The need
Rental stress, rising food costs and thin support networks push people to the edge quickly — and the gap between coping and crisis can be a single unexpected bill.
Sydney · Registered charity since 2015
When things are darkest, we’re the first light people can count on.
The Schaffa Foundation exists so that no one doing it tough in Sydney has to face it alone — starting with a hot meal, and never ending there.
Our impact
Sixteen years of turning up
Consistency is the whole point. These numbers are the result of showing up every single week, not of one big campaign.
100,000+
Hot meals served
Since 2009
52
Services a year
Every Sunday, without exception
16
Years of service
Started 2009, incorporated 2015
100%
Volunteer-run
No paid fundraisers
Our mission
Dignity isn’t conditional. It shouldn’t have to be earned back before someone gets a hot meal, a kind word, or a place where they’re seen.
Founded by someone who lived through homelessness himself, the Schaffa Foundation meets immediate need with practical, consistent care — and builds the kind of community that keeps showing up long after the first crisis has passed. Street Buffet, our weekly Sunday service, is where that standard was set. Every program we build from here is held to the same one: turn up, every time, with no judgement and no questions asked.
Why it matters
The pressure people are under
Homelessness and food insecurity in Sydney are not fringe problems. These are the conditions the people at our tables are living with.
How we respond
A hot meal, groceries and essentials, every Sunday at Woolloomooloo. No forms, no assessment, no proving you deserve to be there — a seat at the table is the starting point.
How you help
Every dollar, every donated tray and every Sunday shift goes to something you could point to on the table that night. Support flows through Street Buffet, our flagship program.
Donate now →
Turn up, every time, with no judgement and no questions asked. That is the whole standard. Everything else we build has to meet it.
How we work
Four things that don’t change
Consistency
The same standard, every time — because the people relying on us shouldn’t have to wonder if we’ll show up.
Dignity
No forms, no assessment, no proving you deserve help. Support here is never a reward for being deserving enough.
Community
Volunteers, local businesses and neighbours doing the actual work, alongside people — not a program run at them.
Practical action
Every dollar and every donated hour goes to something you could point to — a meal served, a shift covered, a need met.
From the table
What a Sunday actually looks like
Volunteers, local businesses and neighbours — the people who make the standard possible, week after week.
More from every service on Instagram.
What we run
One flagship program, and room to grow
The Foundation is young, and we’d rather do one thing properly than several things half-heartedly. As we grow, new programs will be built on the same standard — not launched ahead of it.
Flagship program · Since 2009
Street Buffet
Free hot meals, groceries and essentials, every Sunday at Woolloomooloo. Run by volunteers, backed by local businesses, open to anyone doing it tough — no questions asked.
Interested in partnering with us on a future program, or have an idea worth exploring? Get in touch — we’re building this deliberately, and early conversations shape where we go next.
Registration & governance
A registered charity you can verify independently
Every detail below can be checked directly against the public record. This page is built to be a single reference point for funders, partners and grant assessors.
Registered Australian charity
The Schaffa Foundation is registered with the ACNC and its reporting is up to date.
Verify on the ACNC register ↗
Registered Charity
ACNC · ABN 54 612 158 755
Tax Deductible
DGR endorsed · gifts $2+
Independently verified. Our charity status has been confirmed by the ACNC, endorsed as a Deductible Gift Recipient by the ATO, and approved for Microsoft’s nonprofit program.
Additional documentation — governing rules, financial reports, or anything a grant or partnership application requires — is available on request via our contact page.
Help us keep showing up
Every dollar, every donated tray, every Sunday shift keeps the standard going. Support flows through Street Buffet, our flagship program.