Youth Support + Advocacy Service

Youth Support + Advocacy Service Helping young people overcome drug and alcohol challenges, improve their mental health, and lead healthy, fulfilling lives

13/09/2026

📲You can now text YoDAA for support on 0488 826 690

Need support or have a question about alcohol or other drugs? You can now text the YoDAA team for free, confidential advice and support.

💬 Text us on 0488 826 690

You can reach out about yourself, a friend, or someone you care about. The YoDAA team can provide advice or help you know where to start with getting connected to support.

📞 1800 458 685
📧 [email protected]
💬 0488 826 690

💛September 10 is World Su***de Prevention Day, here’s what prevention can look like.From individual actions like checkin...
10/09/2026

💛September 10 is World Su***de Prevention Day, here’s what prevention can look like.

From individual actions like checking in, listening without judgement and staying connected, to systemic changes that address the conditions that can contribute to distress.
 
Su***de prevention also means governments investing in accessible mental health and AOD services, secure housing, education and employment, family violence support, early intervention and prevention, and stronger connections between services.
 
For effective prevention we need to support people experiencing distress while also addressing the broader conditions that can contribute to it.
 
If you or someone you know needs support, help is available.

In an emergency, call 000.
Lifeline on 13 11 14
Su***de Line Victoria 1300 651 251
13 Yarn 13 92 76
Kids Help Line 1800 55 1800

A huge thank you to Raph Rashid and everyone who got behind his incredible 24-hour Flip-a-Thon, raising an amazing $31,7...
09/09/2026

A huge thank you to Raph Rashid and everyone who got behind his incredible 24-hour Flip-a-Thon, raising an amazing $31,701 for YSAS.

Raph, flipped burgers for the full 24 hours at his Brunswick HQ, with 100% of profits donated to YSAS.

Melbourne chefs, musicians and creatives joined Raph throughout the day and night.

We felt so much love and support for YSAS, our services and, most importantly, the young people we work with. 💙❤️

A massive thank you to Raph, every local business that donated, everyone who helped make the event happen, and every person who came along, bought a burger or made a donation.

04/09/2026

Quick recap of a huge day ⏮️

Thank you to everyone who attended, spoke at and made the YSAS Conference 2026 possible.

Head to our website to read more about the day.

Two weeks ago, we came together for the YSAS Conference, Honouring Our Work: Practice That Makes a Difference for Young ...
02/09/2026

Two weeks ago, we came together for the YSAS Conference, Honouring Our Work: Practice That Makes a Difference for Young People, a day of listening, learning and reflecting on what it means to put young people at the centre of practice.

Maggie Toko AM, Interim Commissioner at the Mental Health and Wellbeing Commission, gave an opening address with a powerful analogy for trauma, describing it as “carrying a suitcase around your neck, with the zip left open.” She reminded us that while youth workers can’t take those suitcases away, we can support young people to regain control and reclaim their power.

Bonnie Dukakis, CEO of Koorie Youth Council, challenged us to think about the systems we work within: “Practice does not happen in a vacuum. It exists inside systems.”

The day was full of learnings and sessions covering:
- Youth Participation in Action presented by young people at YSAS
- Inclusive approaches for young people with ADHD and ASD
- Lived experience and peer worker roles
- Drug harm reduction presented by the
- Brief casework in AOD outreach
- Australian African Foundation for Retention and Opportunity (AAFRO)'s Ubuntu Cultural Training
- Beyond Offending - Rethinking Forensic AOD practice presented by 16 Yards
- Family-inclusive practice
- YSAS' Lived and Living Experience Workforce Framework

Over the day one message came through again and again: if we want young people to have a voice, we need to be prepared to genuinely listen to their goals and needs. And, as one young person put it, “be prepared to let them actually drive.”

Read the full summary of the 2026 YSAS Conference on our website - https://ysas.org.au/news/practice-that-makes-a-difference-learnings-from-the-ysas-conference-2026/.

A big thank you to everyone who presented, attended and contributed to the day.

And a special thank you to Wurundjeri Woi-wurrung Elder Uncle Bill Nicholson for beginning the day with a Welcome to Country.

