Quarter 4, 2025 - Impact Update

Over the last 10 weeks, our programs team reached almost 4,000 young people across QLD, NSW, ACT, SA and VIC. After seeking the programs, over 80% of students said they felt more equipped to support someone  experiencing mental ill-health - a reminder of the incredible impact that sharing safe lived experiences can have when it comes to destigmatising mental ill-health and increasing help-seeking amongst young people and their communities.

• In Queensland, we visited students across regional and metro areas – including Windaroo, Bellbird Park and Macgregor – to deliver our peer-to-peer mental health programs in high schools.
• In South Australia, we also delivered programs to high school students in Salisbury, empowering them with practical skills to look after their mental health and sparking important conversations that continue long after we leave the classroom.
• In New South Wales, we delivered programs far and wide across the state! From metro communities like Picnic Point, Milperra, Warriewood, Engadine, Caringbah and West Hoxton, to regional towns including Blaxland, Wingham, Burradoo, Moss Vale, Tamworth and Batemans Bay, and rural areas including Trundle, Peak Hill and Braidwood.
• In Victoria, we delivered programs across the state, including two of our Year 8 pilot programs in collaboration with Live4Life and South Gippsland Shire Council.  

After the programs, students shared:

• “I just wanted to say thank you so much for coming out to Flagstone. The team and I were really happy with the presentations. Your team did an amazing job and thought the content was meaningful and engaging. I’ll certainly be advocating to using you again in the future."
• “Very insightful to hear from others who have struggled and now moving forward.”
• “This program is genuinely amazing…and deserves to be heard and shared.”
• “I want to be a psychologist and make break throughs for personality disorders and you all have motivated me.”

When we asked what they will do differently to support themselves and/or others after the program, students said:

• “I know that I am not alone and I could search for family/friend/professional support.”
• “I will try to seek help more or try to help someone who is struggling.”
• “Sometimes if a friend reaches out to me, I might not think I am saying the right thing but now I realise that making an effort to help is enough.”
• “I think I might make myself a ‘toolbox’ because I don’t currently have a list of things to make me feel better.”

This quarter, we trained 25 young people through 5 free Being Herd workshops, empowering them to share their lived experiences in a way that is both safe and impactful. Some of these young people will go on to share their stories of hope with thousands of students across the country as part of our batyr@school and batyr@uni programs. Check out some of the feedback from participants;

• “The workshop helped me immensely to conceptualise effectively what I was trying to convey and to start actually getting pen to paper in making the story I wished to share for so long. I now feel much more confident to enter the lived experience workforce.”
• “I want to share my lived experience to encourage connectedness and focus on strength based sharing. The Being herd workshop helped me develop foundational skills I can use for years to come.”
• “I’ve always felt a bit like an outsider because of my story but when I shared my story I found out I wasn’t alone!”
• “Hearing that you are not alone and that your story resonates with people from completely different backgrounds is a very powerful experience.”

Along with our workshop delivery, our storytellers continued to lead important conversations in communities and across the sector. At the SAY Collaborative Summit in Queensland, storyteller Zali joined a panel exploring “What does authentic youth engagement look like?”, sharing firsthand insights with leaders, service providers and young people with lived experience. In Brisbane, storyteller Alex took the stage at UnLtd’s Big Chat event to deliver a powerful session on Good Stories, giving attendees practical tools for sharing their lived experience safely and meaningfully. In Victoria, five of our storytellers contributed their voices to two Medibank co-design workshops, helping shape ideas for new programs, services and partnerships that strengthen everyday mental wellbeing.

This quarter, we were proud to show up in community spaces across the country to spark conversations and raise awareness around mental health. In NSW, we led a Mental Health Month activation with our friends at 1 Elizabeth, as well as joined in the fun at Central Coast Council's Spring Fling and the Hunter Mental Health & Wellbeing Expo. Events like these allow us to spark conversations, share resources and raise awareness about the importance of preventative mental health support. In SA, we also had the opportunity to engage creatively with young people at the Art Gallery of South Australia Neo Teen Takeover, where interactive activities helped us meet teens where they are and open meaningful dialogue about mental health.

We’ve also continued the conversation online, engaging with our community on Instagram, Youtube, Pinterest and TikTok to reach even more young people where they are.

On campus, our university outreach continued. We delivered two engaging activations at UNSW for World Mental Health Day, reaching hundreds of students with free mental health resources. We also connected with emerging leaders in the sector at the UQ Psychology Students’ Association Industry Night, sharing insights into youth mental health and pathways to working in prevention.

In early December, we proudly hosted our Youth Innovator Incubator at NIDA in Sydney - a huge milestone in our commitment to ensuring young people aren’t just represented in our work, but are leading the way we design solutions and create impact in youth mental health.

This Incubator is the culmination of our national partnership with Young Change Agents, through which we delivered more than 15 workshops across regional, rural and metro communities this year. These workshops captured the voices, ideas and lived experiences of young people right across Australia, building a powerful picture of what meaningful, accessible mental health support should look like.

From this first phase, 38 young innovators travelled from every state and territory to Sydney to take part in two days of deep collaboration, problem-solving and prototyping. Together, they developed and tested bold new concepts that will help guide the future of batyr's digital strategy. Their leadership, creativity, and honesty were at the centre of every conversation.

