Minister for Education Ben Carroll has announced three new programs as part of the $200 million Schools Mental Health Menu, providing targeted mental health support for students when and where they need it most.
The Mental Health Menu is designed for schools to select evidence-based programs, support staff and resources which enables schools to select the mental health tools that best match the unique needs of their student cohorts.
“Not only are we putting thousands of mental health workers and leaders in every Victorian school, we’re also making sure kids have access to a full suite of mental health tools right through their time at school,” Minister for Education Ben Carroll said in a statement.
“We’re making sure every child has the support they need to thrive at school, without the added expense for families.”
The Schools Mental Health Fund and Menu was established in 2022 in response to the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System, which found that schools play a critical role in identifying student mental health and wellbeing challenges and making referrals to appropriate supports.
All Victorian government schools have access to the Mental Health Fund and receive ongoing funding for the Menu.
The updated Menu includes 59 evidence-based programs and initiatives, supporting schools to meet their students’ mental health and wellbeing needs, with special consideration given to programs servicing rural and regional areas.
Minister for Mental Health Ingrid Stitt said every young Victorian deserves the mental health support they need to grow and learn to the best of their ability,
“... providing these programs in schools is about early intervention in an environment where students feel most comfortable,” Stitt said.
Through the Menu, schools can book trusted services in areas such as social and emotional learning, mental health literacy and eating disorders.
The Menu also includes services that provide early intervention and cohort specific support, such as therapeutic programs and how to cope with disaster, grief and loss.
Schools can also use the Fund to employ qualified mental health and wellbeing professionals, including counsellors, youth workers, and arts, music and animal therapy services.
The Allan Government’s $600 million investment in student mental health is the largest in Australian history.
Last week it launched a public consultation on age limits for social media, with the findings set to shape a new social media education program to keep children safe online.
The survey gives parents, teachers and young people the opportunity to share their experiences and concerns about social media use and findings from the consultation process will then shape a new social media safety program, to be titled ‘Safe Socials’.
The consultation follows a similar NSW State Government survey involving 21,000 NSW parents and teenagers highlighting social media’s negative impacts, including addiction and other harms.
The Victorian Labor Government says Safe Socials builds on the success of other education programs pioneered by it, including Safe Schools and Respectful Relationships, and the state’s Australian-first ban on mobile phones in schools.
