15,000 students are waiting for sponsors.

Our Programs
- Literacy programs
  Providing resources and support to help children living with disadvantage achieve the required reading standard.
- Technology programs
  Providing children and young people living with disadvantage with the critical skills, access, and equipment they need.
- Numeracy programs
  We support early years educators and community professionals in building foundational math skills in children under their care.
- Learning for Life
  Providing holistic, long-term support for disadvantaged young Australians throughout their education.
- Mentoring programs
  Mentoring programs for students living with disadvantage that provide the encouragement they need to build aspirations for their future.
- Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander programs
  Our work engages Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities in learning through education, life skills and role models, promoting culturally responsive practice.
Our learning support and mentoring programs in 90 Australian communities directly help children in need achieve their goals through education.
View all programs
Get Involved
- Ways to fundraise
  Learn about fundraising and give back to the community with The Smith Family.
- Volunteer with us
  Share your skills to help Australian children in need transform their lives through education.
- Partnerships
  Learn how your organisation can partner with The Smith Family and help build a better future for Australian children in need.
- Careers
  We aim to provide a working environment where staff and volunteers have the opportunity to grow both personally and professionally.
- Events
  Participate in events and activities that support young Australians experiencing disadvantage.
- VIEW clubs of Australia
  Learn about VIEW, a leading women’s volunteer organisation and support network with over 16,000 members, across Australia.
Ways to Give
- Sponsor a child
  Through child sponsorship, you will be matched to an Australian child in need, helping to support the cost of their school essentials.
- A gift in your will
  Ensure that future generations of Australian children have the support they need to make the most of their education.
- Monthly donation
  Become a monthly donor and provide continual support throughout all stages of a child’s education.
- Philanthropic giving
  Through your philanthropy, you can ensure that young Australians impacted by poverty get the education that all children deserve.
- Single donation
  Your donation will help young Australians in need by providing access to our Learning for Life education support programs.
- Workplace giving
  Making small, regular donations to The Smith Family through Workplace Giving is an easy way to help change the lives of young Australians living in poverty.
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Become a sponsor

Mary reads a letter from her student.

I’ve been sponsoring him now for 4 years, he’s now 11. He’s just a normal kid. He loves his sport, computer games, his siblings. He’s got a spark – from his letters I can see he’s a sparky little kid. When I first started sponsoring him, he said he liked reading, so I sent him some books my kids like.

Mary, Child Sponsor for 4 years

In Australia today, 1 in 6 children¹ are living in poverty. When families are experiencing financial disadvantage there is often barely enough money for essential living expenses, so finding money for a school uniform, proper shoes, textbooks or the next school excursion is often impossible.

With access to fewer learning resources young people can disengage from their learning as they feel isolated from their peers and begin falling further and further behind at school. Without additional support the gap in their learning continues to increase, ultimately limiting their employment opportunities and overall life outcomes.

The cycle of disadvantage - family challenges lead to reduced educational outcomes for children, difficulty getting a job and overall life outcomes impacted

sponsorship australia poverty in australia elaine woman in blue floral top

It just made me feel so sad, that such a thing could happen in a comparatively affluent country like Australia.

Elaine, Child Sponsor for 8 Years

For $55 a month, your sponsorship combined with that of another sponsor, will provide a child with the learning essentials they need such as books, stationery and data, so they don't fall even further behind.

Our sponsors tell us how much they enjoy sponsoring an Australian child.

For many, it's the satisfaction of knowing they're making a real difference to the everyday life of a child here in Australia.

While for others we hear that over time they get to know their sponsored child. Gradually they learn more about what the child enjoys at school, their hobbies and maybe even what they want to be when they grow up. Reading a child's profile each year sponsors can see handwriting and spelling improve together with the child's confidence.

sponsor-a-child-berne-reads-welcome-pack — Child Sponsor, Berne reading an update from her sponsor child.

46,403 Australians have become child sponsors already, but we need more.

Many very generous Australians have already become child sponsors, but we must find more. We are urgently seeking more Australians to take that next step and sponsor a child.

For many young Australians already experiencing disadvantage, 2020 has been an extremely difficult year. With limited learning materials and digital resources at home, remote learning has proven very challenging. Research shows that remote learning during the pandemic is likely to have been more detrimental for children experiencing disadvantage in contrast to their more advantaged peers. According to the 2020 Grattan Institute survey, teachers estimate that disadvantaged children learned just 25-50% of what they’d normally learn in class, compared to 50-75% for children not living in poverty².

Without additional support they may never catch up and as this gap continues to widen their confidence will only decline.

School essentials

Financial support to pay for stationery, backpacks, shoes and a complete school uniform, as well as school books and extra-curricular activities like school excursions.

Local, personalised support

Your sponsored child will be paired with one of our Learning for Life Coordinators who offers support with their schooling and links them to local learning opportunities.

Access to additional learning support

Ongoing access to our out-of-school learning and mentoring programs to help students build the skills to thrive at school and beyond.

The Learning for Life sponsorship program recognises that disadvantaged children need extra support to stay at school and go on to further studies or employment.

So when a student is sponsored through The Smith Family, as well as financial assistance with purchasing school essentials, the student’s family is also paired with a Learning for Life Coordinator. The Learning for Life Coordinator offers students encouragement and support with their schooling; links students and their families to learning and mentoring programs in their community and helps children and young people to fully participate in their education.

Hear more sponsorship experiences

You helped turn on a light switch in Shelby's mind

Dedicated to making a difference

Claire is devoted to ensuring students aren't left behind

Tony was compelled to take action

¹ Poverty in Australia, 2020, ACOSS/UNSW Report.
²COVID-19 Catch up: helping disadvantaged students close the equity gap, Grattan Institute, June 2020.