This Universal Children’s Day, the Vocational Mental Health Practitioners Association of Australia (VMHPAA) celebrates the joy, creativity, and limitless potential of every child; while calling for urgent action to ensure that all children can grow up safe, supported, and mentally well.

The Vocational Mental Health Practitioners Association Australia (VMHPAA) welcomes and supports the recent findings from Victorian researchers highlighting the mental health benefits of surf therapy for young people. As detailed in recent Deakin University studies, programs that connect young Australians to the ocean are demonstrating measurable outcomes in reducing distress, improving emotional regulation, and supporting re-engagement in daily life.

Today, the Vocational Mental Health Practitioners Association of Australia (VMHPAA) joins communities across the nation in proudly celebrating Wear It Purple Day - a day dedicated to affirming and empowering LGBTIQA+ young people.

Over the past 25 years, mental health awareness has transformed from silence to visibility. Campaigns, school programs, and social media have played an important role in breaking stigma and encouraging help-seeking. Yet as Professor Patrick McGorry highlights, blanket awareness programs in schools may be creating unintended harms including increased distress, misdiagnosis, and misplaced confidence in “awareness” as a substitute for real care.

At the Vocational Mental Health Practitioners Association of Australia (VMHPAA), we stand in full support of the urgent call for truth-telling, reform, and renewed commitment to equity across the entire continuum of mental health care.

The Vocational Mental Health Practitioners Association Australia (VMHPAA) welcomes and affirms the findings of The Lancet Psychiatry global report on youth mental health...