Catholic Social Services Launches Five-Year Plan

Catholic Social Services Australia unveils Towards 75: Building for the Common Good as it approaches its 75th anniversary.

Updated on Nov. 4, 2026 in Catholicism

Catholic Social Services Launches Five-Year Plan

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Catholic Social Services Australia has launched its five-year strategic plan, Towards 75: Building for the Common Good, covering 2026 to 2031. The plan sets out four priority areas as the organisation approaches its 75th anniversary.

Why it matters

The plan renews the organisation's commitment to Catholic Social Teaching and is inspired by Pope Leo XIV's Magnifica Humanitas encyclical and his call to get hands dirty on the construction site of our time. It sets the direction of the organisation's work across Australia over the coming five years.

The five-year plan runs from 2026 to 2031 and sets four priority areas: closing the gap for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples, housing and homelessness, family support and domestic violence, and disability and dignity. Specific targets and funding allocations for each area were not detailed in the launch material.

The players

Catholic Social Services Australia

The national agency of the Catholic Church in Australia that delivers social welfare, housing and community support programs.

Pope Leo XIV

The head of the Catholic Church whose encyclical Magnifica Humanitas inspired the plan.

The details

The plan, titled Towards 75: Building for the Common Good, was launched by Catholic Social Services Australia. It focuses on four priority areas that reflect the organisation's long-standing work with vulnerable Australians.

4 November 2026: Strategic plan launch announced.
2026-2031: Five-year strategic plan period.

Church Social Mission

The plan renews the organisation's commitment to Catholic Social Teaching and follows the framework of Pope Leo XIV's Magnifica Humanitas encyclical. It positions the agency's work across housing, family support, disability and Indigenous closing-the-gap efforts within that tradition.

Australians who access services from Catholic Social Services Australia may see its work shift toward the four priority areas over the 2026 to 2031 period. The plan does not specify changes to eligibility, fees or service locations.

The takeaway

The plan shows how a long-established Catholic organisation is aligning its national work with its core social teaching ahead of its 75th anniversary. Readers interested in its priorities can follow its work on housing, family support and disability over the coming five years.