The Minns Labor Government is investing $450,000 to expand Gotcha4Life’s Mentally Fit Schools program to 20 regional primary schools, helping more children build the skills and confidence to manage life’s ups and downs.
The investment will support 10 schools in the Central West and 10 across the South Coast and Illawarra, bringing preventative mental health support to more regional students, teachers and families.
Polling by the Office for Youth found mental health is the top issue for young people in 2026, while half of adult mental health conditions emerge before the age of 14.
The Mentally Fit Schools program takes a prevention-first, whole-school approach, giving children practical mental fitness skills before challenges escalate, while also supporting the teachers and families around them.
Mental fitness is the emotional flexibility needed to navigate life’s challenges and, like physical fitness, it can be strengthened through everyday skills, habits and practice.
The program gives children practical tools to manage difficult emotions, build strong connections and know when and how to ask for help, while supporting teachers and families to use the same language around mental health.
It goes beyond a one-off wellbeing workshop, with each participating school partnered with a dedicated Mental Fitness Educator to help embed mental fitness into everyday school life and create sustainable change over three years.
It’s part of a suite of programs funded by the Minns Labor Government aimed at supporting early intervention for young people, including:
- $25.4 million to establish four Medicare Mental Health Kids Hubs across NSW in partnership with the Commonwealth Government, providing free mental health and wellbeing support to kids up to age 12.
- $17.1 million over four years to 2026-27 to increase Kids Helpline’s capacity to respond to a rising number of calls.
- $45 million annually for the Safeguards Program, to provide targeted, short-term early intervention for children and young people in mental distress wherever they are, including their schools, homes and communities.
- More than $9 million in youth grants, giving young people more opportunities to connect with each other offline and find a sense of community and belonging.
Minister for Health and Minister for the Illawarra and the South Coast Ryan Park said:
“We want people, as they’re dealing with something difficult, to feel as though they’ve got the tools to be able to get themselves back well again, and that is exactly what this program delivers.
“I’m so excited to see it roll out in some of our local schools and across the state giving young people the opportunity to develop these critical skills while bringing their teachers and families along on the journey.”
Minister for Mental Health Rose Jackson said:
“Good mental health starts long before a young person reaches crisis point. That’s why we want to give kids the practical tools to navigate life’s ups and downs from an early age.
“Where a child grows up shouldn’t determine whether they have access to the support and skills they need to thrive, and we’re proud to expand this program further into regional NSW.
“What I really like about Mentally Fit Schools is that it brings kids, teachers and families together, making conversations about mental health part of everyday life and giving children skills they can carry with them as they grow.”
Gotcha4Life CEO Belinda Elworthy said:
“This partnership sends a powerful message about the future of mental fitness in Australia.
“It recognises the importance of building the capabilities that protect mental health early, giving young people the skills and support they can draw on as they navigate life’s challenges.
“Schools communities are powerful places to build mental fitness, and this investment shows what’s possible when government backs a long-term, prevention-focused approach.”
