Mental Health Carers Voice

June 2023

MHCV Team Update

Hi valued carers,

It looks like we’re just about to hit the half-way point of 2023 (it's July 2nd if you're wondering). Time flies when when you're busy making change! Over the past month, we have been focusing on listening to the experiences of carers and collaborating with other organisations to help them learn from those experiences. Some of our highlights include:

Joining Carers ACT to provide a submission into the proposed amendments of the Education Act 2014.
Attending the Mental Health Commissioning carer and consumer workshop.
Involvement in Carers ACT's first Carer Collective event
Delivering the first carer awareness training package to MHJHADS staff.

We're also excited to share that the federal government has announced an inquiry into the recognition of unpaid carers. This is an important opportunity to change the federal Carer Recognition Act 2010 to better support carers, and we'll be providing more information regarding consultation opportunities and ways to support your own submissions over the next month. You can read more about the inquiry below.

As always, our voice is vital to the work we do and if you have anything you wish to share please feel free to contact us via email mhcarers@carersact.org.au.

All the best,

Catherine Joseph and Catherine Vonarx,

The Mental Health Carers Voice Team

Get Involved

Want to be more involved in Mental Health Carers Voice's work? You can:

Sign up for our consultation list by updating your subscription settings here.
Check the consultations page on our website for upcoming opportunities.
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Join our Advocacy and Policy Advisory Group, a group of mental health carers who draw on their lived experience to drive our work. Learn more.

Interim Funding announced for Child and Youth Mental Health Programs in the ACT

MHCV is pleased to learn that the ACT Government will provide interim funding for two programs that were at risk of closure at the end of June due to the end of their current Commonwealth funding. The WOKE program, delivered by the University of Canberra, is an evidence-based program that provides Dialectical Behaviour Therapy for Adolescents (DBT-A) to young people at high risk of suicide, self-harm, and future diagnosis of multiple severe psychological disorders. It is a cost-efficient and cost-effective program that responds to local needs and has demonstrated benefits for the young people, their families and carers, and the ACT mental health workforce. Likewise, Stepping Stones, delivered by CatholicCare, provides support to children under the age of 12 and their families and carers, specifically those impacted by trauma. This program has experienced high levels of demand and responds to a specific gap in mental health services.

We would like to take this opportunity to extend our sincere thanks to our colleagues in the community sector for their advocacy to continue funding, particularly the Youth Coalition of the ACT, along with Minister Emma Davidson and the ACT Government. The interim funding for these programs provides an opportunity to explore options for longer-term funding. It also ensures continuity of service to the many children, young people, and families currently on the waiting lists to access these programs.

Read the full ABC news article here.

Additional $28 million funding to support ACT mental health system  

Budget day is upon us. Ahead of the release of the budget papers later today Chief Minister Andrew Barr and Minister of Mental Health Emma Davidson have announced that $28 million in additional funding will be invested over the next four years to support a number of programs targeted at eating disorders, early intervention, and child and youth mental health. These include:

$17.3 million over four years to support the operation of the ACT’s first Residential Eating Disorders Centre.
$4.3 million over four years for community based residential accommodation for people with mental health needs.
$2 million to continue and establish a range of complementary mental health services for children and young people.
$2.3 million over four years to open a second Safe Haven facility at the Canberra Hospital, following the project’s success in Belconnen.
Extension of the second Police, Ambulance and Clinician Early Response (PACER) team for a further 9 months.
Funding of $204,000 for WOKE and $445,208 for Stepping Stones in 2023/24 to support youth mental health services

Find out more via the joint media release.

'Body Kind' Youth Survey Report Released

In late 2022, with support from nib Foundation, Butterfly invited all young people in Australia aged 12 to18 years to take part in the first annual Body Kind Youth Survey and to share their experiences and ideas around body image. Results found that, among other concerning statistics, more than 90% of young people reported some level of body image concern.

Read the full report here.

Not Before Time: Lived Experience-Led Justice and Repair Summary Report Released

The Not Before Time: Lived Experience-Led Justice and Repair report was written to advise the Victorian Minister for Mental Health on the best options for acknowledging the harm caused by the mental health system to consumers and survivors, and families, carers and supporters. It is the first report of its kind that the project team know of in the world. The findings of this report present valuable recommendations that could be applied to various Australian jurisdictions.

Learn more about the report by clicking this link.

National Workforce Survey for Parent, Family and Child Mental Health 2020-21 - Key Findings Webinar

Between December 2020 and March 2021, Emerging Minds asked health, social and community services workers in Australia how they viewed their capabilities in regard to understanding and responding to child mental health via the first National Workforce Survey for Parent, Family and Child Mental Health in 2020/21. A webinar will be held on Wednesday 5 July, 12.30pm AEST to focus on the results of this survey.

See the highlights of the results in the National Workforce Survey Infographic and sign up to the webinar launch to learn more.

BIG opportunity to reshape law around carer recognition!

An official inquiry into the recognition of unpaid carers in Australia has been launched, with a view to reform the federal Carer Recognition Act 2010 (Cth) for the first time since it was introduced in 2010. This is a huge opportunity for carers to reshape the very legislation that was designed to acknowledge and support them!

The most influential thing you can do, is to share your stories and feedback through a personal submission directly to the inquiry. Carers ACT will be providing templates and how-to guides soon to help make this process as easy as possible for carers who choose to make a submission.

