Parkerville supporters raise
much needed funds for new school

Guests and supporters of Parkerville Children and Youth Care generously raised more than $400,000 at last week’s Parkerville Gala event at Fraser’s in Kings Park – with all funds benefiting a new specialist school currently being built in the Perth Hills.

The beautifully themed There’s No Place Like Home (Wizard of Oz) Gala brought together leaders from the corporate, philanthropic and community sectors, alongside long-standing supporters of Parkerville’s work and some who joined the cause for the first time. Their collective generosity will directly support young people whose lives have been shaped by trauma.

Parkerville Grove School is a specialist secondary school delivering a healing-first therapeutic education model for young people aged 12 to 18 whose trauma has made mainstream education impossible. The school is intentionally designed to build healing and safety first, creating foundations young people need to re-engage with learning in a sustainable way.

Guests at the event enjoyed an unforgettable night of entertainment including immersive experiences, live performances, fine dining and exclusive auction items. With open hearts they helped raise funds earmarked for the school’s allied health services, therapeutic services, and purpose-built environments designed to help young people feel safe and ready to learn.

Made possible by the decade-long support of presenting partners Hancock Prospecting, Hancock Iron Ore and the extraordinary personal commitment of Mrs Gina Rinehart AO – whose kindness and belief in Parkerville’s mission stretches back even further – the 2026 Gala united the public with corporate and philanthropic leaders to help establish the new school.

Parkerville Children and Youth Care CEO Kim Brooklyn said the tremendous support from Hancock Prospecting, Hancock Iron Ore and Mrs Rinehart once again made for a very successful Gala and a truly memorable event.

‘Mrs Rinehart’s generosity, her genuine care for vulnerable children, and her unwavering commitment over many years have been transformative – not just for this school, but for countless young lives. We are deeply grateful for her partnership and her belief in what is possible when we invest in children who need us most.

‘I also want to thank everyone else who attended and made donations at the Gala, and to those who supported us even though they couldn’t be there. You showed up for young people you may never meet, whose stories you may never fully know, but whose futures you are helping to rebuild. That kind of generosity – quiet, consistent, and deeply compassionate – is what makes this work possible. We are profoundly grateful, and we do not take a single contribution for granted.

‘The spirit of giving is not just alive in Western Australia – it’s thriving, and it’s making a tangible difference in the lives of young people who desperately need to know their community believes in them. Every dollar raised will provide essential funding for Parkerville Grove School, which will bring together trauma-informed teachers, youth workers, and allied health professionals to support each student in a caring environment. Thank you for making that possible.

Reflecting on what the support means for the future students of Parkerville Grove School, Kim said there is a moment in every young person’s life when they decide whether the world is safe enough to let them become who they are meant to be.

‘For many people, that moment passes without drama. They have adults around who made the world feel steady enough. They had a home — not just a roof, but a place where they were seen, where they belonged, where they were safe to grow.

‘The young people who will walk through the doors of Parkerville Grove School did not have that. They were harmed, often by the adults who were supposed to protect them.

‘At Parkerville, we see young people of extraordinary perception — young people who can read a room, sense a shift in tone, and navigate complexity that would floor most adults. We see resilience that has been forged, not given. We see creativity, humour, loyalty, and a fierce, uncompromising sense of justice - because young people who have experienced injustice up close do not tolerate it lightly.

‘These are not broken young people. They are young people whose potential has not yet had the conditions it needs to emerge. The fact that they are still here - still curious, still funny, still capable of connection and trust, however hard won - tells you everything about who they are.

‘And given the right environment - consistent, safe, trauma-informed, and genuinely caring - these young people could become remarkable leaders and extraordinary contributors to our community. Compassionate, because they know what it costs to be unseen – and courageous, because they have already survived things most of us never will.

‘What they need and will receive at Parkerville Grove School are clear messages that they are more than good enough, they are important, and they deserve the very best we can offer.’

To learn more about Parkerville Grove School and trauma-informed education, visit parkervilleeducation.org.au.

Published in Messenger April 2026