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Resources for young people

For immediate support Emergency services: In case of fire, medical or police emergency, dial 000.

  • Lifeline - 13 11 14
    Lifeline’s 13 11 14 crisis support service is available 24/7. Anyone in Australia can speak to a trained Crisis Supporter over the phone, any time of the day or night.
  • Kids Helpline - 1800 55 1800
    Free, confidential counselling service available any time of the day or night by phone or webchat.
  • QLife - 1800 184 527
    LGBTQI+ national counselling service, available 3pm – 12am.
  • 13YARN - 139276
    Free and confidential service available 24/7 from any mobile or pay phone, for Aboriginal & Torres Strait Islander people in crisis. Run by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
  • headspace - 1800 650 890
    Online and telephone support service that helps young people.
  • Beyond Blue - 1300 22 4636
    Call or chat online with a counsellor at any time, 24/7.
  • 1800RESPECT - 1800 737 732 or text 0458 737 732
    1800RESPECT is a Confidential information, counselling and support service available for free, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to support people impacted by domestic, family or sexual violence.

Mental health support and resources

  • Reach Out
    Use ReachOut.com to figure things out and make life better. The website offers information and other resources designed specifically for young people.
  • Children of Parents with a Mental Illness (COPMI)
    Having a parent with a mental illness can be tough. But COPMI have a lot of information and videos to help you get your head around it all.
  • Bite Back
    BITE BACK is a free, self-guided online wellbeing and resilience program for young people aged 13–16 years old. It uses a combination of fun, interactive activities, quizzes, animations and information across nine positive psychology domains including gratitude, optimism, flow, meaning, hope, mindfulness, character strengths, healthy lifestyle, and positive relationships.
  • Healthy Mind
    Healthy Mind is an easy-read, accessible mental wellbeing tool that fits the needs of people with Intellectual Disability
  • Brave Program
    The BRAVE Program is an interactive, online program for to help young people better cope with their worries.
  • MoodGYM
    This free, fun, interactive program helps you identify and overcome problem emotions and shows you how to develop good coping skills for the future.
  • Sleep Ninja
    A free, evidence based smartphone app offered by the Black Dog Institute that shown to be effective in helping young people with sleep problems.
  • Out and On-line
    An online program to improve wellbeing and reduce mental health symptoms in same-gender attracted youth aged 18-25 years, providing early intervention for of Anxiety and Depression.

Dealing with family challenges

  • Orange Door
    Help for young people if someone close to them is hurting, controlling you or making them feel afraid, something bad is happening at home, they’re not getting what they need to be OK from their family or carer, or they’re worried about the safety of someone they know, like a friend or family member
  • Young Carers Network
    A nationally coordinated resource to raise young carer awareness, provide information, and direct young carers to appropriate pathways for support for people under the age of 25 years old who provide unpaid care and support to family member/s, or friends with a disability, physical or mental illness, a substance dependency, or who is aged.
  • The Daisy App
    A free app from 1800RESPECT to connect people experiencing violence or abuse to services in their local area, allowing users to privately and discretely access support service websites from within the app, which means these sites won’t show up in your browser history.
  • The Sunny App
    Sunny is 1800RESPECT’s app for people with disability to make it easy and accessible for people who have experienced violence and abuse to access appropriate supports.
  • Itsallright
    A story-based online resource with information and tips for young people who have a family member with mental illness.
  • Centrelink Parenting Payment
    Centrelink provides a range of payments and services to help young parents.
  • Centrelink Child Care Benefit
    Centrelink provides a range of payments and services to help young parents.
  • Raising Children Network
    This website provides parents, including young parents, with information and resources to support them in the day-to-day work of raising children and looking after their own needs.
  • Family Mental Health Support Services
    Targets prevention and early intervention, with a particular focus on Indigenous families and those from a culturally and linguistically diverse background.
  • Reconnect
    For young people having problems at home or school, or who are worried about getting kicked out of home. Reconnect can help young people improve their relationship with family and stay at school. They can offer you mediation, counselling, group work and referrals to other services, as well as practical support for families.
  • Relationships Australia
    Relationship support services are for all members of the community, regardless of religious belief, age, gender, sexual orientation, lifestyle choice, cultural background or economic circumstance
  • Salvation Army Alcohol and Other Drug Support Services
    A range of programs including withdrawal management, residential rehabilitation, non-residential rehabilitation, community programs and harm reduction services.

