Emergency relief

The Emergency Relief program provides one-off emergency support for low and fixed income individuals and families, to help with costs such as paying bills, buying groceries or fuel.  

Emergency Relief is offered through an application process to ensure we can help as many people as possible with the resources available. 

Emergency Relief eligibility 

  • If you have accessed the program within the last six months, you will not be eligible to apply 
  • If you live in Greater Geelong, you are eligible to access Emergency Relief.
Refer to eligible postcodes below
3211  3220  3230  3321 
3212  3221  3231  3328 
3213  3222  3232  3329 
3214  3223  3235  3330 
3215  3224  3240  3331 
3216  3225  3241  3332 
3217  3226    3333 
3218  3227    3334 
3219  3228    3335 
  3229     
You are required to provide two forms of ID and proof of income (driver’s license, proof of age card, or passport) and one secondary ID (such as a Medicare card or Health Care Card)

How to apply  

  • Applications for Emergency Relief must be made via the application form button below. 
  • You will be advised by email if your application is successful or unsuccessful.  
  • If selected, you will be notified of your appointment details. ID will be required for your appointment.  

We understand that this may be a difficult time, and want to assure you that we are here to support you and the broader community with care, dignity, and fairness. 

Click below on the Emergency Relief form to start your application.

Emergency relief application form

Frequently asked questions

The program is designed to assist you once every six months. If you need ongoing support, we can help connect you with other services like financial counselling services, government concessions and grants, as well as other organisations that offer emergency relief and food relief. 

The application form will remain open 24 hours, 7 days a week.  You will need to apply each week.

The Emergency Relief process will be undertaken on a Tuesday and all applicants will receive communication to advise of the outcome of their application.

Apply again.  It is better to ensure application has been submitted and have a duplication than not have an application.

If you apply multiple times in the same period, the duplications will be removed as part of the selection process. 

Yes you can. Within the application, you can identify you do not have an email and still submit the application. Applications without an email will be identified and a phone call will be made to them to advise outcome.  

You can identify within the application a suitable contact number. If not a mobile, it will be identified and a phone call will be made to them to advise outcome. 

The applications are assessed using the eligibility criteria to ensure applicants meet all the requirements and then a computer generated random list is selected and reviewed by the Emergency Relief team before appointments are arranged. 

 

Barwon Region: 

St Vincent de Paul (Vinnies): 1800 305 330 

The Salvation Army: (03) 8873 5288 

Uniting: (03) 5278 8492 

Wathaurong Aboriginal Co-operative Limited: (03) 5277 004 

 

Warrnambool Region: 

The Salvation Army: (03) 5561 8444 

Catholic Care Emergency Relief -Call 1800 223 650 (Monday and Wednesday between 9.30am-11.30am)

Anglicare: 0458 750 351 

Winda-mara Aboriginal Corporation: (03) 5527 0000 

At your appointment, we will: 

  • talk with you about circumstances and what financial difficulties you’re experiencing 
  • discuss emergency relief support we may be able to provide – things like supermarket vouchers and help with household bills 
  • connect you with other services that may also be helpful, like financial counselling 

You must also provide proof of ID such as a driver’s licence or a Centrelink concession card to obtain emergency relief support. Prior to your appointment, please email your ID to emergencyrelief@meli.org.au 

In our program we offer supermarket vouchers via Giftpay and help with overdue bills that you’re having difficulty paying.  

Yes. We will make a time to call to speak with you over the phone. We can provide our emergency relief support remotely too – including sending supermarket vouchers via Giftpay to your email or phone. If it’s a bill, you can send a photo from your phone to from your phone to us or email it to us. Our focus is on providing remote help however we can. 

Not having a Centrelink benefit or Health Care Card doesn’t necessarily mean we can’t help.  

Further resources

Other local emergency relief providers are detailed below.

Barwon
Warrnambool and Colac region
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