About Ruah
WA is our home and we know our community is keen to see everyone have a fair go. For some of us, the reality is very different.
At Ruah, we have been working with vulnerable people for more than 60 years. We have a bold and colourful history and are renowned for delivering practical, creative solutions for people experiencing homelessness, family and domestic violence and the challenges of living with chronic mental illness.
We partner with government, business and other health and welfare agencies to innovate, developing new evidence-based models of care and driving social change.
As advocates, we are reframing the narrative because we are passionate about ending – not just managing – complex social issues like homelessness, domestic violence, and the challenges and disadvantage attached to poverty and mental illness.
Our professional teams work with individuals at home and on the streets, run the Ruah Engagement Hub in Northbridge, the Kambarang and Harmony Place women’s refuges and other specialist support centres and mobile services across the State.
We passionately believe that:
- By working together we can end homelessness and domestic violence in Western Australia…and that means a better life for vulnerable people and enormous social and economic benefits for our whole community.
- Housing comes first because a safe, stable place for people to call their own is essential before they can address other challenges in their life.
- Being there when people need us – providing wraparound support that is caring, respectful and empowering – can break the vicious cycle of poverty and disadvantage. The evidence speaks for itself.
Our name
The name Ruah is an ancient Hebrew word meaning vital breath, wind, air and spirit. It was chosen in 2001 to honour the legacy of our founders, The Daughters of Charity, and it captures the spirit of the organisation we are today.
Our vision
Flourishing communities through the active participation, connection and wellbeing of people.
Our mission
To empower people to create meaningful change in their lives through providing quality support services, and transforming broken systems.
Our values
Respect | Integrity | Connection | Quality | Hope
How we work
Today, Ruah is an independent, not-for-profit community service. In the spirit of our founders, we are still taking bold strides to end poverty and social disadvantage.
Ruah operates more than 20 different programs that combine to provide wraparound support for our clients. Service delivery is integrated across our core focus areas helping people deal with the trauma of homelessness, family violence and chronic mental illness. We also provide legal advice, support, and advocacy in the areas of mental health law, care and protection, family and domestic law and homelessness.
Our hard-working and committed team of more than 200 staff is based across 11 locations in Perth, Geraldton and Albany They have a deep understanding and empathy, often based on their own lived experience, of the challenges life can throw at us, the hard road to recovery, and what it takes to build a new future.
Everybody’s welcome, everyone belongs
Ruah’s commitment to supporting and empowering disadvantaged Western Australians is built on deep foundations of spirituality, generosity, agility and foresight. We celebrate difference with a culture that is diverse and inclusive. We welcome people with disability and those from all different backgrounds. We work closely with our Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander and LGBTI+ communities and have built culturally appropriate supports with their guidance and support.
Quality assured
Ruah is a registered charity. We are also proud to be one of the first community service organisations in Western Australia certified to National Standards for Mental Health Services (NSMHS) and the National Safety and Quality Health Service (NSQHS) Standards. Find out what this means.
Funding
As a not-for-profit agency, Ruah relies on the generosity of individuals and organisations to deliver and operate our services. Most of our programs are funded by State and Federal Governments and philanthropic organisations. We would like to acknowledge and express our gratitude to our funders for their ongoing support.