Our theory of change
“We’re not saying we can solve suicide. But we can try to get to those young people earlier, and build another layer, a protective layer into that community.”
Founder, Live4Life Macedon Ranges
The Live4Life model places young people at the centre. It delivers targeted, evidence-based mental health education and peer-led health promotion activities to young people, and training to adults in their lives to ensure they have the skills and confidence to respond when needed most.
Live4Life is intended to drive generational change. By delivering successive interventions to all young people in a community, we increase the response capacity and prevalence of normalising attitudes and behaviours. This is anticipated to expand through the generations over time, as the Live4Life model continues to be implemented in the community.
The model’s mental health education is targeted at year 8 and year 10 or 11 students. This reaches young people at two critical times in adolescence, and empowers them to recognise mental health issues in themselves and others, increasing their ability to act when they identify an issue.
A whole-community approach
The formal education component is reinforced through repeated and engaging messaging delivered by the Live4Life Crew, made up of young people in the community who act as ambassadors for Live4Life. This peer-led approach recognises and celebrates the influence that peers on Live4Life’s target cohorts, and gives young people the power to create positive lasting change in their community.
Adjacent to this, adults who are engaged with young people (parents, teachers and others) undergo Mental Health First Aid® training. This increases their competence and confidence in their ability to respond appropriately and efficiently when faced with young people’s mental ill-health. Over time, the critical mass of Live4Life alumni influences broader community attitudes and behaviours relating to mental illness, creating sustainable and long-lasting generational change.
Taken together, these components aim to ensure that young people who experience mental ill-health are referred to appropriate clinical supports. Further, where young people experience access issues and lengthy wait times to access supports in rural communities, Live4Life aims to better resource the community to support these young people in the interim.
Our wrap-around model
"[
Live4Life]…creates a sense of containment and hope”
- Mental Health Worker, Benalla
Today the Youth Live4Life team works alongside nine Live4Life communities across Victoria; Glenelg and Southern Grampians in the South West, Benalla and Moira in the North, Macedon Ranges and Central Goldfields in Central Victoria and Baw Baw, Bass Coast and South Gippsland Shires in Gippsland.
Youth Live4Life is a registered health promotion charity, and is generously supported by philanthropic organisations and government. We are also grateful for regular and one-off donations received from individuals and businesses and our Friends4Life.
