All the credit for all the great groups we have in Melbourne and country Victoria go to the members whose enthusiasm and commitment keep these vital support centers going. Please help us keep this information up to date by notifying us of any changed or obsolete contact details.

Support groups are operating in the following areas:

Victoria

Albury Wodonga Homeschoolers Support Group
Meet regularly for organised activities and excursions.
Contact Ruth email: rs9@tpg.com.au
or Catherine email: daf@exemail.com.au

Bairnsdale Home Educators
Contact Cynthia McStephen
Email: cynmcs@yahoo.com.au
Phone 5156 8929

Ballarat Home Education Group
Families meet regularly at Eastwood Leisure Complex, Ballarat.
All welcome to share in regular sporting, art and social activities.
$2/family venue hire contribution at each visit to Eastwood please.
Community skill-sharing encouraged. New families welcome.
Coordinator: Lynda Russell: Phone: 0401 807 649
Lynda: Ballarat.home.education@gmail.com

Bendigo, Castlemaine & District
Meets occasionaly for activities and excursions.
Pottery lessons fortnightly in terms 2,3 & 4.
Contact: Susan Wight (03) 5439 5134
Email: robwight@optusnet.com.au
Also an email group advising local activities and events
Or join the email group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/BendigoHEALS

Berwick 1 Home Schoolers Group (Christian)
Meets fortnightly on a Friday.
Contact: Susanne on susmal07@gmail.com
or Tracy on tracy1311@optusnet.com.au

Berwick 2 Homeschoolers
Contact: Roslyn Weatherall 9754 4744

Cardinia Area- ‘A Bunch of Us’
Meet regularly for Activities. Newsletter.
Contact: Shirley Rawlings shirleyandbill@wideband.net.au 0431985707 or 0428585541

Cranbourne Group
Home educator who wishes to start a local group.
Contact: Cheryl Buttigieg  Email: c.buttigieg@goodshepvic.org.au

Eltham Home Educators
(Eltham, Greensborough, Yarra Valley)
Meets most Thursday afternoons, rotating between Ruffy Lake Park (the Victoria Street side), Doncaster and Eltham North Adventure Playground, Eltham North from about 1pm. New families and visitors most welcome. For further information please contact Helen Cain on 8300 7221 or hfcain@optusnet.com.au. Up-to-date information on the weekly whereabouts of the group, changes of venue, excursions and an active discussion board is available at HomeEducatorsEltham@yahoogroups.com.au
The Eltham group do not meet during school holidays and from about mid-December to the second week in February.

Geelong Home Education Network
Information and support.
Contact Margaret at ma_anderson@optusnet.com.au

Geelong & Bellarine Peninsula Home Educators
Meets occasionally.
Contact Claire on 5251 3146 or Email claire@ryden.com.au

Gifted Home Education Group
E-mail group for mutual support and discussion for those home-educating gifted children in Victoria. We are spread far and wide, but have in common that we came to home education because the school system would not cater for our children’s atypical learning needs. Of course, we now find that home education has many other advantages.
Enquiries: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/VHSG/

Grampians Support Group (Ararat, Stawell)
New group; enquiries most welcome
Contact Genevieve – troppokids@optusnet.com.au

Guildford Home Educators
The Guildford Family Hotel has kindly donated use of the Old Music Hall in Guildford on Mondays for the use of home ed families. This is near the Oval, playground, tennis courts and BBQ area, as well as the tea rooms at the general store, so there’s a space and place to accomodate many different needs, and allows for the option of a shared lunch or picnic afterwards.

Last year’s activities have included a six week course of Drama Fun with drama and cooperative games, a bit of balloon sculpting, juggling and string tricks, winding up with making a bit of a film. Drama Fun was followed by a Bollywood Dance Workshop, with a performance and dance workshop by A’Fam and Natti, shared Indian inspired food, henna tattoos and sari wrapping, and we finished off the term with a Sell/Buy/Swap/Give-Away market.

These Mondays are continuing in 2009, with a number of activities requested and offered. The aim is to keep the cost at a gold coin donation, but (for more costly activities) ideally at a maximum of $5 (or total $10 per family). If you’d like any further details, or to be added to a mailing list ~ or even if you have something to offer or share ~ please contact: thelewiswhanau@gmail.com

Hamilton area Support Group
Tammy Cosson
cossonfamily1@yahoo.com
0429 979 487

HEN Autism Spectrum Home Educators
A group initiated by the Home Education Network for the mutual support of parents home educating children on the autistic spectrum. Parents do not need to be members of HEN to join this list and parents not currently home educating but considering home education as an option for their family are most welcome. Join at: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HENASD

Hen Excursion Group
Email group where members keep each other informed of excursions. To join go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HEN_Excursion_Group/

Home Educating Families with Young Children
(babies to 8 yr olds as a guide, but all welcome!)
An opportunity for families with young children to come together for play.
For Inquiries call Anne 9435 0748 / 0432 107 835 or Michelle 9439 5048.

