THE Greater Shepparton Lighthouse Project is proud to celebrate a major milestone for youth mental health in regional Victoria, with the announcement of a $2.5M, four-year investment from the William Buckland Foundation, managed by Equity Trustees, to support the Goulburn Region Open Dialogue Connect (GRODC) initiative.
Delivered in partnership – Lighthouse Project with the Open Dialogue Centre, Berry Street Yooralla Shepparton Youth Foyer and Goulburn Valley Health, GRODC represents a new, community-led approach to youth mental health – one that shifts the focus away from crisis-driven responses and towards long-term, connected support for young people, families and communities.
GRODC focuses on strengthening existing organisations to work together across health, education, youth and community sectors. The initiative supports young people to navigate mental health and wellbeing challenges through coordinated care that includes their family, friends, peers and trusted support networks and places themselves at the centre of decision making.
At the heart of the initiative is the Open Dialogue Approach, which is an evidence-informed way of working that prioritises listening, relationships and shared decision-making. Through facilitated network meetings, young people are supported to direct their own care alongside the people who matter most to them.
The solution was initially championed through strong local leadership of Anita McCurdy at Berry Street’s Youth Foyer and Sally Thomas, the director of the Infant Child Youth Mental Health Service at GV Health. Their passion, the connection with ODC, Lighthouse and funders, assisted in creating what is now known as the GRODC. For the Greater Shepparton Lighthouse Project, the initiative reflects a strong commitment to community-led collaboration and long-term systems change. Lighthouse’s backbone support of GRODC working alongside local partners and the Open Dialogue Centre is strengthening this local solution by providing governance support, impact measurement and project implementation expertise.
Amy Robinson, Executive Officer of the Greater Shepparton Lighthouse Project, said the initiative is already changing how organisations work together across the region.
“We are deeply grateful to the Trustees of the William Buckland Foundation for their bold commitment to advancing critical systems change that will strengthen mental health outcomes for young people in our region,” said Ms Robinson.
“Grounding our work in the Open Dialogue Approach, and having the Open Dialogue Centre alongside us, has been transformative. We are building something that belongs to this community and that will endure.”
