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| See you after the Easter break! | From the whole team here at NECCHi Neighbourhood House, we hope you have a wonderful break over the Easter holidays, and we look forward to welcoming you back in Waring Wombat Season.
We'll be closing our doors for the first week of the holidays, from Thursday 2nd of April, and reopening on Monday 13th of April.
Drop by Newlands and say hi, pick up a program postcard, and grab a brew from Brewlands cafe.
Below are some highlights from this Waring Season Program, with a number of exciting new additions to be announced over the coming weeks. Stay tuned! |
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 | Weave 'n' Yarn: A First Nations Harvesting and Weaving Workshop with Georgia Boseley A new hands-on workshop series exploring the art of weaving, led by acclaimed artist Georgia Boseley. These sessions offer participants the opportunity to learn the traditional Aboriginal practice of basket weaving, an art form deeply rooted in both everyday function and storytelling. Traditionally woven by Aboriginal women, baskets have long been used for gathering food and carrying essential items. Beyond their practical purpose, weaving is also a cultural practice that fosters connection, creating space for yarning, sharing knowledge, and strengthening community ties.
For more info about the workshop, visit the NECCHi website. | |
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 | Rose's Little Seeds Afternoon Playgroup is now Offering Casual Passes! Our New Afternoon Little Seeds Playgroup is a perfect way to socialise, play, and learn with your little one after their midday nap!
Join our wonderful facilitator, Rose, on Tuesday afternoons at the Newlands Neighbourhood House for a range of engaging activities, all set up and ready for you!
Little Seeds offers a fantastic opportunity to connect with other local families while building, engaging in sensory & imaginative play, doing fun craft activities and sharing snacks!
For Waring Season, we're offering a few places to Casual passes, with the option to purchase a pro rata ticket throughout the term. | |
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 | De-Stash! Repurposed Textiles Craft Mornings at East Coburg
Join us at the East Coburg Neighbourhood House on a Monday morning for the De-Stash Textiles group.
We're a collection of locals who are interested in repurposing unused textiles into new clothes, art projects, and fun crafting items.
Bring along those precious fabrics you've always wanted to shape into something useable, and any UFOs (Un-Finished Objects) that have been lingering in your cupboard - it's time to de-stash!
This is a peer led group, where skill sharing and collaboration is encouraged - but we're not teachers, just enthusiasts.
There'll be a morning tea and small chatter platter to gather 'round, and plenty of sewing machines to take advantage of, courtesy of the East Coburg House. The De-Stash sessions are free for community who have a NECCHi Membership. | |
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 | Community Film Nights in the Newlands Garden
With the help of our Gardening Team, NECCHi will be bringing the silver screen to the community gardens at Newlands.
Join us in Waring Season for a limited series of film screenings that explore nature, the climate crisis, and the work of community activism, drawn from film festivals and closed collections.
BYO camping chair, snacks, and your favourite tea, and settle in to an evening of films curated by some of our wonderful volunteers and community members, as well as talks by local collectives and community organisers.
Stay tuned for announcements about upcoming dates, and if there's a film you're interested in seeing (and that isn't already publicly accessible) please get in touch with programs@necchi.org | |
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 | Shapes & Vessels: Handbuilding Ceramics Class with Chris Ellis
Shapes and vessels is a 4 week course in hand building with clay. We will use a variety of hand building techniques to assemble a vase, a vessel, or a sculpture by stacking and joining spheres, cubes, triangles and cylinders we make. The class is a playful approach to hand building. Each week, we will meet for 2.5 hours and will cover: Hand building, assembling/joining, the firing process, and decorating and glazing. Materials and tools will be provided, just bring yourself! | |
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 | Baby Massage Workshop with Bibha Sharma Join Nurse and Infant Massage Specialist Bibha Sharma for this three-week workshop on full body baby massage, held at the Newlands Neighbourhood House. In each one-hour session, parents will be guided through a number of specific strokes for baby massage, with the aim of practicing the methods at home. Sessions two and three will begin by addressing any questions or concerns parents had in their home practice, before introducing new techniques and strokes. The three-week course is designed to allow for an intuitive approach to baby massage, and one that prioritises confidence and comfort, where both parents and babies can gain the full benefits of this practice. | |
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 | Blow Your Horn: Beginners' Brass and Horn Big Band at NECCHi
Basil returns in 2026 with NECCHi's own beginners' brass and horn band!
