National Mental Health Commission appoints 17-member Advisory Council

What happened

The National Mental Health Commission announced on 1 May 2026 that it has appointed 17 members to a newly formed Advisory Council. The announcement says the Council’s membership spans mental health peak bodies (including groups representing mental health workers), specialist mental health professionals, people with lived experience, and people from communities often more affected by mental-health issues such as LGBTQIA+ communities, culturally diverse communities and people with disability. The Council held its first meeting on 30 April 2026.

What the Council will do

According to the Commission, the Advisory Council will give the Commission advice on Australia’s mental health system. The Commission described the Council’s role as improving how the Commission listens, learns and responds; helping to test thinking early; and strengthening the quality and credibility of the Commission’s advice so its work better reflects lived experience and real-life settings. The release frames the Council as an advisory body to the Commission rather than an operational arm.

What the Commission does (as stated by the CEO)

The Commission’s Chief Executive Officer and Chair of the Council, David McGrath, said the Commission works to make mental health and wellbeing systems more open and accountable. He listed examples of the Commission’s activity — tracking how money is spent on mental health and suicide prevention, giving advice to the Australian Government, and reporting on mental health and suicide prevention systems — as part of the Commission’s remit. Those are described as Commission activities in the release; the Advisory Council’s role is described as advising the Commission.

What the release does not establish

The media release does not name individual appointees, set out a meeting schedule beyond the first meeting, or specify concrete deliverables or timeframes for the Council’s work.

Bottom line

The Advisory Council is an appointed, cross-sector advisory group intended to broaden the Commission’s perspective and contribute to the quality of its advice and projects. It is explicitly described as an advisory forum to the Commission; the Commission remains responsible for its operational functions such as spending tracking, formal government advice and reporting.