Mental health charities in Australia: Who to support and how
Mental health is a pertinent issue in Australia (and around the world). People across the country are facing their own unique challenges every day.
The latest National Study of Mental Health and Wellbeing report, released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) in 2024, shows some eye-opening findings:
- 43% of people between 16 and 85 have had a mental disorder.
- 21.5% of Australians have experienced a mental disorder lasting 12 months.
- Almost 39% of those between 16 and 24 have had a 12-month disorder.
Mental health charities on the frontline, establishing the key pillars of support in our communities, are busier than ever. You can help mental health charities in Australia by starting a GoFundMe to support their cause. Maybe you’re affected by a mental disorder yourself, want to support a loved one , or you might simply just want to help as much as you can by donating to a mental health charity.
If you want to start your own fundraiser but are unsure which organisation to back, or where to donate, here’s a list of mental health charities in Australia.
This post includes tips on how to choose a charity to donate to and mental health fundraising ideas.
Mental health charities in Australia
Here’s a list of mental health charities in Australia that you can fundraise for. We also encourage you to visit their official websites to learn more about their latest projects and specifics, such as their deductible gift recipients (DGR) status.
1. Lifeline
Lifeline is the most prominent Australian national charity providing a 24/7 call line for people in emotional distress. It has a strong emphasis on suicide prevention. Crisis supporters are fully trained in this. It also offers online guides and techniques for managing mental health. You can download dedicated apps with programmes to help you build understanding and coping mechanisms.
- Focus area: All types of emotional afflictions and suicide prevention
- Core services:
- Suicide prevention support
- 24-hour phone support
- 24/7 online chat support
- Mental health support programmes and apps
- Who it helps: Lifeline provides an essential service for all Australians in the event of an emotional crisis, mental health episode or suicide ideation.
- Ways to support: Donate or start your own fundraiser. You can also participate in the many Lifeline events throughout the year, like Febfast, where you abstain from alcohol for 28 days to help raise money. More active sorts can join the paddle across Melbourne’s Port Phillip Bay.
2. Beyond Blue
Beyond Blue coordinates a passionate team of people to help influence and support the development of mental health services and policies. For over 20 years it has been a trusted and reliable source of mental health support and information. All of its work is community-guided, to which end it provides several discussion forums. It also provides front-line mental health support.
- Focus area: Anxiety and depression
- Core services:
- Immediate 24/7 phone or chat counselling
- Peer support forums
- Free mental health coaching programme
- Who it helps: Beyond Blue helps sufferers understand and work through their mental health challenges in a structured way, with ongoing support. It aims to address both chronic and acute conditions.
- Ways to support: Join a Beyond Blue swim, walk, run or cycle event. You can also donate or start a fundraiser.
3. R U OK?
Every year, thousands of Australians participate in R U OK? Day on the second Thursday of September, which encourages to start conversations to connect with people and address social isolation.
- Focus area: Suicide prevention
- Core services:
- Developing skills and confidence for caregivers
- Empowering real human connection
- Building informal support networks
- Who it helps: R U OK? aims to inspire everyone to connect with those around them or kick off conversations with anyone who might be struggling. The organisation equips l Australians with tools for everyone to talk about mental health.
- Ways to support: Take part in the annual RUOK? Day, donate to this progressively-minded organisation, or create your own fundraiser.
4. Black Dog Institute
The Black Dog Institute is Australia’s only medical research institute that is dedicated to investigate mental health across individuals’ entire lifespan – from childhood to adulthood.
As new challenges emerge amid societal crises, the Black Dog Institute scope of work is constantly evolving.
- Focus area: Suicide prevention, digital innovation supporting mental health, as well as youth and workplace mental health.
- Core services:
- Mental health research across the human lifespan
- Turning research into better treatment and real change
- Mental health support across communities
- Digital support tools
- Who it helps: The Black Dog Institute particularly supports the most vulnerable in our society, using its LifeSpan integrated system for suicide prevention. It also aims to mitigate the effects of modern tech on young people.
- Ways to support: Donations, fundraisers and research participation.
5. ReachOut
From career anxiety, handling online bullying and the unique issues that younger generations face in today’s society, ReachOut helps prepare young Australians and gives them the tools to navigate their mental health journey.
- Focus area: Youth mental health
- Core services:
- Live chat counselling
- Shared peer experiences
- Practical support for parents, caregivers and teachers
- Informational articles and assessment quizzes
- Who it helps: Focused on youth mental health, ReachOut specifically helps under 25s ride the waves of mental health they might experience in their youth.
- Ways to support: Share your own mental health experience, become a peer worker, donate or start a GoFundMe.
6. headspace
headspace aims to address the unique barriers that young Aussies face when it comes to getting mental support. This includes helping schools and students respond to suicide and recover from the effects. It has on-premise facilities in many primary and secondary schools. The organisation offers phone and online counselling and operates community centres across the country. All its services are either low-cost or free.
- Focus area: Youth mental health
- Core services:
- Suicide preparation, response and recovery support for schools
- Alcohol and drug education and prevention
- Holistic, integrated healthcare for those aged 12 to 25
- Who it helps: young Australians who need healthy habits to make a positive mental health difference in their own lives.
