At 11am today, Prince Harry and Meghan, Duke and Duchess of Sussex, met with leading youth mental health organisation, batyr and 16 youth advocates from regional and rural communities across Australia.

Their visit was part of batyr’s two-day in person workshop, Regional & Rural Youth Voices: Shaping the Future of Mental Health, to address the challenges faced by rural and remote young people being left behind by a crisis-driven mental health system.

Coming to Melbourne from all over regional Australia, the young advocates took part in a series of activities designed to help them safely share their experiences, explore solutions for tackling the mental health crisis in regional and rural communities, and test ideas with their peers in an open and supportive environment.

batyr’s important work in this space has caught the attention of The Duke and Duchess of Sussex, who joined the young people on the second day of the workshop for a round table discussion. The couple sat with young people, listened as they shared their personal accounts of living in regional and remote communities through visual storytelling, and the unique challenges and realities that shape their access to mental health support.

Despite the fact that youth suicide rates can be up to twice as high in regional, rural and remote communities compared to metro areas, these young people face fewer services, longer wait times, higher costs, and increased stigma.

“We say mental ill-health doesn’t discriminate, but for young people in regional and rural Australia it does.” said batyr CEO Patrick Darcy. “Organisations like batyr work really hard to deliver preventative mental health education into these communities, equipping young people with the tools to help themselves and each other before crisis occurs. Having The Duke and Duchess of Sussex attend the workshop helps bring our integral work into the spotlight and ensure young people’s voices are shaping the mental health system around them.”

batyr is calling for urgent investment in prevention so every young person can access support early before a mental health crisis - regardless of where they live.

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“I would have found it hugely beneficial to have had greater access to lived experience support, general mental health education, and increased awareness of mental health from those adults around me who may have been able to potentially step in and check in earlier before things became harder.” shared batyr storyteller, Mackenzie.

Investment into batyr of $2.85M over three years would enable them to deliver national co-designed programs that prioritise prevention, embed the youth voice in system reform and address geographic inequity in access to care.

This amount equates to less than $0.70 per young Australian, aligns with the National Suicide Prevention Strategy and reduces pressure on GPs, hospitals and Headspace.

The insights and perspectives shared during this event will inform batyr on the creation of key recommendations to Government and other decision makers.

About batyr (pronounced 'buh-tier')

batyr is a preventative youth mental health organisation, equipping young people and their villages with the tools to support themselves and each other before crisis occurs. Through peer to peer programs and lived experience storytelling, batyr shares stories that inspire action, build support networks and reach young people early and often with the tools they need to look after themselves and each other, before a crisis.

batyr believes:

● Every young person should have the opportunity to lead a mentally healthy and fulfilling life.

● Poor mental health can be a barrier to this, and the statistics tell a story of a youth mental health crisis in Australia.

● In prevention and stigma reduction - batyr exists to empower young people to talk openly about mental health and take charge of their wellbeing.

● Young people and their stories are at the heart of everything batyr do.

For more information please visit www.batyr.com.au

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