The Turnbull Government will establish a new headspace in the Bass Coast and South Gippsland region of Victoria, to provide mental health services to young people in the region.
Funding of $450,000 to establish the centre and $1 million a year for services will deliver much needed mental health care to local families where they need it and when they need it.
Young people in the local area face many challenges and this new service will provide a significant boost of support.
There are more pressures on young people today than ever before and the establishment of this headspace is so important in providing needed services in our region.
Early intervention is absolutely critical to helping young people with mental health issues and the headspace will deliver front-line services and coordinate the right interventions for at risk young people.
The Bass Coast and South Gippsland region is one of ten locations across Australia to receive new headspace youth mental health services.
I am committed to ensuring young Australians can get information, advice, counselling or treatment, when and where they need it.
Residents of Flinders and McMillian will be able to access these services, especially young people in Wonthaggi, Phillip Island, Foster, Leongatha and Korumburra and the surrounding districts.
The Turnbull Government is investing an extra $28.9 million for ten new headspace services in regional and rural communities, bringing the total number of centres to 110 by 2019.
headspace offers early intervention for 12 to 25 year olds in four key areas – mental health, related physical health, social and vocational support and alcohol and other drug use.
The Bass Coast and South Gippsland headspace will now begin a planning phase, which will also include determining an exact location, with services expected to be available within 12 months.
The Turnbull Government is committed to boosting mental health services with the 2017-18 Budget providing more than $170 million for mental health support, treatment and research.
This includes $80 million of additional funding, contingent on matched commitments from the states and territories, to maintain community psychosocial services for people with mental illness who do not qualify for assistance through the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
People living in rural and remote regions of Australia will now receive significantly improved access to psychologists, under a new $9.1 million telehealth initiative set to roll-out later this year.
(ENDS)