Mind Australia is deeply saddened to share that Chris Gibbs, our long time Board Director, passed away on Friday 11 July 2025.
Chris brought with him decades of experience in the mental health sector when he joined the Mind Board as a Director in 2014. From 2014 to 2021 he oversaw a period of incredible growth and change at Mind and for the mental health sector as a whole. He served as Deputy Chair from 2019 to the end of 2021.
Chris held leadership roles in the public health sector (Melbourne Health), the Victorian Public Service and the community services sector. He was the Director of North Western Mental Health and served on a wide range of industry and government advisory committees. He commenced as the inaugural CEO for the Mental Health Professionals Network in 2008.
His other board roles included VATMI Industries, Victorian Centre of Excellence in Eating Disorders, Orygen Research, Australian Centre of Psychiatric Nursing Research, Community Advisory Council and North Western Melbourne PHN.
Chris had a comprehensive knowledge of the mental health sector and the key stakeholders in it across several decades. He was a valuable supporter of the reform of the mental health system from deinstitutionalisation towards a more lived experience focused and community based model.
This was a period of seismic change in how mental health services are commissioned and funded, including the introduction of the NDIS. His experience and guidance was invaluable in steering Mind’s strategic direction through this changing landscape, and through the unique challenges of the pandemic.
He was a long term advocate of the critical importance of community managed specialist mental health services in the mental health service system.
Chris is warmly remembered at Mind as “an all round nice bloke”, who was “approachable”, “decent”, “considered” and “worldly”.
We also fondly remember Chris as someone for who no ocean was too cold to dive into – every Portsea Swim Classic or Lorne Pier to Pub swim, he was there.
Mind mourns his passing and we extend our heartfelt condolences to his family and friends.