Free support will be available nationally, with vulnerable groups targeted.
The federal government has committed $135.2 million to its digital mental health program, splashing the cash across 12 different services to provide free support particularly for new parents, younger Australians, LGBTQIA+ people and people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities.
“Every Australian deserves access to mental health care and support at a time and place that suits them,” said health minister Mark Butler in announcing the investment.
“That’s why we are expanding the range and reach of free high-quality digital mental health supports.
“Mainstream services don’t work for everyone, and this $135 million investment will deliver more mental health care, more fairly and more efficiently to the people who need it.”
For the first time, all funded services are accredited against the National Safety and Quality Digital Mental Health Standards. This aims to improve the quality of digital mental health services offerings.
The 12 successful services are:
- Blue Knot Foundation: Blue Knot Helpline;
- Butterfly Foundation: Butterfly National Helpline;
- E-Hub Health Pty Ltd: e-hub Web Service;
- headspace: eheadspace;
- LGBTIQ+ Health Australia: Qlife;
- MQ Health Pty Limited: MindSpot;
- Orygen: MOST;
- PANDA: PANDA National Perinatal Mental Health Helpline;
- Parent-Infant Research Institute: MumMoodBooster and DadBooster;
- ReachOut Australia: ReachOut;
- SANE Australia: SANE’s Guided Recovery Community for Complex Mental Health; and,
- St. Vincent’s Hospital Sydney Limited: THIS WAY UP’s clinician-supported service, CALD community targeted service, and self-help service.
SANE Australia has been awarded $27.3 million over three years for the national rollout of a free digital psychosocial recovery program for adults experiencing complex mental illness and trauma, as well as for their family, carers and kin.
According to SANE CEO Rachel Green, this investment is the first of its kind globally and an enormous step forward when it comes to the accessibility of mental health services for those living with long term or severe mental health conditions.
“There are around five million Australians living with complex mental health needs and at least 500,000 missing out on support services that could dramatically change the trajectory of their life,” said Ms Green.
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“The need to find new ways of supporting this community has never been greater, and there’s strong evidence that digital mental health support services are just as effective as face-to-face services, more economical and rapidly scalable to overcome geographic or workforce challenges.”
In 2021 SANE piloted a co-designed digital and telehealth recovery program.
“Our services have now grown to encompass a stepped digital support offering, proven by independent evaluation to reduce symptom domination, improve quality of life and, importantly, empower individuals to have the knowledge, skills and confidence to build their own recovery journey,” said Ms Green.
“People with complex mental health issues, and their families and carers, have always faced significant geographic, socio-economic and stigma-based barriers to recovery, impacting their ability to live the same meaningful and productive life as everybody else.
“This historic investment in making our free services available nationally is testament to the willingness of this government to explore new mental health support pathways and actively reverse the inequality in service access that this community has experienced for so long.”
The SANE Digital Psychosocial Recovery Program and Community is currently available in most parts of Australia and will be made nationally available for free from July 2025.
Support services include a 14-week program of 1:1 recovery-focused counselling or peer support; semi-guided Recovery Club including online group session, tailored recovery resources and peer support; self-guided Recovery Community where people can connect with peers within a safe, moderated environment.
St Vincent’s also welcomed the funding news, saying its digital mental health treatment service, THIS WAY UP, will receive $7.3 million in funding over three years, to sustain and expand the platform’s work in delivering accessible, high-quality online mental health treatment nationwide.
“A portion of the funding will enable the development of a world-first multilingual digital mental health service, specifically designed to reduce mental distress and support culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities,” said the St Vincent’s statement.
“In collaboration with Mental Health Australia’s Embrace Multicultural Mental Health Project, THIS WAY UP will translate, culturally adapt, and tailor its treatment programs and resources to ensure that non-English-speaking Australians have equitable access to effective mental health care.”
THIS WAY UP’s director, Dr Mike Millard, said the funding was an important investment by the government in the service’s work and outcomes.
“THIS WAY UP is one of Australia’s largest and longest-standing digital mental health platforms. We are proud to have provided mental health treatment to around 300,000 Australians in need and to be trusted by a community of 38,000 clinicians right across this nation. That’s one-third of all GPs, psychiatrists and psychologists who are using THIS WAY UP in their routine care,” said Dr Millard.
“Innovative treatment plays a crucial role in Australia’s mental health system. They provide treatment – prior to, or alongside, medication and face-to-face therapy – and help prevent the escalation of more serious mental health issues. That’s never been more important.
“THIS WAY UP also offers Australians in regional and remote parts of the country the high-quality mental health treatment they might not be able to access face-to-face.
“What sets THIS WAY UP apart is that it we are a service developed by frontline clinicians in collaboration with consumers and people with lived experience. We are also backed by more than 120 scientific publications. As a result, we’re proud to deliver evidence-based, accessible mental health support that meets people’s real needs.”
