At least 25 specialist mental health organisations helping the homeless,  domestic violence victims and young people face an uncertain future after the  Napthine government stripped them of  funding.

Community Services Minister Mary Wooldridge recently announced the winners of  the government’s recommissioning of community mental health services but the  move has been described as the ”corporatisation of welfare” by many  organisations.

Under the changes, only 16 organisations will deliver community-based mental  health services across Victoria, down from 45 organisations.

Staff at many of the community organisations have already been made redundant  and there have been warnings the funding cuts will create ”a social mess”.

The Fitzroy organisation has been helping the homeless since 1959 and has  received government funding to provide services for the mentally ill for the  past 28 years.

Chief executive Tony McCosker said the organisation helped people with  complex needs who were excluded from other agencies.

McAuley Community Services for Women also had its funding cut for a program  that helps domestic violence victims with a mental illness  not slip back into  homelessness. ”We haven’t experienced a cut to the same extent as others but we  are worried about what this signals,” said chief executive Jocelyn Bignold.

One of the big winners of the recommissioning of services is Neami National,  which has secured work in every region of metropolitan Melbourne for a range of  services.

”This means we will be working in many areas of Melbourne where we haven’t  had a presence previously and engaging with a range of new community partners to  provide the strongest possible support for each person’s individual recovery  work,” a statement on the organisation’s website reads.

Richmond Labor MP Richard Wynne said many of the agencies provided unique specialist care, which relied on strong relationships between groups and clients. ”This decision will mean that long-standing relationships built up over years will be severed for the truly most vulnerable street people,” Mr Wynne said.

The government argues that streamlining operations means more funds can be  spent on actual service delivery and provide greater transparency in the  industry.

”Mental health services, families, carers and people with a mental illness  have been calling for change and our reform will deliver improved access to  better quality services and greater flexibility to respond to individual  needs,” Ms Wooldridge said in early May.

This article first appeared on The Age on 19 May, 2014.