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Children & Youth Charities

Supporting young Australians is one of the highest-impact areas of giving — early investment in education, safety and wellbeing creates lifelong change. This guide helps you find the right charity for your values.

About this cause

Australia is generally a great place to grow up — but significant disadvantage persists. Children in low-income families, regional and remote communities, and out-of-home care face steep barriers to education, health and opportunity.

Charities in this space cover a huge range of work: from early childhood programs and school support, to child protection, mentoring, housing for young people, and international child welfare.

What to look for

  • Age group: Early childhood (0-5), school age (6-15) and youth (15-25) often require different types of support — check which age group a charity focuses on.
  • Evidence of impact: Look for charities that track educational outcomes, employment rates or family stability — not just activity counts.
  • Child safety: Any charity working directly with children should have robust safeguarding policies — check their website for a child protection policy.
  • Local vs international: Both matter — decide whether you want to help Australian kids or children overseas.

Find your best match

Answer two quick questions to narrow down the right charity for you.

Q1. What type of support for children and youth matters most to you?
Q2. Where do you want your donation to have impact?

Our curated picks

Education
The Smith Family is Australia's most effective education-focused children's charity. Their flagship Learning for Life program provides long-term scholarships, tutoring and mentoring to disadvantaged children. Outstanding evidence of educational outcomes — one of the best-run children's charities in Australia.
🏢 Large🌏 National💛 Highly donation-funded
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Education + Protection
Save the Children works both in Australia and overseas — supporting early childhood education, child protection and disaster response for children. A strong choice for donors who want broad impact across education, safety and emergency response for children globally.
🏢 Large🌏 Australia + 100+ countries💛 Donation-funded
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Child protection
Barnardos specialises in supporting children who have experienced abuse, neglect and trauma — providing foster care, family support and therapeutic programs. If you want to help Australia's most vulnerable children, Barnardos has over 130 years of experience and strong outcomes data.
🏢 Large📍 NSW and ACT🏛️ Government + donations
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Youth housing
Kids Under Cover tackles youth homelessness by building studios in family backyards — giving young people at risk a safe place to stay close to home. A highly innovative model with a strong evidence base for preventing youth homelessness. Donation-funded and highly transparent.
🏢 Small📍 Victoria focused💛 Highly donation-funded
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Opportunity + Equipment
Variety helps children who are sick, disadvantaged or have special needs by funding equipment, experiences and programs that make a difference. Their grants support thousands of children and families each year across every state. Community-funded and deeply embedded in Australian giving culture.
🏢 Medium🌏 National💛 Highly donation-funded
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Want to explore more children and youth charities — filter by state, age group or approach?

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