Help someone like Isla* start again with everyday essentials
When Isla* left an abusive relationship, she took only what she could carry. With two young children beside her, she arrived at a refuge safe—but with almost none of life's everyday essentials.
As she began rebuilding, every dollar went towards rent, food and keeping her family together. Shampoo, toothpaste, deodorant and soap quickly became items she simply couldn't afford.
Through a local charity supported by Good360 Australia, Isla received a package of brand-new hygiene essentials.
"It was one less thing to worry about," she shared, "Knowing someone cared enough to help us start again gave me hope when we needed it most."
For people escaping violence, recovering from disaster, experiencing homelessness or facing financial hardship, hygiene products are often the first essentials to disappear from the shopping list. Yet they help people stay healthy, feel confident and focus on rebuilding their lives.
Good360 Australia connects brand-new donated goods with more than 4,800 charities and disadvantaged schools across Australia, helping people access the essentials they need for a fresh start.
Your tax-deductible donation helps turn surplus into dignity and hope. Thanks to Good360's unique model, every $25 donated can help deliver one kit of hygiene essentials to people like Isla.
Together, we can turn everyday essentials into new beginnings.
*This story is inspired by real reports from Good360's charity members. Names and identifying details have been changed, with a stock image used to protect privacy.
5.5M
Australians live in hygiene poverty
43%
of Australians are worried they'll go without hygiene products in the next 12 months
26%
have redirected hygiene spending to pay for food and other essentials
69%
of charities don't have enough donated goods to meet local need
Why it matters
Behind every statistic is someone quietly going without.
Hygiene poverty isn't a lifestyle compromise. It's a basic need going unmet.
Nearly three in five Australians have started using smaller amounts, skipping days, or making do with homemade substitutes just to stretch their soap, shampoo or cleaning products further. It's one of the first things cut when a household budget is under pressure, and one of the last things anyone talks about.
The effects reach further than a bathroom cabinet. More than one in three people affected have avoided social situations altogether, felt ashamed, or stopped inviting friends and family into their homes. Nearly one in three have delayed a doctor's or dentist's visit to save money, and 14% have skipped work or a job interview because they couldn't access basic hygiene.
It isn't confined to people who are unemployed or already in crisis, either. Hygiene poverty now reaches well into middle-income Australia, affecting full-time workers, single parents, students, older Australians and people living with disability at rates well above the national average.
"I can't afford much, but this new face razor and shaving cream have given me confidence I haven't felt in ages."
- Recipient
"It's so good to get new hygiene products for free. Now I can use the money we saved for the utility bills that have risen in price."
- Recipient
"We didn't have enough money for new deodorant. I felt so ashamed showing up to school all smelly. I feel much better now."
- Recipient
Why hygiene kits?
Hygiene kits are an easy, affordable way to get hygiene products into the communities who need them most. Each kit funded is stocked with everyday essentials that are routinely the first things left behind at the checkout, enough for two people for a month.
Kits can include:
- Body wash
- Shampoo
- Conditioner
- Men's and women's deodorant
- Toothbrushes
- Toothpaste
Hygiene products consistently rank as the number one product need identified by Good360's charity network. Most charities report needing hygiene top-ups weekly or monthly, showcasing the ongoing need for the communities they support.
For businesses, philanthropists, and government
Fund hygiene poverty relief
at scale
Good360 is the only national charity equipped to procure and distribute hygiene kits at scale — reaching a network of over 4,800 charities and disadvantaged schools across the country. If your organisation wants to move beyond a single donation and back a lasting solution, we'd like to talk. You can support:
- Multi-year, flexible funding that lets us plan and deliver hygiene kits constantly, not reactively
- Procurement partnerships to close the hygiene poverty gap that donation-based models can't fill on their own
- Funding hygiene kits for disadvantaged schools and students aged 8-19
- Support for research and evaluation that builds the evidence base on hygiene poverty in Australia
- Investment in reaching remote, regional and hard-to-access communities
If you're a business interested in either funding or donating hygiene products, please reach out to us at corporatepartnerships@good360.org.au.
If you're a foundation or a government body looking to fund hygiene relief directly, get in touch with us at grants@good360.org.au and we can build a program around your goals and the national need for hygiene goods.
"The need in our community is rising fast. Requests for aid are through the roof. Domestic violence, homelessness, cost of living... it's all having an impact and means there is significant need across the community. The quiet period we normally get after Christmas just didn't happen this year, and demand hasn't let up since.
Donated hygiene items are absolutely vital to what we do. We distribute a few thousand toiletry packs every year, because hygiene essentials are often missing from care packs. For someone doing it tough, a pack of toiletries means they can stay clean and look after themselves while they're finding their feet and getting connected to the support they need. Even the mini items make a real difference, and every donated product helps us support more people."
Bayside Community Emergency Relief
The hidden cost
of poverty
Give goods. Fund goods. Restore dignity.
95% of Australians rate hygiene products as essential to health, dignity and confidence — on par with secure housing. Nearly four in five agree that no one should have to go without them. Help us close the hygiene poverty gap for the 5.5 million who currently do.
Real stories, real impact
Health and Hygiene Packs
With Good360, we created hygiene pack hampers for clients facing mental health challenges. Each pack included essentials like hand wash and toothpaste, along with a handwritten note of encouragement.
For some, it was the first time in a long while they'd felt cared for. One client, Michael, told us, "I hadn't felt this good in a long time." These small acts made a huge impact , helping people regain dignity, confidence, and the motivation to reconnect with others. The ripple effect was undeniable. As our clients began to feel better about their appearance, they started engaging more in social activities. The hygiene hampers, though smallin size, became a powerful symbol of hope, self-worth, and the beginning of recovery. It reminded them they mattered, and theyweren't alone.
Uniting (NSW.ACT)
Fighting Hygiene Poverty
With the cost of living reaching an all-time high, many families are struggling to afford household essentials, such as cleaning items. Hygiene poverty means having to choose food over essential hygiene products and families are choosing to forego buying hygiene and sanitation products. This impacts both physical health and mental wellbeing.
Thankfully, help is on hand to restore dignity and improve wellbeing for our families in these challenging times. Good360 and its donors have beenable to provide families with essential cleaning and household items. This month, we received eco-friendly bin liners and Chux multipurpose super cloths, making it easier for families to maintain a clean and healthy home.
Infinity Community Solutions Ltd
Incredibly Generous Donation of Whitegoods
The washing machines from Harvey Norman are already making a meaningful difference. One recipient is a 72-year-old woman who cares full-time for her two children with disabilities. We found out that she has been handwashing her family's clothes for over five years. When we gave her the machine, she repeatedly thanked us with tears in her eyes.
"I'm overwhelmed with gratitude. No one has ever stepped in to help me like this before, and definitely not with something as life-changing as a washing machine. I can't even express how much this means to me," she said. Your generosity has done more than provide practical help; it's restored dignity, improved wellbeing, and renewed hope.
Empower Australia