Carers ACT will also be supporting the voices of Canberra’s carers by gathering your views and input to inform our submission to the Inquiry. Keep your eye on your inbox and our Facebook page for updates on how we will be seeking your feedback and supporting carers to make personal submissions.

If there is anything else that would be helpful to you in having your voice heard, please let us know as soon as possible by emailing mhcarers@carersact.org.au.

Commissioning for NGO Mental Health Sector in the ACT

The mental health subsector commissioning team are seeking your views on the draft blueprint for the NGO mental health sector and several priority group feedback papers.

You can read the carers-specific papers using these links:

The Commissioning team is happy to receive feedback to these papers via email at mentalhealthcommissioning@act.gov.au. This can be with your input provided directly in emails, sending back copies of the Discussion Guides with your typed up feedback or even scanned copies of the printed Discussion Guides with handwritten notes. Please note that the final date that these submissions will be accepted is Friday, 7 July 2023. Please get in touch with the Commissioning team or with us if you have concerns with meeting this deadline.

Also, a friendly reminder that the Design Phase conclusion Webinar will be held on 13th July, 1:30 pm. Click this link to register for the webinar launch.

Exciting New Mental Health Lived Experience Leadership Opportunities open!

The ACT Health Directorate and Canberra Health Services (CHS) are seeking passionate people for leadership opportunities in lived experience across the mental health sector in the ACT. The two Lived Experience Director positions are exciting new roles that will:

guide and lead a lived experience perspective across policy, program development, and delivery of mental health services across the ACT.
bring strong relational skills to work with a wide range of stakeholders around a shared vision and pathway for action.
We are seeking applicants who have a lived or living experience of mental health distress and/or suicidality, challenge, and wellbeing journey and a background in applying lived experience in a strategic role.

One position is in the Office for Mental Health and Wellbeing and the second position is in Mental Health, Justice Health, and Alcohol and Drug Services (MHJHADS) in CHS.

If you are interested in learning more about these positions, the link to the advertisement for these positions can be found here

Applications close on 13 July 2023.

ACT Preventive Health Action Plan 2023-2025

The ACT Health Directorate is seeking input to help shape the 'Healthy Canberra: ACT Preventive Health Plan 2020-2025'. The objective of the Plan is to prevent chronic diseases by promoting healthy lifestyle choices that lower the risk of developing preventable illnesses.

Your thoughts on what measures the government can implement to decrease chronic disease in the ACT, as well as your feedback on the second ACT Preventive Health Action Plan 2023-2025, are welcomed (closing on the 28th July, 2023). You can find out more and provide your feedback here.

ACT Disability Health Strategy

The draft ACT Disability Health Strategy is open for six weeks consultation from 14 June to 25 July 2023. The Government want to know what you think about the draft ACT Disability Health Strategy. If you have a disability or are a family member or carer of someone with disability please provide your valuable feedback by completing an online form or providing a submission on the YourSay website.

Research Project on Long Term Carers - Call for Participants

Long term carers who identify as culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) are invited to participate in research being conducted by Dalanglin (Dalang) Dkhar who is a PhD candidate and a full-time primary carer. The research will include the production of a documentary film on being a lifelong caring.

The impact of the journey of being a long-term carer is poorly understood and Carers ACT believes this work will be important in increasing sector and community understanding of lifelong caring. Carers ACT believes this work will be very useful in informing future policy and supports, along with bringing a spotlight on the issue, and as such we are supporting Dalang’s work in this area.

Find out more by clicking this link.

Survey for Eating Disorders Peer Support Guidelines

Butterfly is developing National Eating Disorder Peer Workforce Guidelines for effective, safe, and coordinated support. If you live in Australia and have lived experience of an eating disorder, are a carer or family member, or are a peer worker providing support to people experiencing an eating disorder, Butterfly would love to hear from you via this survey (which should take less than ten minutes to complete).

Take the survey here.

WCS - PERKS Parenting Seminars - 4 Week Course

Woden Community Services will be delivering four free seminars over four weeks about parenting adolescents and pre-teens with mental health concerns. Topics covered are adolescent development, anxiety, depression, self harm, family conflict, school refusal, safety planning. Parents and carers will be provided with information, practical tips and tricks on all topics.

Dates: Monday 24 July to Monday 14 August

Time: 4.00pm - 6.00pm

Location: Westfield Woden Keltie Street Phillip, ACT 2606

Fee: Free

Reserve your spot using this link.

MHCC ACT Mid-year Forum on 6 July

MHCC ACT will be bringing together the ACT community-managed mental health sector and the wider community for an afternoon panel discussion on the intersection between mental health and climate change. The Forum will be held on 6 July, from 1pm-2.30pm at the National Museum of Australia, Canberra.

If you are interested on joining the event, please register here.

Carers Australia’s 'Women Who Care'

It can be challenging for women to work, study or volunteer while also providing care. It can also be confusing for employers to know how to adjust so that carers feel supported and able to work. Carers Australia have a suite of resources, information and links to support women who care and their employers.

Access the information hub using this link.

Staying Safe in Hospital Booklets

As part of the Canberra Health Literacy project, HCCA has worked with consumers to adapt WA Health’s Patient First resources for the ACT. These booklets cover how to prepare for your hospital stay, stay safe while in hospital, and recover safely at home.

You can download the Staying Safe booklets from the HCCA website.

Events Coming Up

Carer Collective

18 July, 10:30 AM

Carers ACT, Holt ACT

Carers ACT Naraganawali Open Day -

29 July, 11 AM

28 Rowntree Cres, Isaacs ACT

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