Accessibility Support

  • Translating and Interpreting Service - 13 14 50
    Provides a telephone interpreting service to assist with communication in a different language
  • The National Relay Service - 13 36 77
    Provides assistance to people who are deaf or have a hearing or speaking impairment
  • The Disability Gateway
    The Disability Gateway connects people with information, support and services for areas of life such as employment, education, aids and equipment, income and finance and illness.
  • Support for younger people in, or at risk of entering, residential aged care
    Learn about the support available for younger people living in, or at risk of entering, residential aged care.
  • National Companion Card
    The National Companion Card scheme enables eligible people with disability to participate at venues and activities without incurring the cost of a second ticket for their attendant carer.
  • Australian Disability Parking Scheme
    The Australian Disability Parking Scheme helps eligible people park nearer to their destination.
  • National Auslan Interpreter Booking and Payment Service (NABS)
    The National Auslan Interpreter Booking Service provides accredited Auslan (Australian Sign Language) interpreters to deaf Auslan users free of charge when they attend private medical consultations.
  • Drive for Life
    The Drive for Life program primarily supports young people aged between 16-25 and is designed to meet the needs of young people who may find it difficult to achieve their drivers licence, so they can access work, school and community.

Study and school

  • Centrelink
    Centrelink provides payments and information and services to help young people between 15 and 24 years of age continue education and training, such as Youth Allowance and ABSTUDY.
  • Australian Apprenticeships
    The government’s apprenticeships programs offer opportunities for young people to train, study and earn an income at a variety of qualification levels in most occupations as well as in traditional trades.
  • The Skills for Education and Employment program
    A program that provides language, literacy and numeracy training to job seekers who find it hard to get work. Job seekers are referred to the program by the Services Australia and Employment Service Providers.
  • Study Assist
    Options available to students for extra support during your study from the Australian Government
  • Fee-Free TAFE
    Free TAFE is a joint initiative of the Australian, State and Territory governments, providing tuition-free courses to students wanting to train, retrain or upskill.

Getting a job and going to work

  • Jobactive
    The Australian Government’s way to support job seekers to connect with work opportunities.
  • Transition to Work
    A government employment service that helps young people aged 15 to 24 into work (including apprenticeships and training) or education.
  • myfuture
    Provides information and resources to explore career pathways and the courses available in your area.
  • Services Australia
    The government department that provides a range of payments and services to job seekers, such as Youth Allowance and JobSeeker.
  • JobAccess
    A free information and advice service about the employment of people with disability. JobAccess helps people with disability, employers, service providers and the community to access information about services, financial assistance and workplace solutions.
  • The Fair Work Ombudsman
    The Fair Work Ombudsman can give advice to help employees understand their workplace rights and responsibilities, and can offer support to people when they think they have been mistreated at work.
  • Young People’s Employment Pathways
    Young People’s Employment Pathways (YPEP) is a service offered by Life Without Barriers that supports young people with disability to gain skills and experience and to find meaningful employment.

Health

  • Medicare
    Provides payments and services that can help when a person uses health care services or buys medicines. Young people aged 15 or older, can have their own Medicare card.
  • How to get your own Medicare card
    A youth-friendly guide to how young people can arrange to receive their own Medicare card.
  • Indigenous Access Line
    A free telephone service that helps Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people living anywhere in Australia to access Medicare services and programs.
  • Health Care Card
    Provides concessions on health-care costs, including cheaper prescription medicines through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme, and access to medical services funded by the Australian Government. This card can also give access to concessions provided by State and Local Governments as well as some private businesses, including household, education, and public-transport costs.
  • Head to Health
    A website providing a range of mental health resources including online programs, fact sheets, audio and video, and online support groups.

Financial and legal help