Our Impact

In 2007, Jesuit Social Services and Catholic Social Services Australia commissioned ground-breaking research into place-based disadvantage across Australia.

The 2007 Dropping off the Edge Report succeeded in shaping government approaches to locational disadvantage and has informed many others working to tackle entrenched poverty.

The Jesuit Social Service proposal to update this research offered an opportunity to draw further attention to the locational nature of disadvantage in Australia, and to identify and learn from communities that have succeeded in bucking the trend or have turned things around.

Inequality and social disadvantage are important areas of focus for VFFF. This research calls for targeted responses that are relevant to community context and need, a position consistent with VFFF’s experience in place-based work. Dropping off the Edge 2015 shows clearly that complex and entrenched disadvantage is experienced by a small but persistent number of locations in each state and territory across Australia. The public release of the Report generated significant media coverage and public discussion around these important issues.