The Hope Street Corporate Committee enables external expert stakeholders to contribute to the promotion and sustainability of Hope Street in accordance with the Hope Street Strategic Plan. All committee members are volunteers from the community who hold expertise across various industries and have dedicated their time and efforts to act as valuable allies in the delivery of Hope Street’s solutions to youth homelessness.

These connections are a source of strength and pride for Hope Street and display its dedication to collaboration and creative thinking as an element of growing resources and networks.

Through regular meetings and communications, the Corporate Committee provides a forum for communication between Hope Street’s external stakeholders and the organisation’s Board and Executive Leadership Team, as the CEO and Business Development and Partnerships Manager sit as permanent members of the Committee.

  • Brooke Williams

    Brooke Williams

    Committee Member

    Joined Hope Street in 2024; Bachelor of Business; Graduate Diploma in Project Management; Currently undertaking Graduate Diploma in Psychology.

    Role: To use my knowledge, experience and connections to support Hope Street to expand its profile and reach into the community.

    “A safe and stable place to call home is a foundational human need taken for granted by so many. It is a privilege to support Hope Street to actively and passionately prioritise and nurture the young people of Victoria.”

  • Clive Scott

    Clive Scott AM

    Founding Committee Member, Sofitel Arts Ambassador Australia

    Joined Hope Street in 2014; Clive has a Diploma in Hotel Management and a Degree in Economics. He is actively involved in Melbourne’s business and arts community and is on the board of Australian Ballet Foundation, the Museum of Australian Photography, The Melbourne Prize, Melodies of Peace and the Oceania Foundation. He is Chairman of the Georges Mora Fellowship, Chairman of Judges for the 2026 Melbourne Awards and a Partner in ReThink Sustainability.

    “Bad luck can befall anyone at any time and at these times there is no better feeling than a helping hand that puts some hope back into your life. Hope Street is assisting young people who need it the most – they may have ended up on the street or just in a bad way, with nowhere to turn. Just putting a roof over their heads can be the first step in getting their lives back on track.”

  • Matt Krosch

    Matt Krosch

    Committee Member; Director of Hope Street Youth Housing

    Joined Hope Street in 2025; Founding Director of Hope Street Youth Housing; Significant marketing and commercial expertise across the technology and health sectors, specialising in strategic partnerships and growth.

    Role: To contribute a strong governance perspective and apply my commercial experience to support the sustainable growth of purpose-driven organisations and improved outcomes for vulnerable communities.

    “I believe every young person deserves the opportunity to build a secure and positive future. Hope Street’s work supporting young people experiencing hardship is both essential and deeply impactful. I’m proud to support an organisation delivering meaningful, lasting outcomes for individuals and the broader community. “

Finance Committee assists the Board to meet its fiscal responsibilities and achieve the objectives of the Strategic Plan and provides a forum for communication between the Board and the Financial and Capital Assets Manager.

The Finance Committee is responsible for monitoring and reviewing the financial position of the organisation, undertaking financial planning, monitoring and reporting on the integrity of the organisation’s financial systems and reporting, overseeing Annual Financial Audit, and providing recommendations to the Board on financial matters.

  • Anthony Goldsworthy

    Anthony Goldsworthy

    Director; Treasurer; Chair of Finance Committee

    Joined Hope Street in 2020; BComm (Finance & Accounting), Member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand, CFO Advisory & Assurance Director

    Role: To utilise my expertise in continual improvement of financial governance and to assist the drive of sound commercial outcomes supporting the strategic direction of Hope Street.

    “Being raised in the Western Suburbs of Melbourne, the Hope Street mission to empower young people in the Western and Northern Suburbs to overcome disadvantage really resonates with me. Being able to contribute to the organisation through membership on the Board and Finance Committee is a privilege.”

  • Donna Bennett

    Donna Bennett

    Chief Executive Officer

    Donna Bennett commenced her working life in youth homelessness while completing her Bachelor of Social Work (Honours), working in a young women’s refuge and a residential centre for young people in care in regional Victoria. This was the beginning of her passion and drive for a fairer system and service delivery response to young people and their children impacted by not having a safe home in which to thrive.

    Over her 40years in the sector, Donna has extensive experience as a practitioner and leader. Donna is respected for her leadership and genuine collaboration, engaging local communities to be pro-active participants of the solutions to the causes and impact of young people not having a safe home.

    Donna highly regards the strengths, compassion and drive of all stakeholders who, together with Hope Street, strive to influence social change. In addition to collaboratively creating new program models in youth homelessness and women-specific services with local communities, Donna has been leading and supporting the professional teams at Hope Street in providing its highly regarded specialist responses to youth homelessness.

    “Young people who access our services receive an individually designed wrap around response that includes immediate, short-term and long-term goals. Our approaches are centred on early intervention and prevention and focus on all aspects of each young person’s life. Young people determine and drive the achievement of their goals. I have seen hundreds of young people blossom and make significant meaningful changes in their lives.“

  • Elizabeth Young

    Elizabeth Young

    Director 

    Joined Hope Street in 2021; Significant experience in the health sector; Considerable knowledge and skills in public policy, program management, evaluation, strategic planning and advocacy 

    Role: To support the governance and strategic direction of the organisation. 

    “I have a passion for public health and prevention, and have worked across community and youth, hospital, academia, local and state governments.” 

  • Margaret Novelin

    Margaret Novelin

    Director

    Joined Hope Street in 2025; B. Econ, MBA, Member of Chartered Accountants Australia and NZ, finance and accounting professional. 

    Role: To utilise my knowledge and experience in financial governance and to support Hope Street in meeting its long-term, strategic goals.  

