“Rural Alive & Well partners with TasNetworks to grow mental health and wellbeing support for rural and remote communities”
Rural Alive and Well today announce a new partnership with TasNetworks which will expand the impact and reach of their community based suicide prevention programs.
Under the partnership, TasNetworks has contributed $50,000 to help to grow RAW’s Beyond the Sidelines pilot program and deliver a calendar of RAW community wellbeing and connection events to support directly and indirectly impacted stakeholders and community members in the region of TasNetworks’ North-West Transmission Developments.
The Beyond the Sidelines program has been developed by RAW to meet an identified need in statewide rural sporting clubs who are looking for ongoing, practical support with mental health and wellbeing. The initiative provides a holistic, multi-touch point program to challenge the status quo of mental health and what a mentally healthy and resilient sporting community truly looks like.
RAW Tasmania CEO Barb Walters said that suicide prevention is a whole-of-community issue that requires coordinated and combined action.
“RAW is proud to have TasNetworks on board as a pilot program partner. With their support, we are able to put more boots on the ground in rural communities in Tasmania and provide greater support to people when and where they need it most.
“RAW’s support goes beyond the sidelines, we have qualified staff who provide tailored support to individuals, to improve their mental health and well-being assist them to navigate the pathway to specialist support services,” Barb said.
TasNetworks CEO, Seán Mc Goldrick said that like RAW, TasNetworks has many touch-points with rural and remote communities throughout Tasmania and that some of their workforces also call these areas home.
“TasNetworks exists to serve and support Tasmanians,” Dr Mc Goldrick said.
“This includes the well-being and happiness of Tasmanians. When we get people’s power back on as quickly as possible, we’re supporting their well-being. When we help double Tasmania’s clean energy in coming decades, we’re supporting Tasmanians’ well-being. And when we partner with RAW, and invest in the well-being of rural Tasmanians doing something they love,
Rural Alive & Well (RAW) is a Tasmanian not-for-profit organisation providing specialised one-on-one, psychosocial mental health support to build mentally healthy and resilient rural communities and reduce the prevalence of suicide. RAW offers these services to individuals, families and communities without cost and no wait times.
