THE crew at Parramatta Mission believe no child or teen deserves to be homeless.
And they provide accommodation and support to those who do find themselves in that unfriendliest of circumstances.
But with limited resources at its disposal, the accommodation and environment the mission provides has its limits.
Deborah Carr, a communications manager at the mission, said the organisation relied on fund-raising and government grants to provide suitable homes for the teenagers in its care.
With a $22,000 grant from the state government's Community Building Partnerships Program, the mission plans to build an outdoor barbecue and pergola area for its tenants to socialise in.
"It'll reduce young people hanging around in public places, having somewhere nice at home where they can socialise," she said.
But the public pot where that money came from is under pressure.
State-wide the government will begin to slash the grants funding from $140 million to $90 million over four years in it's next budget.
Opposition leader John Robertson said that meant Parramatta groups would be $100,000 a year poorer.
"This program is worth $35 million a year. It's so modest in the context of the state budget — but the funding makes all the difference to clubs, charities and community groups doing good work," he said.
Parramatta MP Geoff Lee defended the cuts as prudent in a tight budget.
"Because of our financial position we've had to cut it," he said. "GST funds to the state are going to be $1.5 billion less next year.
"We have to make up for it somewhere."