Blow Your Horn is a beginner-friendly Horn and Brass band group, for those who have been learning but are keen to play alongside others. The fortnightly session is a fun, beginner-friendly space to play that horn that has been sitting in its case, waiting for a revival! Come with your wind instrument (trumpet, saxophone, trombone, clarinet, tuba, oboe, bassoon, etc.), and all equipment needed to play. The session will include a warm-up and we will learn to play a simple tune together, with opportunities to improvise. All ages and abilities welcome :) | |
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 | Our Creative Writing Group is now Meeting Weekly at the Newlands Garden!
Join poet and editor Simone King for a morning of observing and writing in NECCHi’s Community Garden.
From Seeds to Streets is a fortnightly creative writing workshop in which participants are encouraged to respond to a range of exercises and prompts, read and discuss evocative pieces of writing about gardens and the suburbs, and deepen our understanding of the Wayi Garden and Newlands area.
No writing experience is necessary. You can write in any form: poems, stories, essays, fragments, journal entries, or stream-of-consciousness ramblings.
From Seeds to Streets will run weekly in Waring Season from the beautiful Newlands Community Garden. | |
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 | Wild Daisy Playgroup on Thursdays
Wild Daisy Nature Playgroup is a relaxed playgroup, facilitated by Dee Jones in an urban bush environment. It aims to connect families, community and nature. Children and their families are invited to slow down, take notice and jump in as they engage with curiosity in the wonders of the natural world. They will create nature art, plant seeds, make bush cubbies, climb trees, jump in muddy puddles, discover local plants and minibeasts and do lots of nature exploration! Each week’s offering includes a balance of stories, song, sensory activities and unstructured play. Held outside in (almost) any weather, this weekly gathering is an adventure through the Kulin seasons. Participants will feel enriched, empowered with confidence and full of gratitude for the land and community. | |
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 | Merri Meditations will be returning to East Coburg on a Wednesday evening
Gather together for a five week series of guided meditations inspired by the nature of the creek. Surrender your stress, dissolve tensions and reclaim a moment of calm and quiet presence in your day as we explore the beautiful spirit of an element each week. With over eight years experience of nature-based spiritual practice, meditation and magical ritual, Rachael Wildman has been a Merri Creek local all her life. She is also a qualified art therapist, artist, storyteller and tarot reader. | |
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 | Monday Kids Art Club at Newlands
River's much-loved Kids Art Club is returning for Waring Season!
Kids Art Club fosters a freedom of expression of Self, and expands ways of seeing through art.
Using art to tap into the creative impulse in a supportive and friendly environment, children will learn about basic art history, foundational art skills, play with materials, and learn new ways of relating. Children will create original works of art to make their mark on the world and say “this is me!” and “this is what I see!”
Each week we will build-up our skills, look at a range of artist’s works, and continue our practice prioritising fun and the values of exploration and experimentation. Our facilitator is artist and educator River. | |
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 | Rainbow Playgroup on Friday Afternoons
Our LGBTIQA+ exclusive playgroup is a rainbow parents-led playgroup for rainbow families. Every week parents and kids come together to have fun and connect with each other. This is a space for LGBITQA+ families to connect with peers, build community and not just be accepted but celebrated. All ages are welcome! Newcomers are always welcome with open arms. Turn up anytime during the session and stay as long as you like. We all have kids and know too well how hard is to manage naps etc. This is a safe space for LGBTIQA+ families with babies, toddlers, pre-schoolers, primary school kids. If you are not part of the LGBTIQA+ community we ask you to please attend a different playgroup. | |
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🌒 Vinyasa
Led by Rachael, each Vinyasa class starts gently and builds up, options will be offered throughout and you will be encouraged to move in a way that listens and honours your body. This might mean taking stronger or more gentle options depending how you are feeling and your intentions for the day. This evening class will finish with a 10 minute guided relaxation.
Book Now
🌓 Slow Flow
Led by Jemmi, Slow Flow allows the body to become more familiar in a pose & can invite an opportunity to make adjustments and modifications to support what feels best for each individual. The deliberate and mindful practice of a Slow Flow yoga class can help to ease tension in the body and mind and bring a sense of calm & rejuvenation.
Book Now
🌔 Merri Meditation
Join Rachael, as we gather together for a five-week series of guided meditations inspired by the nature of the creek. Surrender your stress, dissolve tensions and reclaim a moment of calm and quiet presence in your day as we explore the beautiful spirit of an element each week.
