Mental Health Subcommittee

The LSS has recently established the Mental Health Subcommittee in response to the increasing number of law students facing mental health issues. The LSS believes that in establishing this new group, it will achieve the aims of creating greater awareness on this issue in the Melbourne Law School, and to encourage students to seek assistance should they be facing mental health problems.

The Mental Health Subcommittee will act as a referral service to students. It will be the first point of contact for students facing high levels of distress and anxiety. The Subcommittee will refer students to the relevant bodies, which will provide the most appropriate assistance for the students’ needs.

The Subcommittee will also provide information sessions, which will feature guest speakers from organisations that focus on mental health. The aim of these information sessions is to provide greater awareness of mental health issues, and to provide students with solutions on how to better manage stress-related anxiety. The information sessions also aim to provide students with an informal forum to discuss ways to deal with stress.

The Subcommittee will seek feedback from students on how mental health should be addressed by the University. The Subcommittee, however, will not take an advocacy role. Instead, the Subcommittee will provide suggestions to the law faculty on how mental health should be better addressed.

The Subcommittee will also release a Guidebook, similar to previous years’ Health and Wellbeing Guidebook. The Subcommittee will also be undertaking other activities previously organised by the Education portfolio.

Please feel free to contact the subcommittee at lss-mentalhealth@unimelb.edu.au.