A MUCH-loved home-away-from-home has been renovated and reopened for rural residents who need an affordable stay in the city around hospital stays.
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Through fund raising efforts and donations the Sisters of Charity Outreach has refurbished Chisolm Cottage - the low-cost, shared accommodation service that has helped regional families stay in Sydney for medical services since 1996.
The buidling, right near Westmead Hospital, has been out of action for nine months. It needed a new roof, among other things, and is taking bookings again.
Parliamentary Secretary for Western NSW, Rick Colless helped open it up on Tuesday.
“Guests come from as far as Cobar, Coonamble and Coonabarabran – which can be over an 8-hour drive from the Central West,” he said.
“It’s important for these families from remote parts of regional NSW to be able to stay in affordable accommodation, particularly if they need to stay over long periods of time.
In the 27 months prior to closing for its upgrade (July 2014 – Sept 2016), Chisholm Cottage hosted 742 adults and 352 children from various areas of regional NSW.
This amounted to 1885 booking nights and saving guests over $72,000 total each year in accommodation costs.
Chisholm Cottage offers four, separate, secure bedrooms – a double room, a twin room (with two single beds) and two family rooms for three guests.
Room rates are $60 per night for the double room or twin room (maximum of two guests each) and $80 per night for either of the two family rooms (maximum of three guests).
“We know from those who’ve stayed here from regional NSW during the past 21 years that it is incredibly hard to find affordable accommodation near the Westmead Hospital – which is why upgrading Chisolm House to provide more comfortable accommodation was so important,” Mr Colless said.
Chisholm Cottage is one of several no and low-cost core services operated by Sisters of Charity Outreach, a not-for-profit, community service organisation which has been actively addressing unmet social need in the community since 1990.
“Additionally, Chisholm Cottage also re-joins Country Care Link, Sisters of Charity Outreach’s no-cost transport service for those travelling to medical appointments within Sydney, as our second core service for regional NSW families in need,” Mr Colless added.
“This transport service is wholly-provided by volunteers, and operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week for country families who are accessing health services in Sydney. This service eases the extra burden of trying to find a way of travelling between the airport, railway stations, bus stops and medical appointments.”
- A previous version of this story indicated the State government had funded the refurbishment of the cottage but this is not the case.