It gives me great pleasure to present our CEO message while Mark Orr is on annual leave, he will be returning early August.
This month we celebrate the announcement of the new lived experience consumer and family and carer peak organisations. These are long awaited organisations which will provide opportunities for lived experience contributions to National mental health and psychosocial disability policy, program design and evaluation.
The National Mental Health Consumer Alliance and Mental Health Carers Australia have been funded to establish the respective peak organisations. The experience of both organisations, and their members, in representing and advocating on behalf of consumers and families and carers, will provide an important channel through which to bring the voice of each group to national conversations.
We are delighted to see the Australian Government fund two separate peak organisations, and to provide them with the resourcing necessary to effectively contribute to important discussions about how to improve the mental health system and the NDIS.
This move emphasises, once more, that mental health reform and development cannot happen, let alone be successful, without the contribution of consumers and families and carers. That is important at the National level, as much as in each organisation delivering supports.
Our General Manager, Inclusion, Fay Jackson has been a strong advocate for these peak organisations for many years. Fay has known how important they are symbolically and practically. They help centre and remind us why organisations like Flourish Australia exist – supporting people’s mental health recovery and supporting families and carers that provide associated supports for those journeys.
This month we read some great stories of recovery in the community. We see Paul’s story leaving hospital and now living independently with plans to travel and set up a design workshop. We also read of Graeme’s amazing story of recovery through being an Aboriginal artist. These journeys of recovery are always inspiring and show how people can achieve their goals, and sometimes even exceed them, with the right support, at the right time.
I hope you enjoy this month’s newsletter.
Tim Fong
Acting CEO