Participants also heard from batyr storytellers Max and Katie, as well as batyr Founder Sebastian Robertson, who shared insights on the evolution of batyr and the power of lived-experience storytelling in driving systems-level change. We’re so excited to share the outcomes of this transformational project in the coming months. 

A huge thank you to Young Change Agents for their partnership and to NIDA for generously providing the space, and to the incredible young people who continue to guide, challenge, and inspire the future of youth mental health in Australia.

We were incredibly proud to pilot our expanded batyr@school programs for Years 7 and 8 - a brand-new age cohort for us, and a vital one. With research showing that half of all adult mental health disorders begin before the age of 14, along with the recent social media ban for under 16s, reaching young people with mental health education earlier has never been more important.

To ensure these programs truly met the needs of younger students, we co-designed the content through student focus groups, teacher advisory groups, desktop research, and consultations with organisations already working with this age group. The result is a program that focuses on social and emotional learning, rather than mental ill-health - building emotional literacy, resilience, and help-seeking skills in an engaging, safe, and age-appropriate way.

Across the pilot, we delivered the Year 7 program in 5 schools across NSW, QLD and VIC, reaching 765 students, and the Year 8 program in 7 schools, reaching an additional 318 students. We also conducted an internal evaluation to understand how the content landed with this new cohort and identify key refinements before rolling out the full programs in 2026.

The feedback from students was inspiring. Many highlighted how valuable it was to hear a real lived-experience story:

• “Usually mental health stories are delivered using animations… it was more relatable hearing from a real person.”

• “I liked that it was uplifting and inspirational rather than super sad.”

• “The games helped me learn.”

• “It was fun today and I really enjoyed and connected with the program.”

Teachers echoed this sentiment, sharing that the sessions were engaging, relevant, and aligned with the curriculum. They also noted that our storytellers brought powerful perspectives students rarely have access to.

These pilots mark a major milestone in strengthening early mental health education, and we’re excited to evolve the programs further as we prepare for wider delivery next year.

This Christmas, our community is rallying behind Mark Gresser, who is walking 5,300km across Australia to champion youth mental health. Since beginning his trek in July, Mark has covered more than 1,300km and is now navigating the Great Central Road as he heads toward Uluru. He’s aiming to raise $53,000 by Christmas - $1 for every 100 metres of his journey - to help more young people access vital mental health education. With nearly $19,000 already raised, this appeal is inspiring supporters nationwide to get behind Mark’s incredible commitment and help him finish the year strong.

We’re excited to be a Gold Charity Partner for the 2026 TCS Sydney Marathon presented by ASICS! This is your chance to take on a major endurance milestone while raising vital funds to support preventative mental health education in schools and universities across Australia.

Team batyr runners are already securing their spots through charity places and ballot entries, with every kilometre helping to spark more open conversations about mental health. We’re also rallying volunteers to support the event on race day, giving supporters a front-row experience and strengthening our presence across this iconic global event.

batyr CEO Patrick Darcy and Head of Philanthropy Lucy Steggles travelled to Los Angeles to represent batyr at the Rare Impact Fund Benefit Gala and partner meetings hosted by Selena Gomez and the Rare Beauty team. As the Rare Impact Fund’s only Australian charity partner, we’re proud to contribute to their global mission of expanding access to mental health education and support for young people.

Across two days of events, Pat and Lucy joined leaders from 12 international organisations to share insights, strengthen collaboration, and highlight how Rare Impact’s continued funding is enabling batyr to reach more young people across Australia with programs that normalise mental health conversations and build peer support skills. Being part of this global community reinforces our shared commitment to ensuring young people everywhere feel empowered to take charge of their mental health.

In October, we proudly partnered with Sephora for their Make a Rare Impact World Mental Health Day campaign. For four days, every purchase of the Rare Impact fragrance directly supported batyr’s work, with 100% of proceeds helping us bring life-changing mental health education to more young people across Australia. It was incredible to see a global beauty leader champion youth mental health and rally their community behind impact that lasts far beyond the campaign.

We also had the privilege of celebrating a major milestone with Philanthropy Australia, joining partners and sector leaders to mark their 50-year anniversary. It was a meaningful moment to acknowledge their decades of contribution to Australia’s philanthropic landscape, and to connect with peers equally passionate about building a more generous, equitable future for our communities.

After pausing the Blue Tie Ball in 2025, we’ve announced that our flagship fundraising event will return in 2026. While this year was a break from the celebration, it allowed us to focus our resources on strengthening our programs, expanding our advocacy, and deepening our work with young people.

The Blue Tie Ball has raised more than $1.5 million over the past decade, helping us reach nearly 500,000 young people through preventative mental health programs. With its return in 2026, we’re aiming to make the event more meaningful than ever, spotlighting youth voices and driving even greater impact. Planning is already underway, and we’re currently seeking event sponsors and volunteer committee members to help bring the Blue Tie Ball 2026 to life.

Want to get involved? There’s plenty of ways you can help us in our mission to ensure every young Aussie can lead a mentally healthy life. Shop our range of batyr merchandise, learn to share your story safely at a FREE Being Herd workshop, or book one of our newly updated batyr@school or batyr@uni programs for 2026!

If you need mental health support, there’s always someone to lean on - find a free, confidential support service below.