Home Educating Families with Mentally Ill Children

“Expressions of Interest” (to participate in) a homeschool group for children with a mental illness and their caregivers (parents/grandparents/guardians/siblings etc.). I would like to know how many people would be interested in such a group and their -rough- locale (so as to figure out a central meeting place). Please contact Kristina Greenwood 0439 861 433

Home Education Network, Gippsland
Contact Wendy Thompson on (03) 5627 5534 or email wendythompson422@hotmail.com

Homeschooling Children with a Mental Illness

“Expressions of Interest” (to participate in) a homeschool group for children with a mental illness and their caregivers (parents/grandparents/guardians/siblings etc.). I would like to know how many people would be interested in such a group and their -rough- locale (so as to figure out a central meeting place). Please contact Kristina Greenwood 0439 861 433

Inner-City Homeschoolers
2nd Wednesday of the month at noon at Quarries Park, eastern end of Ramsden Street, Clifton Hill. BYO morning tea/lunch plus rollerblades and skateboards (for use at the skate ramp), balls and bicycles.

Enquiries – Jenni rainbowdivas@gmail.com or phone 0409 163 372 or check the HEN Excursion Group emails.

LaTrobe Valley Group
New group meeting at Traralgon Baptist Church once a month.
Contact Linda Peck 5192 4485 or email analise0404@hotmail.com

Macedon Ranges
Contact Colita Scott (03) 5428 5332 or email: rcscott1@bigpond.com

Maldon Home Educators
Study group meeting for Maths/Reading/Writing & History on Monday afternoons in Maldon.
Contact Netty 5475 1184

Melbourne Excursion group

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Melbourne_homeschool_excursions/

An inclusive Melbourne Homeschool Excursion Group. Anyone can read the messages, but you need to be a member to post. Please help us to disseminate information on events and activities via the group to the larger community.

Click to join Melbourne_homeschool_excursions

Melton Homeschoolers
New Group forming for activities and excursions.
Phone Jess on 0397434571 or email at liljessgray@hotmail.com

Mornington Peninsula Events Group
An online group for homeschoolers on the Mornington Peninsula. http://au.groups.yahoo.com/group/peninsulahome-ed/
Group members can post notices about outings and events that they are organising and attending on the Mornington Peninsula. Membership is moderated and open only to homeschooling families who live on the Mornington Peninsula or who want to meet up with Peninsula homeschoolers.

North-East Homeschoolers - Euora, Benella, Mansfield
Activities and excursions.
Email Belinda at maclaugh@harboursat.com.au.
Or Deb at deb@yalolowa.com.au or phone 5795 2230

North Western Home Education Group – North Western Suburbs Melbourne
Meet occassionally.
We use the http://groups.yahoo.com/group/HEN_Excursion_Group/ to post details of excursions.

Interested families can email Di at ditat@netspace.net.au or phone 9309 6652.

Pakarrows Group (Christian)
Meets weekly in Pakenham
Contact: Monica on 97022150 or Litsa on 59429250

Peninsula Home Education Network – Mornington Peninsula
A very active group based in the Mornington Peninsula, meets weekly on Wednesday. Ring (03) 9513 2816 for a recorded message with a calendar of events or to leave a message.

strong>Snowy River Home Educators
Meet on the first Tuesday of the month. 1.30 p.m. Wairewa Hall for play and chat. All welcome. Please contact Rosanne Trevaskis 03 5155 7242 trevaskis@activ8.net.au or Heather Stuart and Margie who edit the Snowy River home ed magazine 03 5157 9210 heather.stuart@bigpond.com

South Eastern Suburbs Home Education Group
Contact: Join the mailing list/forum at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/SEHE/

Sunraysia Home Educators
Contact Maaike Johnston Ph: 50291523.
Meets occasionally in and around Mildura.

Warragul Home Educators (West Gippsland)
Warragul and surrounding areas
Organised picnics, excursions and activities
Contact – Catherine Durant 5626 8252

Warrnambool Home Educators
Interested in making contacts in the area and possibly forming a group?
Contact amunson@bigpond.net.au

Wimmera/Grampians (Horsham and surrounding towns of the Wimmera)
Email Ginny (Warracknabeal) at clarkspark@vic.chariot.net.au

Upper Yarra Home-Ed Group

Meets 1st and 3rd Friday of each Month in Yarra Junction for mutual support, general activities and get-togethers. Contact: Donna Hallam (03)59667447. Email: dhallam@people.net.au

Whitehorse Home Educators
Meet 10-1 Mondays (except public holidays but including most school holidays)
Halliday Park, Mitcham Road, Mitcham. Melways Ref: 48 J7.
Carpark at the rear of the Lawn Bowls Club.
This is a social get together. There is a large playground, open spaces for ball games and public toilets nearby.
Contact: Tania at mcclive@bigpond.com

New South Wales

Narrabri Homeschool Group
Contact: Natalie Cameron Ph: 67 944 552

Western Australia

Home Based Learning Network
P.O Box 1356, Subiaco WA 6008

Email: secretary@hbln.org Website www.hbln.org Phone: 0422 264 822

HENS, Albany WA.
Contact person Natalie Reeve Email: regency@omninet.net.au.

If you would like to get in touch with a group near you, or would like any more information on events and activities, e-mail the event coordinator at coordinator@home-ed.vic.edu.au If you have any corrections or additional information you would like to include for your group, please email webmaster@home-ed.vic.edu.au