s homeless access to facilities that most of us take for granted.

Rough sleepers in the CBD will have access to hundreds of personal lockers and mailboxes under a joint effort by government and private sectors to help the most vulnerable.

More than 150 lockers and about 170 mailboxes have been installed at the Salvation Army’s Project 614 centre in Bourke St, where most of the city’s homeless gather.

Australia Post, Collingwood Football Club and the City of Melbourne drove the initiative, which was delayed for several months due to heritage issues affecting works done at the Salvos building.

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Lockers have been provided for the homeless under an initiative started by Australia Post. Picture: David Caird

Australia Post chief executive officer Christine Holgate said the idea came from staff members who saw the plight of the homeless first-hand when going in and out of the organisation’s Bourke St headquarters.

“When you do have these people on your doorstep, it’s a really good community thing to do, these are our neighbours,” she said.

“They need a safe place to store things, they have to carry their belongings with them all the time.”

The Salvation Army Melbourne Project 614’s Phoebe Avenell and Major Brendan Nottle with the new mailboxes. Picture: Supplied

Ms Holgate said that letters sent to people with no fixed address could only be received via a single box at a nearby post office.

“Personal onsite mailboxes enable people in special circumstances to re-establish connections with family and friends, government and financial services, and accommodation, in a safe and secure place,” she said.

Lord Mayor Sally Capp, who included lockers for the homeless in her election manifesto, said rough sleepers often had nowhere to store their stuff.

“This often can mean people are left with no choice but to leave items on the street where it’s at risk of being stolen or collected with rubbish,” she said.

Australia Post CEO Christine Holgate.

Collingwood president Eddie McGuire said it was very hard getting back on your feet after losing touch with friends, family and basic services.

“What these new facilities offer is a connection; a way for those in need to reconnect or

stay connected with the community and the avenues to assistance they might require,” he said.

Salvation Army Major Brendan Nottle praised the way problems were solved in the city through co-operation involving business, police, community groups, government and the broader community.

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@JMasanauskas