Pick Up Drop Off Laundry, an Orange Sky Innovation Initiative

From our research and speaking with people doing it tough, we know there are some key barriers that prevent people who are in need of free laundry and connection from using our service. These most notably being distance, accessibility, time commitments and dependants.

Orange Sky is trialling a new service model where we support families who are in motels as emergency accommodation. These motels provide a safe space to sleep but often don’t have access to laundry and connection, which can play an important part in the transition from emergency accommodation back into stable housing.

The new ‘Pick Up, Drop Off’ model will see Orange Sky’s already known and trusted service reimagined – volunteers will attend a location convenient to friends, such as a place of residence, and stay for a chat. This model addresses barriers of travel and time while also ensuring friends can care for dependents in a safe location.  

We have been able to pilot this model at a local Brisbane motel thanks to the support of an organisation who houses families temporarily. This organisation is doing incredible work for families who are transitioning to permanent housing, and Orange Sky is delighted to work alongside them to take a load off for residents. Whilst the conversations are flowing, our volunteers split into teams to wash the items at a nearby location and return them to the shift.

By using a local laundromat we can get through large amounts of washing in a short period of time (1.5 hours for 32 loads). This also allows us to scale faster in areas with limited van availability or access.

Shayne who leads our Imagination and Innovation team has already seen the impact that this new service has had on the community. “We have had amazing feedback to date on how this is offering is working from our partner organisations, motel owners and the families themselves.”

He went on to say “The feedback we have had from Motel owners is that it is the night of the week where the families sit, relax and interact. The Orange Sky volunteers play a huge part in that. This is also making a real practical impact for families, who had previously been trying to wash their kids school uniforms in a bathtub” – Shayne, Orange Sky.

Innovation is part of our DNA at Orange Sky and continues to be the driving force behind our five year strategy. Our target is to triple our impact by 2025 whilst exploring new and improved ways to help more people in the community doing it tough. We can’t wait to continue to use the power of innovation to support more friends in need.