The EPIC Wellbeing Project will provide in-person peer support to parents/carers of young people. Focusing on carer wellbeing, the project will connect parents & carers with lived-experience peers to provide knowledge, strategies and hindsight relating to young people who are experiencing mental health challenges or choosing risky threatening behaviour. Face-to-face peer to carer meetings will ...
Empowering Parents In Crisis (EPIC)
EPIC Wellbeing Project

GOAL
$15,000
Field of Interest
- Health/wellbeing and medical research
- Individual/family services and support
Target Population
- General population
- Young people (6-25)

EPIC provides peer support to parents of young people in crisis. EPIC recognises parents as first responders to their children and supports them by creating a safe, non judgemental community that empowers parents with the knowledge, skills and confidence to enable them to best support their young person, their family and themselves.
EPIC provides connection, knowledge, skills, hindsight and confidence to parents and carers of young people. EPIC collaborates with schools, police, hospitals, family support organisations and the community to demystify pathways to support and create awareness regarding young mental health.
In the past year, EPIC has connected 112 parents via peer phone support, walk/coffee events, forums, meetings, parent programs and training sessions. We provided 480 phone support calls, hosted 24 walk/coffee events and 45 meetings/forum/trainings.
Project Summary
The EPIC Wellbeing Project will provide in-person peer support to parents/carers of young people. Focusing on carer wellbeing, the project will connect parents & carers with lived-experience peers to provide knowledge, strategies and hindsight relating to young people who are experiencing mental health challenges or choosing risky threatening behaviour.
Face-to-face peer to carer meetings will take place at a location appropriate to the carer. Meetings will be led by carer need such as talking through their situation in a safe environment and/or requesting hindsight from the support person who may draw on their own situation or that of over 350 parents connected with EPIC support.
Peer support workers have lived experience of caring for a young person who has encountered mental health challenges and/or chosen risky/life threatening behaviour. Support people will be trained in youth mental health first aid and trained in compassionate communication (or similar). The peer support person will have extensive knowledge of local supports including current waitlists.
The beauty of peer support is the provision of emotional support, knowledge and confidence at the time of contact. It is timely and ongoing, providing a lifeline to carers, during the time it takes to wait for psychologists and or mental health professionals to be available for their young people.
Project Outcomes
The EPIC Wellbeing Project aims to achieve a number of outcomes resulting from EPIC peer parent support. The significant and positive outcomes that will positivily impact parents/carers, young people, their families and community include:
- Parents feeling emotionally supported and connected, connected to community and having increased feelings of wellbeing.
- Improved relationships between parents and their young people as a result of gaining hindsight and knowledge from peer parent support.
- Young people in our community feeling supported by their parents and having increased feelings of wellbeing.
- Parents gain stronger collaborative partnerships with schools, community organisations, hospitals and police as a result of EPIC connection with the youth and family support sector.
- Increased community awareness of the need for support for parents and carers of young people.
By acknowledging parents/carers are first responders to their young people, and providing a safe and supportive environment, parents/carers feel destigmatised by challenges of parenting a young person and become equipped with the skills, knowledge and confidence to support their young person, their family and themselves.
The formulation of a structured support platform that provides one on one peer parent support, group support, online connection and access to relevant, up to date information ensures the long-term vision of EPIC to empower parents/carers of young people, their children and their families.
Budget Breakdown
TOTAL BUDGET: $20,800
FUNDING
Funding source | Amount |
---|---|
Intelligent Foundation Donation (confirmed) | $5,800 |
Funding gap (unconfirmed) | $15,000 |
EXPENSES
Expense item | Amount |
---|---|
1 staff peer support person, 2 days, 6 months | $20,800 |
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