On January 6 2026, the Labor State Government announced they would sell off the Collingwood Children’s Farm (CCF) to a private not-for-profit company for $1. They have also stripped the Abbotsford Convent of funding. We need to protect Collingwood Children’s Farm and Abbotsford Convent.

These community spaces keep us healthy, connected and creative. The CCF welcomes children and families from across Melbourne, connecting them to the natural world. Abbotsford Convent offers affordable art spaces to local artists, as well as events and community engagement.

They are rare and deeply valued local places that should be supported by to remain welcoming and accessible to everyone in the community.

But instead, the State Government has stitched up a deal to take the Collingwood Children’s Farm out of the community’s hands without any consultation, transparency or justification. And instead of supporting the Abbotsford Convent as a vital arts, historic and community precinct, they have suddenly pulled the rug out from under it.

We call on the Labor State Government and the CCF the Committee of Management to halt the privatisation of the CCF, and for ongoing government investment in the Collingwood Children’s Farm and Abbotsford Convent precinct for the public good.