- Ways to support: Raise awareness of their free online and phone support services, donate or create a fundraiser. You can also volunteer as a helpline counsellor or at a local support centre.
7. Kids Helpline
Kids Helpline offers free, 24/7 private counselling service for children in Australia, and has professional counsellors trained in dealing with the specific challenges that children and teens face, especially in the modern digital environment.
- Focus area: Kids struggling with social integration, loneliness, toxic friendships and emotional distress
- Core services:
- One-on-one online or phone counselling, day and night
- Promoting healthy relationships with family and friends
- Support for abuse, bullying, drug or alcohol use and depression
- Social media support and counselling
- Who it helps: Young people aged 5 to 25. It also provides information and support for parents whose children are dealing with issues.
- Ways to support: Direct online donations or start a GoFundMe.
8. SANE Australia
SANE Australia is a national organisation covering a full range of mental health needs, specialising in helping people living with long-term mental conditions.
- Focus area: Chronic or complex mental health issues and trauma
- Core services:
- Free telehealth and digital support
- Support for mental disabilities, brain injuries and autism
- One-on-one counselling
- Support for families and carers
- Who it helps: Individuals with long-term mental health conditions and their families. Its RecoveryClub programme provides resources for individual personal appointments.
- Ways to support: Donations, workplace giving programmes or fundraising. You can also become a Peer Ambassador sharing your own mental health experiences.
9. Mental Health First Aid Australia
Mental Health First Aid Australia (MHFA) aims to equip communities with lay counselling knowledge and skills at the individual level. It helps everyday people who want to get involved in helping friends, family or anyone else with mental health problems.
- Focus area: Training to empower people to support others with mental health disorders
- Core training services:
- Adults supporting adults
- Adults supporting young people
- Teen peer-to-peer support
- Who it helps: Everyday people looking to help individuals with mental health issues. It also has dedicated courses to help Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander youth.
- Ways to support: Train to become an MHFA instructor, donate, participate in events and fundraise.
Fundraising ideas for mental health relief
Now that you have made the decision to fundraise for mental health charities, you need to decide how to do it.
The good news is, Australians are a generous bunch, ranking one of the most generous countries year in, year out in the CAF’s World Giving Index. So why not browse at charity challenge ideas, set yourself a goal and get going. There are also plenty of unique, fun and easy ways to raise money for your mental health charity of choice. Here are a few quick ideas you could try to get the ball rolling:
- Host a sports day: If you’re looking at hosting a fundraising event, a sports day is a brilliant and versatile way to bring a community together. It might be a group of friends, family, colleagues or neighbours – see who wants to get involved and pay a small donation to get their sporting spirit going. It’s easy to be inclusive of all ages and abilities with fun games like egg and spoon races, too.
- Hold a morning tea: Morning teas are easy offline fundraising events and a brilliant excuse to catch up with friends and have a chat. Raise money by asking for a small donation to join the morning tea and provide hot drinks and tasty treats. You could do this on a regular basis or just as a one-off to raise money for your mental health cause.
- Community events: If the weather is nice get your neighbours involved in a street party or community BBQ. Ask them to pay a small donation to be involved and get going. You can ask a local band to provide entertainment as their way of contributing.
- Do a fitness challenge: There are so many different options when it comes to fitness or sporting challenges to raise money. It doesn’t have to be running an ultramarathon – you can choose something that you find fun. Run 5ks each week, do yoga every day for a month, or get your friends to play team games.
- Host a craft night: Maybe you’re already creative or maybe you want to get inspired. Why not host a craft night and encourage people to bring along an activity they’ve always wanted to try.
- Sell handmade crafts: If you have the knack, you can sell handmade goods on platforms like Etsy and donate the proceeds.
For more options, have a browse through these fundraising ideas.
How can you get personal mental health support and financial assistance?
There are several government and community support services in Australia that you can use to look after your own mental health or get mental health financial support.
The Australian Medicare Mental Health Treatment Plan offers up to 10 subsidised individual or group therapy sessions every year for people who have a diagnosed mental health condition. These are run by experienced professional psychologists, occupational therapists and social workers.
Service Australia’s Centrelink is a trusted option for financial assistance. It helps people to access mental health services at lower costs, including Medicare. It can also assist with support payments for care-givers.
Of course, Australian mental health charities are another source of support. If you need help fast, look for those that have crisis numbers to call or offer immediate one-on-one online counselling. They also provide referrals for ongoing counselling and community mental health services. Many support organisations run 24/7 help lines, with Lifeline being the most trusted and popular.
Structured crisis pathways are immediate care models for urgent, acute mental health episodes. They typically include instant multi-disciplinary responses with a preventative focus. They also provide safe havens like halfway houses linked to community support resources.
And if you need to raise some money to pay for additional interventions, you can always use GoFundMe for personal mental health fundraising.
Make a difference
As highlighted in the beginning, it’s estimated that almost half (45%) of Australians will experience a mental health issue in their lifetime. You can help today to make a real difference in people’s lives and do your bit to make sure that vital funds and support services are there for when someone needs them – or for yourself. There are dozens of extremely effective mental health charities in Australia that you can donate to or raise funds for.