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Community-led Safe Spaces | Volunteer with us

Become a Working Group member or volunteer in our Community-led Safe Spaces.

What are Community-led Safe Spaces?

Community-led Safe Spaces are volunteer-run, non-clinical services where people experiencing suicidal distress can find compassionate and empathetic support from workers who have also gone through their own suicidal crisis (or have ‘lived experience of suicidal distress’) and have been trained to use their lived experience to support others.  

Community-led Safe Spaces are intended to provide a welcoming, approachable service that is an alternative or addition to other services that may not be immediately available or the most appropriate fit for a person’s needs all the time.

Are you wanting to lead the way in helping people experiencing suicidal distress in your community? Do you have lived experience of suicide* and feel like you’re ready to give back to your community and help people in distress?

We would love to hear from you! We’re searching for…

Community-led Safe Space volunteers to welcome and support people experiencing emotional distress, suicidal thoughts or crisis, and their support network to the Safe Space.

Community-led Safe Space Working Group members to help run and organise the Safe Space. As a working group member, you will recruit and organise the volunteers, carry out community engagement including establishing referral pathways for guests, and aid in getting the word out there that the Safe Space is operating and providing support. You will help organise fundraising events and grant writing. You will organise the financial side of the running of the Safe Space and ensure its fidelity and that it is operated in accordance with the key principles and the community consultation guidance.

To become a volunteer within a Community-led Safe Space, we ask you to have:
  • availability of at least 3 hours per month
  • availability to complete online self-paced training and 1.5. days of online workshops
  • can be involved for a minimum of 12 months

Please ensure you have read the ‘Readiness to be Involved in Suicide Prevention’ document before completing your application, which you can find here.

*Lived Experience of Suicide: we define Lived Experience as having experienced suicidal thoughts, survived a suicide attempt, been bereaved by suicide, or cared for someone who has been suicidal.

Apply to volunteer at the below Community-led Safe Spaces

You can click to apply to be a volunteer or a working group member at the below Community-led Safe Spaces. As this is an in-person volunteer role, please only apply for a Safe Space that is close to where you live.

Name Location Apply to volunteer Website Social page
Kenilworth Safe Space McGinns of Kenilworth, 11 Elizabeth St, Kenilworth, QLD Apply Watch this space Facebook page
Lake Macquarie Community-led Safe Space 3 Hilltop Arcade, 228 Pacific Hwy, Charlestown, NSW Apply Website Facebook page
Macedon Ranges Community-led Safe Space Woodend Neighbourhood House, 47 Forest St, Woodend, VIC Apply Website Facebook page
Safe Space Blackwood Henri Nouwen House, 16 Hester St, Bridgetown, WA Apply Website Watch this space
Castlemaine Safe Space 74 Mostyn Street, Castlemaine, Vic Apply Website Facebook page
Bunbury Shining Hope Community-led Safe Space 9 Ramsay street, Bunbury WA, 6230 Apply Watch this space Facebook page
Blue Mountains Safe Space for Suicide Prevention 2 Station street, Katoomba NSW, 2780 Apply Website Facebook page
Mariposa Trails Glenelg Community Centre, 4 Colley Terrace, Glenelg SA, 5045 Apply Website Facebook page
Sydney's Northern Beaches MoWaNA The Mind Café, Shop 3, 1346 Pittwater Road, Narrabeen NSW, 2101 Apply Website Facebook page
Cygnet Garden Safe Space 1 Frederick Street, Cygnet Tasmania, 7112 Apply Watch this space Cygnet Community Hub Facebook page
Aunties Safe Space P.I.N.T. 30 Mahony Court, Driver Northern Territory, 0830 Apply Watch this space Facebook page

Our “000” position

Contact of emergency services by Roses in the Ocean’s Non-clinical Peer-led Services.

To ensure the safety, health, and wellbeing of all people involved in Roses in the Ocean’s Non-clinical Peer-led Services, emergency services will only be contacted in situations where:

  1. a person who is actively engaged in the service requests we do, or
  2. a person is disengaging from the service AND has communicated that they have the immediate intention of acting on their plan of suicide; or
  3. an incident occurs requiring immediate medical or other assistance.

More info

Support Lines 
 
Should completing this process raise any strong emotions for you and you’d like to speak with someone, here are some National helplines and websites: 
 
Kids Helpline: 1800 551 800 | kidshelpline.com.au 
 
Lifeline: 13 11 14 | lifeline.org.au 
 
Suicide Call Back Service: 1300 659 467 | suicidecallbackservice.org.au 
 
Roses in the Ocean SP Peer CARE Companion Warmline: 1800 777 337 

Beyond Blue: 1300 24 636 | beyondblue.org.au 
 
QLife: 1800 184 527 | qlife.org.au 
 
Open Arms: 1800 011 046 | openarms.gov.au 
 
13YARN: 13 92 76 | 13yarn.org.au  
 
Headspace: 1800 650 890 | headspace.org.au 
 
ReachOut: au.reachout.com 
 
Everymind: everymind.org.au/need-help-now