About The Canopy
Established in 1988 as ‘Westlake's Family Support Services’.
The Canopy is a vibrant community organisation that empowers children, families, and neighbourhoods to thrive. We create welcoming spaces, deliver family and parenting programs, and bring people together through activities that build connection and belonging. Guided by our values of inclusion and care, we believe strong communities can achieve anything and that every family deserves the chance to flourish.
Vision
Mission
Values
Conduct ourselves with intergrity, Act with compassion, Ensure empathy, Maintain trust & Demonstrate respect
Principles of access, equity, participation and rights guide our service delivery, programs, activities and operations.
It is every child’s right to be safe and protected from all forms of abuse, neglect, violence or exploitation. It is The Canopy’s policy that children and young people have a fundamental right to be safe from harm and to grow up free of violence and exploitation. The Canopy is committed to work practices and outcomes that minimise risk and which provide our workers with the ability to respond appropriately to incidents where children are at risk of harm.
We’re fully committed to the UN Convention on the rights of the child declaration; Article 13, declaring that: The child shall have the right to freedom of expression; this right shall include freedom to seek, receive and impart information and ideas of all kinds, regardless of frontiers, either orally, in writing or in print, in the form of art, or through any other media.
We strive to actively engage and listen to recipients of our services and users of our community and neighbourhood centres. This enables us to better understand how to best respond to expressed individual needs and aspirations.
Engaging the community in conversations is central to ensuring our services, usage of our community facilities / neighbourhood centres and local event planning reflects local needs and aspirations.
The Canopy demonstrates its ability to consistently provide services which meet or exceed applicable statutory and regulatory requirements through the effective adherence to our practice quality governance framework and continuous improvement processes.
We use the common practice elements approach of a range of discrete evidence informed practices including trauma informed care to work with individuals, families and children to jointly agree on ways to facilitate positive change.
The Canopy Board of Management
Sandra Feltham (President)
Sandra has spent more than 40 years building stronger, healthier communities through her work in health and local government. She is a lifelong learner with qualifications in nursing, midwifery, urban planning, human geography, and public health. Sandra believes in the power of people and communities to create change and is guided by values of social justice, human rights, and collective impact. She brings both wisdom and compassion to her role on the Board.
David Price (Vice President)
David is the Director of ICT Services at St Philips College and brings strong skills in strategy, governance, business development, and technology. He is passionate about using innovation and smart systems to support people and organisations to succeed. David’s steady leadership and future-focused approach help ensure The Canopy remains strong, sustainable, and connected to community needs.
Naomi McCorkell
Naomi is a values-driven leader with a long career in the community services sector, focused on improving outcomes for children, young people and people with disability. She brings deep experience in strategy, governance and social impact, and has led major transformation and quality initiatives across regional NSW and Queensland. Based in Newcastle and a proud mum of two, Naomi is passionate about building strong, connected communities and ensuring regional voices are heard in decisions that shape the future. She believes collaboration, compassion and accountability are the foundations of lasting social change.
Janet Lee
Janet is an experienced leader who is committed to creating workplaces and communities where people can thrive. She is currently Group HR & Safety Manager at Zeal Futures and has held senior leadership roles across private, public, and not-for-profit sectors. Janet brings expertise in people and culture, strategic planning, and safety, along with a strong belief in the importance of fairness, opportunity, and support for all families.
Julie Thomas-Bailey
Julie is a seasoned executive with a broad range of experience in corporate/shared services including audit, risk, governance, HR, contracts, and business/strategic planning. She is tertiary qualified and is a Graduate of the Australian Institute of Company Directors and has worked in many different industries and locations including mining and manufacturing. Julie is passionate about sport and working towards shared goals, fairness, and assisting communities to thrive.
Yvonne Keane
Yvonne Keane AM has built her career making the seemingly impossible, possible.
She is the Chief Executive Officer of Australian Rotary Health, a national not-for-profit and one of the country’s major independent funders of health and mental health research, with children’s mental health its current focus.
Yvonne is a former Mayor of The Hills Shire, the founder and Emeritus Chair of The Sanctuary women’s shelter, the founder of the Hear the Children Early Intervention Centre and the former Chief Executive of Reimagine Australia. She has served as Deputy Chair of Endeavour Foundation, an elected Director of Local Government NSW, a member of the NSW Council for Women’s Economic Opportunity and a member of the NDIS Children’s Expert Advisory Group. Across those roles she has led national frameworks, government advisory work and early childhood reform, and she brings that governance depth to The Canopy’s board.
Her contribution has been recognised across two decades. She was appointed a Member of the Order of Australia (AM) in 2021, named Third Sector Influencer of the Year in 2019 and NSW Local Government Woman of the Year in 2016, and in 2012 named the NSW Government's inaugural Woman of the Year 9People’s Choice). She was named a National United Nations Volunteer of the Year in 2011, and is a Paul Harris Fellow of Rotary International.
A proudly neurodiverse leader who lives on Lake Macquarie, Yvonne brings relentless curiosity and a gift for cutting through complexity to unite people behind a shared goal. She believes every child deserves to feel that they matter, and that strong communities are built by the people who show up for them.
The Canopy Leadership Team
Gen Wilcox
Chief Executive Officer Connect on LinkedIn
Jane Mitchell
Family Services Manager
Brett Conroy
Acting Finance and Administration Manager
Partners and supporters
The impact and reach of our work is made possible through the support and generosity of our valued partners, agencies, businesses, groups, and individuals who share our vision and mission. Their contribution strengthens our ability to deliver meaningful services and create lasting change in the community.
The Canopy's locations
Family Time
Family Plus
Multipurpose Community Centres and Halls (for hire)
Head office opening hours
- Monday 9AM - 4:30PM
- Tuesday 9AM - 4:30PM
- Wednesday 9AM - 4:30PM
- Thursday 9AM - 4:30PM
- Friday 9AM - 4:30PM
- Saturday Closed
- Sunday Closed
Phone us on 02 4908 1140 for opening hours of our Neighbourhood Centres, Community Facilities and Family and Children’s Services