Mind Australia welcomes the continuation of funding for essential mental health services in the Victorian Budget announced today.
We know that State and Federal budget announcements are a time of apprehension for thousands of people with mental health challenges, and their carers, families and supporters, as they wait to see if they will still be able to access services they rely on to live safely and well in the community.
Mind is pleased to have received further funding to continue to deliver the below services:
Youth Outreach Recovery Service (YORS) funding has been extended for another 12 months. This is Victoria’s only statewide outreach service for young people aged 16–25 with complex mental health challenges. It provides crucial early intervention support for young people who need practical, flexible help to manage their mental health, maintain stable housing, build daily living skills, and reconnect with education, training, employment, and community life.
Mind’s LGBTIQA+ Aftercare service has also had its funding extended for another year. Aftercare is a one-of-a-kind program that supports people who are LGBTIQA+ and are having thoughts or intentions of suicide. It uniquely provides a peer-led team of mental health peer practitioners and counsellors who are also part of the LGBTIQA+ community and have their own lived experience of thoughts of suicide.
The new Lived Experience Residential Service, which Mind will be opening in Moolap, near Geelong, this year, has had its trial funding extended through to June 2027. This service providing short term residential support for people in crisis will be the first in Victoria to be fully staffed and led by people with Lived Experience.
The Mental Health and Wellbeing Hub in Cowes/Gippsland is one of numerous community centred supports that will continue thanks to funding announced today. Mental Health and Wellbeing Hubs and Locals are making it easier for Victorians to access free and immediate support for distress and mental health support.
Mind’s Executive Director of Operations for Victoria, Belinda McCullough said the continued funding for key services like YORS and Aftercare reflects their effectiveness in providing transformational support for people dealing with significant mental health challenges.
“We know from our own extensive outcomes data and the many testimonials of people using our YORS and Aftercare services just how impactful they are for people experiencing significant distress. We hope that the proven effectiveness of these services is recognised through longer funding commitments in the future, to allay the significant anxiety that one-year rolling contracts cause the people relying on these services, and the staff who support them with such commitment,” she said.
Ms McCullough also noted that, while this year’s Victorian Budget focused on cost-of-living pressures, it did not address the associated significant mental health and supported housing challenges through new investment. The Victorian Government’s 2021 Budget commitment of $40 million in funding for 2,000 supported homes for people with mental health challenges has not been fulfilled.
“We were hopeful to see further investment in this year’s budget. There is significant unmet need for mental health and supported housing in Victoria and we hope the Victorian Government will continue to work with the sector to meet its commitments to implement recommendations from the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System. The upcoming negotiations between federal and state/territory governments on the National Mental Health and Suicide Prevention Agreement are critical if we are to provide appropriate support to the thousands of Victorians whose needs are not currently being met. Mind will continue to work with governments across all jurisdictions to advocate for greater investment in mental health.”