Budget cuts, funding freezes, and tight rental markets put pressure on homeless services as more people end up on the street.

A man has pleaded guilty to dangerous driving causing the death of a former regional Victorian mayor near Ballarat in 2017.

A teenager molested by Christian Brother John Laidlaw in the 1980s tells a Melbourne court he thought he was being "punished by God" when he was sexually assaulted at his family home, as the former teacher pleads guilty to abusing six boys over two decades.

A tight rental market and rising cost of living is stretching homelessness services beyond their budgeted capacity.

A rise in the number of assaults against local government employees prompts Victorian councils to call for a change in sentencing laws to better protect their staff.

A central Victorian woman is one of only three accredited teachers of a Japanese form of freestyle weaving that is beginning to grow in popularity.

A 21-year-old is flown to hospital after an axe hit his helmet while he was taking part in a mock medieval battle at Hawkesbury Showground in New South Wales.

This gaggle of geese is beloved by Instagrammers, but the local council says the abandoned birds are destroying the environment and must be rehomed.

When farmer Alistair Gabb fell into depression his doctor prescribed him medication and referred him to a psychiatrist for 10 free therapy sessions but it was far from enough.

Locals in the Victorian town of Daylesford say they are shocked and devastated by council's decision to remove an "aggressive" gaggle of geese from the area, describing them as "a bit of an icon" in the tourism hotspot.

A judge says Victorian paedophile priest Robert Claffey "mocked" his priestly authority to access and abuse children, while sentencing him to more jail time.

A Christian Brother who sexually assaulted boys at some of Victoria's most prestigious Catholic schools is sentenced to four and a half years in prison.

A prominent urban researcher warns that Ballarat is heading towards a "social disaster" unless it can curb urban sprawl.

A man disqualified from driving and tested positive to methamphetamines has been jailed for at least two years for dangerous driving causing the death of a former regional Victorian mayor near Ballarat in 2017.

School principal Michelle Wilson spent a stressful two hours on the phone, convinced she owed $8,000 and could soon be arrested if she didn't pay up. Then she realised the whole thing was an elaborate hoax.

The Carisbrook Roadhouse flooded in 2011.

A scoreline of 79.41 (515) to 1.0 (6) has reversed a country AFL team's own, regular weekly triple-figure defeats. But is this just another tally of country footy's troubles?

Every night Allanah Morel packs her daughter's school bag ahead of time because she knows that by the next morning she could be in too much pain to get out of bed.

Dozens of Victorians shared their painful and powerful stories during the state's royal commission into its broken mental health system. Commissioners now have the difficult task of finding a way forward, write Zalika Rizmal and James Bennett.

Once the staple of regional travel, motels are facing an increasingly uncertain future as online alternatives bite away at revenue.

A former Catholic priest who showed pornographic images to children and assaulted a teenager while he slept is jailed for two years and two months.

Senior Constable Edward Barnett was shot and killed attempting to stop an armed robber in 1858. Now he has finally been honoured with one of Victoria Police's most prestigious medals.

Tours of the 152-year-old Aradale Mental Asylum have been cancelled due to lead paint contamination. Operators fear this may be the end of the road for the historic site.

Australians' taste in beer is evolving and craft brands are on the rise, but that also means the nation's country pubs are changing.

Research into a mysterious substance that makes up 85 per cent of the universe, along with good old-fashioned gold and a new hydroponic farm, are driving a jobs boom in the small Victorian town of Stawell, but there's a problem.

A cold snap has washed across Victoria, plunging temperatures below zero in many places and drenching others in rain.

Cardinal George Pell could be released from custody, ordered to face a new trial or sent back to prison when the Court of Appeal hands down its ruling next Wednesday. We explain the possible outcomes and what will happen next.

Thermostats and saunas become secret weapons as Australian athletes brace themselves for the unusual conditions of a midnight marathon at the World Athletics Championships in Doha next month.

George Pell could walk from court today or be sent back to prison to serve the rest of his six-year term, depending on the outcome of his appeal against his child sex abuse convictions.

Some koalas may be pickier eaters than others due to the mix of microbes in their lower gastrointestinal tract, but faecal transplants could help them diversify their diet, a new study suggests.

The former choirboy sexually abused by Cardinal George Pell welcomes the dismissal of Pell's appeal and says he hopes the "stressful" court process has come to an end.

The ABC understands the Victorian Department of Corrections considers the Hopkins Correctional Centre in Ararat, 200 kilometres west of Melbourne, to be the most appropriate place to send the high-profile cleric.

The Prime Minister suggests Cardinal George Pell will be stripped of his Order of Australia honour, as Pell plans to take his rejected appeal against his child sex abuse convictions to the High Court.