StandBy is committed to ensuring all Australians have equal access to evidenced, informed, well-coordinated and timely post suicide support, and those with lived experience of suicide bereavement are central to everything we do.

StandBy Support After Suicide was established by Youturn in 2002 to meet the need for a coordinated community response to suicide on the Sunshine Coast, Qld. More than twenty years later it has grown into an established and respected national program.

From limited funding opportunities and resources in the early years, to becoming Australia’s leading provider in suicide postvention today, there has been an unwavering commitment to collaboration, continuous improvement and evaluation. In 2021 StandBy expanded from servicing 11 Primary Health Networks (PHN) to 31 PHN regions, a huge achievement, enabling StandBy to work towards providing all Australians with universal and equitable access to postvention.

StandBy operates nationally by partnering with local organisations, engaging their expertise within the community to deliver the most effective and culturally suitable support for each individual circumstance.

StandBy is  one of Australia’s leading suicide postvention programs dedicated to assisting people and communities bereaved or impacted by suicide. In Australia, more than 3,300 people take their own life each year. Research indicates that for every death through suicide 135 people are impacted and ten or more are significantly impacted. StandBy provides free face-to face or telephone support by local caring staff, committed to the wellbeing of the person or group impacted.

The program provides a central point of coordination, connecting people to the various supports they may need through referrals to services, groups and organisations within their local area. StandBy is committed to ensuring all Australians have equal access to evidenced, informed, well-coordinated and timely post suicide support, and those with lived experience of suicide bereavement are central to everything we do.

A recent independent evaluation of the program found that StandBy’s Support After Suicide service helps to significantly lower the risk of suicidality, mental health concerns, and social isolation following a loss of a loved one.

We promote respect, equality and the inclusion of all members of the community. We value the experiences and courage of people bereaved or impacted by suicide, and the willingness of local communities to support them. May we all work together towards a shared vision of hope and unity.

StandBy is an initiative jointly funded by the Australian, New South Wales, Victorian, Queensland and Northern Territory Governments to provide support to people bereaved or impacted by suicide, a population who are known to be at greater risk of suicide.

StandBy ensures that organisational direction is underpinned by a combination of lived experience, service provision partners and the StandBy National team (pictured below is the StandBy National Team with StandBy Regional Coordinators and Managers from around Australia at the Suicide Prevention Australia Conference 2023.)

The Inaugural National Lived Experience Advisory Group (LEAG) was established in 2019 to provide valuable lived experience to inform future strategic direction, guide and advise StandBy National and to help champion the StandBy program.

LEAG members meet regularly to support special projects and identifying areas of prioritisation for the continuous improvement of the StandBy program.

For more information about Lived Experience Groups please email StandBy’s Lived Experience Coordinator, Jo Langford.

The Standby National head office is located in Maroochydore, on Queensland’s Sunshine Coast. StandBy partners with service provision partners around Australia to deliver the program. The StandBy National team (pictured left with StandBy Regional Coordinators and Managers from around Australia at the Suicide Prevention Australia Conference Canberra 2023.)

Find StandBy Support After Suicide in your local area here