Where is The Big Issue sold?

The magazine is sold by authorised vendors on the streets of Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane, Adelaide, Perth, Canberra and regional Victoria.

Who sells The Big Issue?

Vendors come from a range of backgrounds including mental illness, homelessness, long-term unemployment, intellectual and physical disability, drug and alcohol dependency, family breakdown and others suffering from social isolation, such as refugees.

How does selling The Big Issue impact Vendors?

Findings from our research indicate that selling The Big Issue Magazine has a positive impact on Vendors’ lives. The impact is felt in a number of areas including:

- Social connections, skills and opportunities to engage with the ‘mainstream’ public through selling The Big Issue Magazine.

- Improve and enhanced health; which includes nutrition, general physical health, decreased and less problematic substance use and improvements in emotional wellbeing as a result of being engaged in meaningful activity.

- Improved housing and accommodation experiences, including a decrease in primary homelessness.

- Enhanced personal factors such as confidence and self worth through enacting the valued role of being a Vendor.

- Improved quality of life by being able to afford non-necessity items and engage in regular citizenship activities within contemporary Australian society.

Who reads The Big Issue

• Circulation : 30, 213 (paid for)
• Readership : 242,000
• Male : 47%
• Female : 53%
• 18-39 : 61%
• Tertiary education : 66%
• AB socio-economic : 48%
• Work full-time : 56%
• HH Income 70K+ : 47%
• Socially Aware : 43%

(Roy Morgan research March 2011)

Who organises and funds the Street Magazine Enterprise?

The Street Magazine Enterprise is a community initiative of The Big Issue Australia. It’s sustained through sales of The Big Issue magazine and advertising revenue. We also enjoy the generous support of numerous corporate partners.

Why is it called a ‘social enterprise’, and how is this different from a charity?

A social enterprise is a business or service that is driven to provide for the community, rather than to maximise profit for shareholders or owners.

The Big Issue Australia is an independent, not-for-profit organisation with DGR status. What sets us apart from charities is that we provide a product (The Big Issue magazine) that the public can buy and it’s through these sales (and other business related ventures) that we are able to operate.

The Big Issue Street Magazine Enterprise does not rely on donations or government funding to cover on-going costs. We are an independent, viable, sustainable and self-funded business.

Recent research conducted by RMCG showed that every $1 invested in The Big Issue Street Magazine Enterprise is generating benefits to society of $4.50. So when you purchase the magazine or assist one of the programs, you can think of it as an investment rather than a donation. It’s a hand up, not a hand out.

How did the Street Magazine Enterprise begin?

The Big Issue began in London in 1991, with initial funding from The Body Shop. In London, 300 homeless people signed up as vendors in the first week. Since then the model has spread to over 22 countries.

The Big Issue concept came to Australia in 1993 when Susan Oliver, formerly of Australia’s Commission for the Future, drew together a number of entrepreneurial people to explore enterprise ideas for disadvantaged and homeless people. Graeme Wise, Managing Director of the Body Shop in Australia, was one of these people and proposed the London Big Issue model. It was launched in Australia on the steps of Melbourne’s Flinders Street station in 1996.

What is the connection between the Street Magazine Enterprise and the Community Street Soccer Program?

The Street Magazine Enterprise and the Community Street Soccer Program (Street Soccer), are both community initiatives of The Big Issue Australia. They operate independently and champion the same goal which is to empower homeless and marginalised people to make positive changes in their lives.

Who organises and funds The Big Issue Australia?

 The Big Issue Australia is a viable and sustainable organisation which uses a combination of market-based ventures, corporate sponsorship, government funding and other fundraising to ensure its continuation and growth into the future.

Why is the money best spent in this way?

The Big Issue focuses on solutions that fix the causes of homelessness (eg: social isolation, drug and alcohol dependency, unemployment) rather than the outcomes, such as a lack of housing. In many cases people who participate in our programs have given up on counselling and traditional support systems. They are given the opportunity to get fit or earn an income, make new friends, seek support and advice and make positive change in their lives.

Who participates in Street Soccer?

Street Soccer players come from many walks of life, but all have been marginalised in some way. This could be through factors such as mental illness, homelessness, refugee status, drug and alcohol dependency, physical disability, long-term unemployment or family breakdown.

Participants come through referrals from hostels and boarding houses, community centres and welfare agencies, and word-of-mouth among existing Street Soccer participants.

Who organises and funds Street Soccer?

Street Soccer is run by The Big Issue Australia, a not-for-profit social enterprise that provides opportunities for homeless and marginalised people to make positive changes in their lives. The program is sustained through investment by Federal and State governments, corporate partners, philanthropic organisations and other donations.

How did the Community Street Soccer Program begin?

The idea of using soccer as a vehicle for helping homeless people began at the 2001 International Network of Street Papers (INSP) meeting, where organisers were looking for ways to involve street paper vendors in their annual conference. Football or soccer was seen as an ideal solution, which would overcome language barriers and provide a healthy, positive activity.

What is the connection between the Community Street Soccer Program and the Homeless World Cup?

The Community Street Soccer Program, known as Street Soccer, is the grass roots program, organised by The Big Issue Australia and operating across the country to engage homeless and marginalised people and empower them to change their lives. Participants from Street Soccer have gone on to represent Australia as Street Socceroos at the Homeless World Cup.

The Homeless World Cup is an annual international football tournament that brings together participants from street soccer programs from around the world. In 2008 The Big Issue proudly hosted the Homeless World Cup in Melbourne that saw more than 50 teams from across the world, 100,000 spectators and 250 local, national and international media descend on Federation Square for the week long event.

The Big Issue does not host or organise the Homeless World Cup every year. It is managed by Homeless World Cup International and hosted by different organisations in each country. In August 2011, our Street Socceroos will compete in Paris, France.

Who are the Street Socceroos?

Our national Homeless World Cup team are called the Street Socceroos. Street Socceroos are selected from participants of Street Soccer from across Australia who have shown a commitment to positive change in their lives. The Street Socceroos have competed at Homeless World Cups in Edinburgh, Scotland, in 2005, Cape Town, South Africa, in 2006, Copenhagen, Denmark, in 2007 and on our home turf in Melbourne, Australia, in 2008. They performed remarkably at their first Homeless World Cup in Edinburgh 2005 to win seventh place and were awarded Best First Year Team for their spirit, enthusiasm and respect for their opponents and the tournament.