About Lifeline Central Victoria & Mallee

Lifeline Central Victoria & Mallee Inc has been an accredited Lifeline Centre since 1995. From our office in Bendigo we service the Loddon Mallee region.

We are a small community based agency with a staff team of three paid staff and 75 volunteers. Our Focus is on running the 24 Hour telephone counselling service and providing community training, and unlike many other Lifeline Centres we do not run secondhand clothing stores or other retail activities.

Our Community training activities include the Living Works ASIST training program. This is a suicide intervention training program.  We offer these and other training programs to other agencies and community members, and income generated from these programs helps pay for the operating costs of the 24 Hour telephone counselling service.

We recieve on average around 15,500 calls per year and this has been steadily increasing each year.

If you would like more information, please contact us on the phone number or email address below:

Contact person: Clive Custance (C.E.O.) (03) 5443 1330
Fax (03) 5441 7055

Email address: llcv@bigpond.net.au

Volunteer with us

There are two ways a person can help us. Firstly we recruit and train new telephone counsellors twice per year. If you have time to spare and are wanting to make a difference in peoples lives, you could consider becoming a Telephone counsellor with us.

What do you get from being a Volunteer Telephone Counsellor for Lifeline?

We offer:

• A journey of self discovery and development
• A training course of 70 hours of theory and practice plus a supervised probationary period
• The opportunity to participate in a unique form of community service
• Ongoing supervision and support within a community of friendly, committed people.

We ask:

• A contribution of $350 toward the cost of the training program (Consessions for Health Care Card holders and students.)
• An ongoing commitment of one shift per week for a minimum of one year from the end of the training.

We asked our current counsellors what they liked best about volunteering for Lifeline. Here's the top five responses:

1. Job satisfaction, making a difference, helping people, filling a need
2. Belonging, the team, friendships, people at Lifeline
3. Caller interaction and appreciation
4. Relaxed, safe, caring environment
5. Improving skills and self development

For more information about our service or to express interest in applying to become a Lifeline Counsellor give us a call during between 9.30 am to 3.30 pm Mon-Fri on 03 5443 1330

The second way you can help us is through making a financial donation to the Centre to help pay the operating cost of the 24 Hour telephone counselling.

Whilst we do get some funding through the Dept of Human Services, we still need to find around $40,000 p.a. to keep the service running. This money we have to find from the community in one way or another. Our training programs do generate some income for us, but without the financial support of the community we simply could not keep going.

If you would like to make a donation, you can send it to:

Lifeline Central Victoria and Mallee
P.O. Box 1164
Bendigo, Vic. 3552

All donations over $2 are taxdeductable.

Donate

To make a donation contact us

Links

Lifeline's services related websites

Resources for individuals, professionals, families and communities.

Lifeline International
Lifeline provides a mantle of compassion, linking people with people and country with country.

Lifeline Service Finder
A comprehensive database of low cost or free health and community services offered throughout Australia.

Living Works / Suicide Prevention
A suicide prevention scheme, auspiced by Lifeline Australia.

Other Useful Websites

Attention Deficit Disorder, Parenting South Australia
Helping parents be their best.

Auseinet
Australian network for promotion, prevention and early intervention for mental health.

Beyond Blue
An Australia site with information on depression.

BluePages Information on Depression
Information about depression for consumers, produced by the Centre for Mental Health Research at the Australian National University, CSIRO Mathematical & Information Sciences with the assistance of an advisory board.

Carers Australia
Supporting information for carers including parents, families, teachers, friends, and professional carers of people with disacility and mental illness.

Clinical Research Unit for Anxiety and Depression
A group of researchers and clinicians concerned with anxiety and depression. The website provides self help information and facts about mental illness such as depression, panic attacks and anxiety.

Headroom
Formerly known as Partnership with Young People Project (PYPP), a South Australian mental health promotion project managed by the Division of Mental Health, Women's and Children's Hospital, Adelaide. This website aims to inform young people, their caregivers and service providers about positive mental health.

Health Insite
A portal to mental health issues.

Kids Helpline
A national telephone counselling service for young people aged between 5-18 years. Free call - 1800 55 1800.

LivingWorks Education, Inc (Canada)

MoodGYM
Training programs about cognitive behaviour therapy for preventing depression.

Multicultural Mental Health Australia
Multicultural Mental Health Australia provides national leadership in mental health and suicide prevention for Australians from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds and works to promotr better mental health and well-being for a diverse community.

Reach Out!
An initiative of the Inspire Foundation for young people to help themselves and get involved in their community through difficult times

SANE Australia
A national charity helping people affected by mental illness. SANE Australia Helpline Free call - 1800 18 SANE (7263).

The Australian Governmment Department of Health and Aging

The Mental Health Council of Australia
An independent, non-government sector peak body established under the National Mental Health Strategy to represent and promote the interests of the mental health sector and advise on mental health in Australia.

The World Federal of Mental Health
Founded in 1948 to advance, among all people and national, the prevention of mental and emotional disorders, the proper treatment and care of those with such disorders, and the promotion of mental health.