Member Alert - Suicide Prevention Australia

 

World Suicide Prevention Day Breakfast at Parliament House This morning, Suicide Prevention Australia proudly co-hosted our annual World Suicide Prevention Day breakfast at Parliament House alongside the Parliamentary Friends of Suicide Prevention.  At the event, the Federal Government announced the continuation of the Suicide Prevention Research Fund, with $4 million over the next two years. We wholeheartedly thank the government for this vital commitment. This funding means we can keep building the evidence base to understand what works, where to invest, and how to best support Australians in distress. Along with the announcement, it was excellent to see bi-partisan support at this morning's breakfast with members of parliament coming together to recognise and acknowledge the work of the suicide prevention sector. It also provided an opportunity to amplify the voices of people with lived and living experience, and put suicide prevention firmly on the national agenda with the launch of our State of the Nation in Suicide Prevention Report in front of the Australian Government. A heartfelt thank you to Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention, the Hon Emma McBride MP, Leader of the Opposition, the Hon Sussan Ley, Co-Chairs of the Parliamentary Friends of Suicide Prevention, Jo Briskey MP and Julian Leeser MP, and Shadow Minister for Mental Health, Zoe McKenzie MP, for their powerful contributions. We are also deeply grateful to Aunty Violet Sheridan for her warm Welcome to Country and to Leesa Mountford for her moving acknowledgement of lived experience. Picture from left to right: Jo Briskey MP, Nieves Murray, Susan Templeman MP, Emma McBride MP, Rachel Fishlock, Jordan Frith, Graham McLean, Nieves Murray, Cathie Armour, Darren Black.

2025 State of the Nation in Suicide Prevention Report launched Today, we launched the sixth iteration of the State of the Nation in Suicide Prevention report. This report shines a light on the pressures facing our sector, the risks impacting our communities, and the urgent need for stronger national action on suicide prevention. It’s not just data — it’s a call to action. Key findings include: 73% of respondents have seen an increased demand for services over the past 12 months. 76% of respondents require increased funding to meet that increased demand. Most organisations (62%) do not have sufficient staff and volunteers to meet workforce needs. The vast majority (93%) of respondents believe a whole-of-government approach to suicide prevention is required. Housing access and affordability (81%) and cost-of-living, social isolation and loneliness (78%) are reported to be the greatest risk to suicide over the next 12 months. Thank you to everyone who participated in the survey and provided their valuable insights to help inform this vital report.

DOWNLOAD THE REPORT

Latest Community Tracker Released The Community Tracker reveals almost a third of all Australians sought help from a suicide prevention service in the past year – the highest ever reported. This indicates a concerning rise in levels of distress in our communities, but also an encouraging trend in people taking action to get the support they need.   READ COMMUNITY TRACKER

MP Engagement Toolkit This World Suicide Prevention Day, we’re coming together to make suicide prevention a national priority. We’ve created a MP Engagement Toolkit with practical tools, ready-to-use templates and key messages to help make it easy for you reach out to your local MP.  If we all hit "send" on Wednesday 10 September, we can deliver a powerful, united message to our MPs calling for suicide to be made a national priority — today and every day.  DOWNLOAD