National Suicide Prevention Leadership and Support Program

About the initiative

The program funds a range of activities aimed at reducing suicide deaths and suicidal behaviour across the Australian population.  It has a particular focus on at-risk populations and communities. 

At-risk populations and communities include:

• Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples
• men
• LGBTIQA+ people
• culturally and linguistically diverse people
• regional and remote communities
• veterans
• young people.  

We are providing $114 million to 31 organisations over 3 years (2022–23 to 2024–25 financial years). 

These organisations will deliver 40 projects across 7 activity streams, including:

1. National leadership in suicide prevention 
2. National leadership in suicide prevention research and translation 
3. Centre of Best Practice in Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Suicide Prevention 
4. National support for lived experience of suicide 
5. National media and communications strategies 
6. National Suicide Prevention training 
7. National suicide prevention support for at risk populations and communities.

Why it is important

Suicide is a complex issue that affects every community in different ways. Causes vary, and so do the resources and services each community needs.

Goals

The program aims to:

• deliver suicide prevention programs with a comprehensive or whole-of-population reach into at risk populations and communities 
• facilitate leadership, strategic partnerships and collaboration in the suicide prevention sector
• build the evidence base to allow continued improvements in suicide prevention
• reduce the prevalence of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander suicide and its impact on individuals, their families and communities
• support those with lived experience of suicide
• reduce the stigma around suicide and raise awareness of suicide prevention
• build the capacity of the Australian population to prevent suicide
• offer support and care to populations and communities at heightened risk of suicide. 

Meeting our goals

We have engaged Australian Healthcare Associates to evaluate the program for the funding cycle from 2022-23 to 2024-25. 

They will measure the projects funded under the program collectively. This will determine whether the program is: 

• meeting the outcomes of each activity stream
• designed and delivered appropriately and efficiently. 

Organisations that deliver projects funded under the program collect and report data about their funded activities each month. We contracted Australian Healthcare Associates to collate this data.

To help standardise project data reporting, we developed the National Suicide Prevention Projects Minimum Data Set (MDS). Data is maintained in the MDS, and have provided a secure online portal for organisations to submit data.

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