Book Now |
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Come help to build up our community seed library!
We’ll be collecting seed, sorting seeds, making the seed library welcoming for community to borrow and contribute and harvesting for community. Come for an hour of power or stay for a bit longer.
Seeds, Harvest Monthly Group
When: 10-11.30am, Last Friday of the month
Where: Newlands Neighbourhood House Garden, 20 Murray Rd, Coburg
What: Drop in anytime between 10-11.30am for a calming session of seed collection, winnowing, sorting, harvesting and more.
All abilities welcome. Please get in touch with garden@necchi.org if you have any questions. |
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| Treaty Update: Mob & Allies Get Involved | Victoria has officially entered the Treaty Era, a historic milestone shaped by generations of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander advocacy and leadership. Treaty is now law, and Community voices remain central to what comes next.
In April, a new First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria will be elected to represent mob and help deliver Treaty outcomes grounded in local knowledge. This is a critical moment to ensure strong Community representation.
Enrolments are now open.
If you are a Traditional Owner of Country in Victoria, or an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander person living in Victoria (for at least three of the past five years) and aged 16 or over, you can enrol and have your say.
With ongoing public debate around Treaty, strong participation is more important than ever. Enrolling and voting is a powerful way to support and protect this progress.
Already enrolled? Make sure your details are up to date ahead of voting, which opens 21 March 2026.
Allies can learn more about how to stay informed and support this historic moment by visiting: https://firstpeoplesvic.org/walk-with-us/
Your voice matters. Be part of shaping Treaty. |
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| Walk Together: National Walk for Truth 2026 | Australians are invited to take part in the National Walk for Truth, a powerful, First Nations led journey calling for truth-telling, healing, and meaningful change.
Beginning on Sunday 19 April at the steps of Victorian Parliament in Naarm (Melbourne), the walk will travel more than 500 kilometres to Canberra, arriving at Parliament House during National Reconciliation Week in May.
Led by Kerrupmara Gunditjmara man Travis Lovett, the Walk for Truth brings communities together to engage in honest conversations about Australia’s shared history and the experiences of First Nations peoples. The journey is both symbolic and practical, creating space to listen, learn, and move forward together.
This national initiative builds on the strong momentum of previous walks, where thousands of people joined in solidarity. In 2026, the movement continues with a renewed call for unity and action.
There are many ways to get involved: - Walk alongside the journey and attend local events (some staff and community members have already signed up)
- Sign the open letter calling for a national truth-telling process
- Share the message within your networks
- Support awareness in your community
At its heart, the Walk for Truth is about acknowledging the past to build a stronger future. Truth-telling is not about blame, it is about respect, understanding, and creating a path toward healing for all Australians.
Whether you walk a single step or support from afar, your involvement matters. Together, we can take meaningful steps toward truth, justice, and reconciliation.
Join the journey. Walk for truth.
www.walkfortruth.com |
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| Community Feedback for the Melbourne Water Trail Study | You might have noticed the long, snaking grass trail that cuts its way up past the Newlands Neighbourhood House and on into Reservoir.
Well, Darebin Council are teasing the possibility of turning the space into an established trail for bikes, making the commute between Coburg and Reservoir
a much safer journey than it currently is.
Council are keen to hear: How can we make the trail feel safe, welcoming and enjoyable for you?
If you have any thoughts, visit the Melbourne Water Trail Feasibility Study website,
and have your say!
Community Consultation will run from 16th of March until the 12th of April. |
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| Get Your NECCHi Membership for 2026! | NECCHi is a member-based not-for-profit organisation, which means that as a member, you can play an active role in shaping the organisation.
As a NECCHi Neighbour, you get: - 10% discount on full-priced tickets
- 4 free brews from Brewlands (that includes coffee, tea, chai, and hot chocs!)
- 1 pkt seeds from the NECCHi garden (subject to seasonal availability)
- Attend any $5 per session programmed activities for free
- Free hotdesking at East Coburg
- Invitation and voting rights at our AGM
Become a NECCHi Neighbour! |
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 | | ILLUSTRATIONS BY CLAIRE MOSLEY |
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East Coburg
Neighbourhood House
32 Nicholson St
Coburg VIC 3058
Ph 03 9913 5472 |   |
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