The Government has announced its upcoming Budget will include $24 million over four years for better access to mental health services for young New Zealanders.
It's a delivery on the Government's promise in the National-NZ First Coalition agreement to fund Gumboot Friday/I AM Hope charity to $6 million per annum.
Deputy Prime Minister Winston Peters and Mental Health Minister Matt Doocey made the pre-Budget announcement on Wednesday alongside I Am Hope Foundation founder Mike King.
The Government will contract the mental health charity I Am Hope Foundation to provide free counselling to young people aged between five and 25 through the Gumboot Friday initiative. Peters said the funding will enable more than 15,000 young people to access the service each year.
The service will also support young people who are waiting to access specialist services.
"We know mental health concerns are one of the biggest issues facing young New Zealanders today. This funding will help many young people get support when they need it," Peters said.
Doocey said prevention and early intervention are a critical part of dealing with mental health.
"We know that Government alone cannot address the mental health challenges faced across the country alone, and that is why we are proud to be partnering with a long-standing and proven organisation that addresses the needs of our communities on the ground," Doocey said.
Doocey said the Government wants to release funding to "grassroots" organisations.
He said research has found that every $1 invested in I Am Hope results in a social return to New Zealand of $5.70.
King said every single cent will go directly to counsellors and will allow the charity to fund another 300 counsellors currently on a waitlist to join the foundation. They will sit alongside its 555 counsellors. This will include 50 ethnically more diverse counsellors, including those from Indian, African, Latin American, North American, Asian, and Middle Eastern backgrounds. The charity also aims to include a higher proportion of Māori and Pacifica counsellors.
King said his Foundation will be transparent with where the funding goes and will report every cent and session.
"Mike King is not putting one cent in his pocket. I Am Hope Foundation is not putting one cent in our pocket. This is about the kids and with that money we can deliver 160,000 free counselling sessions to young New Zealanders who need it," King said.
King highlighted the urgency of addressing the escalating mental health crisis among young people, noting that the situation is worsening.
"The soaring demand for youth mental health services, with Gumboot Friday experiencing a staggering 500 percent increase in just two years, is a stark reminder that we cannot afford to slow down," King said.
He said Gumboot Friday is designed to work with the current service and enable them to do their jobs properly.
"Our role is to take the pressure off the public system and stop all of these kids being thrown into a funnel where they're going to meet a bottleneck at the crisis end," King said. "We're going to have experts filtering in and only putting through the young people that desperately need the help."
Peters said by providing more access to targeted early intervention, young people will be better equipped to "create a brighter future for themselves".
"Investing in mental health initiatives supports better outcomes across the wider health system and the funding will complement the delivery of other mental health services."
