Hi there!
It's been an incredible fortnight for the AAPW! We officially launched membership at TheMHS Conference, met peer workers from right across the country, and reached an unexpected milestone! Read on for all the details, plus a few opportunities from across the sector we wanted to make sure you didn't miss.We announced AAPW membership at TheMHS Conference, and the response was incredible. We spent four days meeting peer workers from right across the country and heard about their aspirations for our association. It was a heartening experience for our General Manager, Danni, to connect with so many peer workers in person and learn about what is going well, where they’re experiencing challenges, and their ideas for how the AAPW can support them.
We set a goal to reach 1,000 members in our first 12 months. It's been just 16 days, and we already have 1,184 members. This is proof of just how ready peer workers were for a national association. We already knew there was incredible strength in the peer workforce, and we're excited to see what we can achieve together by harnessing our collective power.
Full membership is open to anyone using lived experience in a mental health or suicide prevention peer work role, whether that's frontline support, leadership, supervision, workforce development, education, advocacy, research, policy or service design, and includes people currently working in these roles, as well as those in training, former peer workers, and alumni. A Friends of the AAPW category is also available for those in related peer workforces, as well as volunteers and allies of the peer workforce.
Membership is currently free, so peer workers can experience the benefits before a paid structure is introduced in August 2027.
We're thrilled to share that the AAPW has been invited to join the National Mental Health Workforce Sector Advisory Group, and we wanted to make sure our community also knew that the broader National Mental Health Workforce Sector Advisory Network is now open.
Facilitated by Mental Health Australia, the Network provides feedback on national mental health workforce reform issues and priorities, contributing to the intergovernmental National Mental Health Workforce Working Group's advice. It's also a good way to stay informed about workforce reform more broadly. Involvement means up to three short consultations a year, via email or brief surveys, and it's not mandatory to respond to every request.
The Network is open to individuals and organisational representatives with mental health workforce expertise from across the sector, including peer workers. To register your interest, email Mental Health Australia's Policy Team at policy@mentalhealthaustralia.org.au with 2-4 sentences on your areas of interest in the mental health workforce and the expertise or perspective you bring.
Federation University is conducting a study exploring the wellbeing needs of mental health peer workers aged 45 years or older, and they'd really appreciate input from our community. The survey takes around 30 minutes, is completely voluntary, and all responses are confidential and anonymised. Paper versions are available on request.
If you're a mental health peer worker aged 45 or older, currently engaged in a full-time, part-time, casual or volunteer peer work role, and able to communicate in English (written and spoken), you can learn more and access the survey here:
This October marks AAPW's first Mental Health Month as a national association, and we want to celebrate the incredible power of the peer workforce in Australia. From now until October, we're collecting stories that showcase peer workers and the connection, hope and self-determination they bring to the mental health sector.
It only takes a couple of minutes and is de-identified. No names or contact details are being collected. We only ask you to share what brings you joy about peer work and to check some boxes, letting us know what kind of peer work you do and the state/territory you live in.
We’re celebrating the opening of membership with online Welcome Forums. Thank you to everyone who came along on 19 August. Our second session is on Tuesday, 8 September, 5 PM – 6 PM AEST, free via Teams.
These sessions are exclusively for AAPW members. You can register via your member portal at the following link:
Register for 8 September Forum
We already have lots to share. Our team is growing, with new roles starting in August and September to help deliver member services and our national workforce development and advocacy program.
We started shaping our member offering with input from a national Co-Lab, bringing together peer workers from different jurisdictions and lived experience disciplines to help set the direction early on.
That's just the beginning: as we grow, we'll be reaching out to our members to help shape what comes next.
If you haven't already, sign up as a member, come and connect with us at our Member Welcome Forums, and don’t forget to bring your questions.
In response to feedback, we've updated our Membership Charter and Code of Conduct.