    “Supporting youth homelessness is a cause close to my heart. I believe that having access to a safe accommodation and supporting environment is an important aspect for every young person to be able to achieve great things in the future. I am glad that I have got the opportunity to serve and contribute to the community through my role at Hope Street.” 

  • Shola Kanu

    Shola Kanu

    Finance and Capital Assets Manager

    Shola is an accomplished finance executive with more than 10 years of senior leadership experience across the not-for-profit, community services and professional services sectors.

    As Finance & Capital Asset Manager at Hope Street Youth and Family Services, she leads the organisation’s financial management, capital asset stewardship, governance, compliance and strategic planning functions, supporting the delivery of services that empower young people and families experiencing disadvantage.

    Prior to joining Hope Street, Shola held senior finance leadership roles with several mission-driven organisations. Throughout her career, she has partnered closely with Boards, Chief Executive Officers and executive leadership teams to strengthen financial sustainability, enhance governance frameworks, manage complex funding environments, and support strategic decision-making. Her expertise spans financial reporting, budgeting and forecasting, risk management, capital planning, asset management, audit, compliance and organisational transformation.

    Shola began her professional career with Deloitte and has built extensive experience across finance, audit, governance and business advisory. She is recognised for her ability to translate complex financial information into meaningful insights that support organisational growth and long-term sustainability. She is also passionate about developing effective systems, strengthening internal controls, and ensuring organisations are well positioned to maximise their impact in the communities they serve.

    A Fellow of CPA Australia (FCPA) and Chartered Accountant (CA ANZ), Shola holds an Honours Bachelor of Accounting Science and a Bachelor of Commerce (Accounting).

    She brings a collaborative, values-driven leadership approach and is deeply committed to supporting organisations that create positive social outcomes. Her passion lies in ensuring that financial resources and capital investments are managed responsibly and strategically to help vulnerable young people, families and communities thrive.

The Risk Management and Compliance Committee provide reports and recommendations to the Board to assist it to manage risk across the whole organisation, and oversees organisational compliance with relevant legislation, government policy, organisational policy, codes of practice, standards, contracts and agreements. 

  • Donna Bennett

    Donna Bennett

    Chief Executive Officer

    Donna Bennett commenced her working life in youth homelessness while completing her Bachelor of Social Work (Honours), working in a young women’s refuge and a residential centre for young people in care in regional Victoria. This was the beginning of her passion and drive for a fairer system and service delivery response to young people and their children impacted by not having a safe home in which to thrive.

    Over her 40years in the sector, Donna has extensive experience as a practitioner and leader. Donna is respected for her leadership and genuine collaboration, engaging local communities to be pro-active participants of the solutions to the causes and impact of young people not having a safe home.

    Donna highly regards the strengths, compassion and drive of all stakeholders who, together with Hope Street, strive to influence social change. In addition to collaboratively creating new program models in youth homelessness and women-specific services with local communities, Donna has been leading and supporting the professional teams at Hope Street in providing its highly regarded specialist responses to youth homelessness.

    “Young people who access our services receive an individually designed wrap around response that includes immediate, short-term and long-term goals. Our approaches are centred on early intervention and prevention and focus on all aspects of each young person’s life. Young people determine and drive the achievement of their goals. I have seen hundreds of young people blossom and make significant meaningful changes in their lives.“

  • Neb Kocevski

    Neb Kocevski 

    Director

  • Nicholas Arcaro

    Nicholas Arcaro

    Director

    Joined Hope Street in 2025; Grad Dip (Occupational Health & Safety), Human rights and Psychosocial Risk Management professional.

    Role: As a Board Director and member of the Risk Management and Compliance Committee, I bring a people-centred governance lens grounded in psychological safety, psychosocial risk and inclusion. I focus on balancing compliance with care, bringing a contemporary understanding of human factors to inform decision-making, safeguard both people and organisation, and enable sustainable, values-led outcomes.

    “I believe every young person deserves a place to feel safe and call home. Through my work across risk management, wellbeing and inclusion, I’ve seen how housing insecurity shapes life outcomes, and Hope Street’s commitment to tackling both immediate need and systemic change deeply resonates with me. I’m excited and feel privileged on the Hope Street Board of Directors and as a member of the Risk Management and Compliance Committee to contribute to a more just and equitable future for young people.“ 

  • Riley Ellard 

    Riley Ellard 

    Director; Secretary

    Joined Hope Street in 2020; BA, LL.B, LL.M; Human rights, justice and social policy professional 

    Role: To support the governance of the organisation through evidence-based decision making and a focus on the needs, goals and experiences of young people. 

    “There is strong evidence that without access to safe, stable housing, young people are less able to engage with education, employment, health services and therapeutic supports. Housing is crucial to enabling young people to get their lives on track and thrive. I’m excited to be on the Board of Directors, highlighting Hope Street’s work supporting young people in times of crisis and working with them to achieve sustainable housing solutions.”

  • Sue Scott

    Sue Scott

    Operation Manager

    Sue commenced at Hope Street in March 2020 and has over 20 years’ experience in the homelessness sector. 

    Prior to joining Hope Street’s Program Leadership team, Sue held a variety of positions within SalvoCare Eastern including Case Manager, Team Leader and Acting Manager at Gateways crisis refuge. Sue has an extensive history working in the health and community services sector, particularly in the areas of disability, homelessness and youth.

    Sue has a strong interest in youth homelessness and played a key role in developing various programs and best-practice manuals for young people within the homelessness system. She has authored publications in Parity and presented at various sector conferences including the Victorian Homelessness Conference, Melbourne Chamber of Commerce, and the Centre for Excellence in Child and Family Welfare.

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