31/08/2026

Today marks 25 years of International Overdose Awareness Day (IOAD). This year’s theme, 25 Years On. Still Needed, reflects the reality that overdose continues to affect people, families and communities across Australia.

The Penington Institute’s 2026 Australia’s Annual Overdose Report found that in 2024, unintentional drug-induced deaths in Australia reached their highest recorded level, surpassing 2,000 for the first time.

Behind every number is a person, a family and a community.

Harm reduction means making sure people have access to the support, services and information they need when they need it. This can include:

• Withdrawal services
• Residential rehabilitation
• Outreach
• Day programs
• Naloxone
• Practical harm reduction information
• Pill testing and other drug checking services

The Victorian Pill Testing Service has now been operating for more than a year, distributing more than 700 naloxone kits and testing more than 3,000 samples during that time.

There’s still work to do. Reducing stigma, listening to people with lived and living experience, and making support easier to access all matter.

Today, we remember those we’ve lost and recognise the people, services and communities working every day to prevent further deaths.

Need support?

Find your local YSAS service via the link in our bio.

Looking for naloxone? Find out where to get it via the link in our bio.

For young people seeking alcohol and other drug advice, support or information, contact YoDAA:

📞 1800 458 685
📧 [email protected]
📱 SMS 0488 826 690

YSAS

Happy Wear It Purple Day!! 🌈💜Today we’re celebrating LGBTIQA+ young people and the this year’s theme Colours of Courage....
28/08/2026

Happy Wear It Purple Day!! 🌈💜

Today we’re celebrating LGBTIQA+ young people and the this year’s theme Colours of Courage.

At YSAS, we know being yourself, asking for help and speaking up can take courage.

That’s why creating safe, welcoming and inclusive spaces and services is an important part of our work.

Through dedicated programs like The Zone and Pensula Pride and across all of YSAS, we’re working to create the right door for LGBTQIA+ young people and their loved ones to find the support that’s best for them.

24/08/2026

September is Youth Partnership Month at YSAS, which means our Ideas Days are back! 💡📝💪

Each YSAS site hosts their own Ideas Day, a group session where young people can share feedback about our sites and services, advocate for change across the broader sector, and help shape the services that support them.

$40 recognition payment
Plus pizza 🍕
👉Talk to your worker to find out when your site’s Ideas Day is happening and how to register.

Find out more about getting involved with youth participation at YSAS at the link in our bio.

It’s International Youth Day! 💚 At YSAS, young people have the opportunity to shape the things that affect them from our...
12/08/2026

It’s International Youth Day! 💚 At YSAS, young people have the opportunity to shape the things that affect them from our services and programs, to change across the broader alcohol and other drug, mental health and youth sectors. Through Youth Advisory Committees, Ideas Days, consultations and feedback, young people bring their ideas and lived / living experience and expertise to the work we do. ✨

Want to get involved? Go to the Youth Participation page on our website 👉link in our bio.

Next month is Youth Partnership Month at YSAS. Watch this space for our annual Ideas Days happening across our sites! 👀 Speak to a YSAS worker to find out how to sign up.

03/08/2026

It’s Homelessness Awareness Week 💛
When you think of homelessness, what do you picture?
For many young people across Victoria, houselessness doesn’t always look like sleeping rough. It can look like couch surfing, living in a car, or staying somewhere unsafe because there are no other options.

Youth houselessness is driven by complex issues like family violence, family breakdown, mental health challenges, financial stress, and a shortage of safe, affordable housing.

With Victoria’s state election approaching, now is the time to call for action:
🏠 More safe, affordable housing
💙 Continued funding for youth support services
🗣️ Policies that address the housing and cost of living crisis
💚An end to the stigma surrounding houselessness

If you or someone you know needs support, help is available through Frontyard Youth Services MCM , Youth Projects , Launch Housing, Opening Doors, Berry Street, Anglicare Victoria and The Salvation Army.

Head to the link in our bio to learn more about these services and where to get support.

Address

Telstra Corporate Centre, Level 14/242 Exhibition Street
Melbourne, VIC
3000

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 5pm
Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 5pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm

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