The Wellness Program at Ashwood High is designed to provide support to students who are having difficulty ‘fitting in’, not attending school regularly and at risk of failure. ABSCI support enables the school to employ a school chaplain to work as part of a team of three people who provide critical support to such students, and the Breakfast Program provides a safe place each Friday morning for students to connect and enjoy pancakes, and an informal setting for the Wellness Team to also connect with students.

ABSCI has been partnering with a local primary school for over fifteen years to support the Kids Hope Program. This program develops and supports 1:1 mentoring relationships between ABC trained KIDS HOPE AUS mentors and children selected by the school to be in the program. The Kids Hope ministry takes the form of weekly meetings throughout the school year and each of these mentoring relationships are in turn supported by prayer partners. Donations to ABCSI fund the annual registration for Kids Hope and incidentals through the year like supplies for cooking or art projects.

Kids Hope is a registered ChildSafe program and aims to meet or exceed national mentoring benchmarks.

Ashburton Baptist’s Houses of Hope program provides secure transitional housing and a caring, supportive welcome to some of the most marginalised and vulnerable people in our community: asylum seekers. Since 2016 our church has, in partnership with Baptcare, set up and supported three houses for asylum seekers. Baptcare provides residents with professional casework support and a team of church volunteers helps connect residents to the local services they need for food and material support, schooling, healthcare and social connection.

Situated next to the church at 11 Marquis Street Ashburton, Elsie Salter House provides day respite care to people experiencing early dementia, enabling their at-home carer to take a break. The house was established by the Ashburton Baptist community in 1991 and operated directly by the church, through ABCSI, until 2007. Since then it has been run by Samarinda Aged Care Services (BASScare), with ABCSI making the homely facilities and inviting garden available to Samarinda.

The Community Care Group has been operating for more than 50 years and co-ordinates projects that provide practical assistance to the community. Through donations to ABCSI, we are able to (1) pack generous food hampers in winter and at Christmas for Camcare to distribute to local needy families, (2) create food parcels which are offered by our Pastors to people seeking urgent assistance at our Church, and (3) provide regular monthly deliveries of non-perishable groceries for the Uniting Church’s ‘Care and Kindness Pantry’ which is located in Ashburton. These initiatives help address the growing problem of food insecurity in our local community.

To find out more, download the 2023-24 ABCSI Annual Report