State Budget delivers on youth mental health, infrastructure and transport to the Great Southern

Thursday’s State Budget announcement delivered a raft of funds for the Great Southern with a focus on continuing vital regional services and rejuvenating older projects. At the Budget Breakfast hosted at the Albany Golf Club on Friday, Minister for Health Amber Jade Sanderson listed $12.8b worth of funding for WA regional infrastructure projects and assistance for Great Southern households. The homelessness crisis is being supported by $9m to expand the Housing First Support Services into Albany, a wraparound initiative that establishes an easy-to-access network of services for individual cases. Developments to Albany infrastructure include $4m for a floating pontoon at the Albany waterfront marina, $250,000 for a new finger jetty at the Little Grove Boat Ramp, updates to equipment at Camp Quaranup, and funding for the Mirambeena Strategic Industrial Area. Historic buildings will get a facelift, along with modern additions including $8.3m for the Albany Pilot Station precinct and $3.7m for Strawberry Hill Farm at Barmup. $4.2m is dedicated to the continual provision of specialist services for Aboriginal people at Jobs and Skills centres, one of which is located in Albany. Transport infrastructure benefitted with $2.5m for upgrades to Albany Airport and a $2m business case for a new general-purpose berth at the Port of Albany. Albany Health Campus will receive 100 extra parking bays but its operations inside were overlooked despite the shadow minister for regional health Martin Aldridge saying it was “urgently need(ing) redevelopment” when it missed out on funding last year. Mental health will benefit from a $7.1m fund to establish an Acute Care and Response Team for the Great Southern, a service providing mental health crisis support services for children up to the age of 17. The 10-year Early Years Partnership initiative, which operates in the central Great Southern and supports early childhood education, will receive $15.6m in funding. The Great Southern region will also be allocated new firefighters and a firefighting bulldozer, and introduce the Driving Access and Equity Program which assists people in getting their driver’s license.