Annual Review 2024-25

Early 2025

Annual Woodcock Lecture

In May, Wellways held its 24th annual Woodcock Lecture titled Dignity by Design: Humanity in the Mental Health System. This year’s keynote speaker, Giancarlo de Vera (He/They), CEO of BEING reflected on personal experiences and the ‘slow invisible violence of coercive treatment’ that exists within the mental health system.

Five people standing on a stage in front of a projector screen.

Left to right: Associate Professor Harry Hill, Laura Collister, Mary O’Hagan, Maria Katsonis and Giancarlo de Vera at the 2025 Annual Woodcock Lecture.

A panel of thought leaders, clinicians and advocates called for the sector to prioritise relationships and to remember that each of us hold a role in building a more humane mental health system.

Wellways has been hosting the Woodcock Lecture since 1999, and it has become a cornerstone of our advocacy work, where we and our sector partners reflect on how to create a more compassionate, human rights-led mental health system.

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A Legacy of Insight: Two decades of the Woodcock Lecture

For over two decades, the Woodcock Lecture has served as a vital platform for critical discussions and progressive change within the Australian community mental health sector.

Late 2025

National Carer Strategy consultation

In October, Wellways coordinated a comprehensive submission in response to the Draft National Carer Strategy.

To inform our submission, we invited families, supporters and carers to share their insights through three online consultation sessions, and one-on-one phone conversations for those unable to attend. We also delivered two online coaching sessions to support families and carers to prepare their own individual submissions.

Our submission highlighted significant concerns about the Strategy’s ability to deliver meaningful change for carers without greater recognition that improving carer wellbeing requires addressing the structural conditions that contribute to unsustainable caring roles.

Late 2025

Foundational Supports Consultation

As a member of the Australian Psychosocial Alliance (APA) – a coalition of seven of Australia’s largest community-managed mental health providers – Wellways led the APA’s submission to the Government’s Foundational Supports consultation in November 2024.

This advocacy presented an important strategic opportunity within the broader NDIS reform process, where the unique needs of people with psychosocial disability are often overlooked in the design and delivery of disability supports.

Our Policy & Advocacy and Lived Experience leadership teams engaged with participants, families and carers to understand how the proposed supports could better include people with psychosocial disabilities. The five consultation sessions were well attended, and the voices and experiences shared directly informed the submission provided to Government.

Continue Exploring

Continue exploring more of the highlights from across the business in the 2024-25 Annual Review.

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In 2024-25, Wellways strengthened lived experience leadership, deepened reconciliation, expanded services, and invested in our people - advancing advocacy, innovation and community-led change across Australia.

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Lived Experience

Wellways has continued to strengthen lived experience leadership at Executive level and launched a research committee to ensure decisions and strategies are guided by lived experience.

Reconciliation

Reconciliation is everyone’s business at Wellways. We are proud to share that our Stretch Reconciliation Action Innovate Plan has been endorsed by Reconciliation Australia.

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Specialist Mental Health Services

Our mental health services continue to grow and evolve, with ListenWell relaunched, new Medicare Mental Health Centres opening in QLD and NSW and expanded suicide prevention support through Universal Aftercare.

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Family and Carer Services

Innovation, equity and accessibility guided our family and carer services this year, expanding community outreach, creating local support hubs, and sharing carers’ stories through events and our podcast.

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Our People

Over the past year, we’ve strengthened connection, inclusion and support for our people through Together at Wellways, the Positive Culture Strategy, leadership training, and Pride celebrations, helping everyone feel empowered to bring their whole selves to work.