Savannah House open again caring for your family and our community
Wuchopperen has been providing health services to Cairns’ Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community for over 40 years and for nearly 25 of those years from its main Manoora campus, accessed from Moignard and Moody Streets.
This week following extensive renovations a smoking ceremony auspiced by traditional owners of the land, blessed Savannah House, one of six major buildings on the Manoora site.
“Savannah House was built in the 1970s, bought by the health service in 2003 and identified in 2020 as a critical asset in need of repair,” said Wuchopperen CEO Dania Ahwang.
“We’re so pleased that these renovations have been able to proceed on schedule and have opened at a time when our community needs the services it accommodates, more than ever.”
The newly renovated and upgraded building will accommodate up to 20 Wuchopperen staff who support over 200 families and individuals through carer and youth and family wellbeing programs.
The renovations have included demolition and extensive upgrades to access and useability for staff and clients. The Billabong meeting room will be multi-functional for small group meetings and family consultations. The building is easily accessed from the Moody Street car park and is adjacent to the Wuchopperen Peace Garden.
The Rainforest clinic building also reopened late last year after renovations.
“We’re constantly improving our facilities for clients and staff,” said Dania. “Future plans for the Manoora site include upgrading all footpaths to be undercover and an expansion of seating for bus services.”
“Wuchopperen is a commmuity-controlled health service for community. We want our facilities to be open and welcoming. Ongoing COVID-19 restrictions mean our on-site services are currently limited and we’re utilising Telehealth services more and more, to support our clients and keep them and our staff safe. And we’ll continue to do that while COVID is our community but we’re looking forward to welcoming all our families back to our improved facilities in 2022.”
Savannah House – January 2022
Opening Smoking Ceremony – 17 January 2022
