Mental Health Month 2026

This year’s theme for Mental Health Month was Thrive Together and our team spent the month having conversations with carers, families, shoppers and neighbours across Canberra. Here’s a look at what we got up to.

Kicking things off over breakfast

We started the month on Tuesday 13 October with our Community Connections Breakfast at the Woden Youth Centre. We hosted it with our friends at Northside Community Service, and because it fell during National Carers Week it made sense to bring the two together.

This year’s Carers Week theme was Making Carers Visible. Lots of people who care for someone don’t think of themselves as a carer. They’re just a mum, a partner, a mate or a neighbour doing what they can. The breakfast was a chance to say thank you, share a meal and have a chat about the support that’s out there.

You can read more about the morning in our Community Connections Breakfast post here.

Wrapping up at Westfield Woden and Belconnen

To round out the month, our mental health team set up at Westfield Woden and Westfield Belconnen the last two weeks of October to chat with shoppers about mental health and the support we offer.

We love being in shopping centres because that’s where people already are. Someone picking up groceries or meeting a friend for coffee can stop by, ask a question or grab some information for someone they love. There’s no appointment and no pressure, just a friendly conversation.

Here’s a quick look at the three programs we were sharing with people on the day.

Minds Together

Caring for someone who is going through suicidal distress, or who is recovering from a suicide attempt, can be really tough. Minds Together is a free program for family, friends and carers in that situation. It was developed by Everymind in partnership with the ACT Health and Community Services Directorate and we deliver the face-to-face sessions here in Canberra.

The program runs as two 3-hour sessions over two weeks in a row. You’ll pick up practical skills like how to talk about suicide and how to look after your own wellbeing while you support someone else. You’ll also hear from people with lived experience and meet others who understand what you’re going through.

It’s open to anyone 18 and over living in the ACT. If face-to-face doesn’t suit you, there’s also a free online version you can do at your own pace.

Find out more about Minds Together at wcs.org.au/mental-health/minds-together

Thrive Together

Thrive Together is for adults aged 18 to 64 in the ACT who want to look after their mental health and work towards their own recovery goals. Group connection is at the heart of it, with support available for up to 12 months. If you need a bit more, you can also get one-to-one support alongside the groups.

The groups are where the fun happens. There’s Breakfast Club on Wednesday mornings, arts and crafts at the Woden Community Hub, a sports club, monthly excursions around Canberra, life skills workshops and a hands-on nutrition program with OzHarvest.

Thrive Together is for people who aren’t eligible for the NDIS. You can refer yourself or be referred by a professional.

Find out more about Thrive Together at wcs.org.au/mental-health/thrive-together

Community Training

Alongside our own programs, we also shared some of the Community Training sessions available through Mental Health Community Coalition (MHCC)

MHCC ACT delivers Connecting with People training here in Canberra. It was developed by 4 Mental Health in the UK and is built around compassion, giving people practical tools to support someone who is going through suicidal distress.

Find out more about the training at mhccact.org.au/cwp/

Thank you

A big thank you to everyone who stopped by for a chat, came along to breakfast or shared a bit of their story with us this month. Thanks also to Westfield Woden and Westfield Belconnen for having us and to our friends at Northside Community Service.

Our team is here all year round. If you’d like to talk about any of our programs, give us a call on (02) 6282 2644 or email info@wcs.org.au.

You can also browse all of our mental health services online wcs.org.au/mental-health

If you need support right now, you can call Lifeline on 13 11 14 or the Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467, any time of the day or night. In an emergency, call 000.