TRANSFORMING YOUTH MENTAL HEALTH SUPPORT IN WESTERN AUSTRALIA
Youth Focus is set to transform the delivery of mental health support for young people in Western Australia with the launch of its groundbreaking Youth Mental Health Hub in Perth, scheduled to open in the first half of 2026.
The new facility will serve as a “one-stop shop” for young people seeking help, offering immediate access to a range of clinical and community services under one roof. Staff will include psychologists, psychiatrists, general practitioners and social workers, alongside government and not-for-profit partners such as Foodbank WA.
Youth Focus CEO Derry Simpson said the model represents a pioneering approach for Western Australia.
“Having a mental health challenge very rarely sits in isolation — increasingly we are supporting young people with comorbid experiences including domestic violence, homelessness, financial issues and more — and these issues need to be tackled together,” Derry said.
The Stan Perron Charitable Foundation’s operational funding will support the Hub’s integrated service model, enabling young people to access the right care when and where they need it.
“This means that rather than young people being referred for help by specialist services spread across the metropolitan area and waiting many months between appointments, it can all happen in one space,” Derry said.
Youth Focus has been supporting young Western Australians for more than 30 years, and the new Hub marks a major step forward in addressing complex mental health needs. It will also help expand the organisation’s outreach and training programs across the state.
“It includes a student graduate and placement program so that we can start training and developing students and place them not just within our service but within services across our sector where there are desperate shortages of skilled professionals,” Derry said.
Built with input from young people, families and carers, the Hub aims to provide a long-term solution that creates real, lasting change.
“We went out to young people, to mums and dads and carers — people who have experienced the system as it is now — and they helped us build this model.”
One of the many other core aspects built into the new approach by Youth Focus will be research, a significant long-term consequence of the extended funding provided by the Foundation.
“I can’t really put the significance of this funding into words — this will allow us to do what we do with confidence and create a model that offers permanent change,” said Derry.
Youth Focus The Hub Troode St West Perth
Published: January 2026