Youth services 30 March 2022

Youth mental health facility complete in Melbourne’s north west

Construction is complete on the $11.9 million North West Metropolitan Youth Prevention and Recovery Care (YPARC) centre in Parkville.

The 20-bed facility is expected to open its door within weeks.

Each year it will provide treatment and support for 200 young people aged 16 to 25 experiencing mental ill health. The facility is the fourth of its kind in Victoria.

Early intervention and recovery

Youth Prevention and Recovery Care centres are designed to provide early intervention support and clinical treatment in a residential setting.

The centre will help young people who are unwell, or who are in the early stages of recovery from an acute mental illness.

Operated by Orygen Youth Health, the new centre will:

increase access to safe, flexible and responsive community-based treatment for young people
help fill the service gap between community and hospital-based care
provide short and medium term treatment in a residential setting.

Welcoming and therapeutic environment

Good design plays an important role in health care. This facility was designed to create a welcoming and therapeutic environment while keeping young people safe.

The centre has 20 private bedrooms, complete with ensuite bathrooms.

There is a communal kitchen along with shared dining and living areas to help residents feel at home while receiving professional care. Outdoor garden areas encourage rest and recovery, and support family visits.

Video transcript

Text on screen: Construction on Victoria’s fourth Youth Prevention and Recovery Care centre in now complete.

IMAGES: Aerial footage of the new facility in Parkville with city skyscrapers in background.

Text on screen: The $11.9 million facility in Parkville will provide flexible, around-the-clock clinical care in a community-based setting to young people experiencing mental ill health.

IMAGES: The open areas and courtyard at the back of the facility are shown. There is a wooden fence around the property, lots of trees and seating and tables in the courtyard. Footage changes to show the front of the facility, which is modern and has a ramp to the entrance.

Text on screen: It includes 20 single bedrooms with ensuites.

IMAGES: An internal view of one of the bedrooms, which is spacious, has lots of natural light and a window seat looking out on to parkland.

Text on screen: Communal kitchen, dining and living areas.

IMAGES: A large communal kitchen with island bench seating and floor to ceiling windows.

Text on screen: Breakout spaces.

IMAGES: A small ‘chill zone’ area is shown.

Text on screen: Outdoor garden areas for recreational activities and family visits.

IMAGES: Aerial footage of the outdoor courtyard with seating and landscaped areas.

Text on screen: Operated by Orygen Youth Health, it will support 200 young people aged 16 to 25 annually.

IMAGES: Aerial footage shows the facility and its carpark, sitting in parkland and with city skyscrapers in the background.

IMAGES: The closing slide is the Victorian Health Building Authority logo, the web address vhba.vic.gov.au and the Victoria State Government logo.

End of transcript.

About the North West YPARC centre

The YPARC centre is located in the Parkville precinct alongside the Orygen Youth Mental Health facility, the National Centre of Excellence in Youth Mental Health, and near The Royal Melbourne Hospital. The centre’s location ensures young people can access a range of mental health treatment and support services.

Learn more about the North West Metropolitan Youth Prevention and Recovery Care facility via our dedicated project page.

Doubling capacity of YPARCs

The Victorian Health Building Authority is delivering a number of dedicated infrastructure projects that respond to key recommendations from the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System.

Part of this response is a $141 million program to double Victoria’s YPARC service capacity. The expansion will provide greater access to mental health treatment and support for people aged 16-25.

In late 2021 we announced the five new 10-bed YPARC centres will be built in:

Greater Ballarat
Greater Geelong
Greater Shepparton
Heidelberg
Traralgon.

Existing YPARC facilities in Bendigo, Frankston and Dandenong will also be refurbished as part of program.

Once complete, the five new facilities will have the capacity to provide prevention and recovery care services for more than 900 young people each year.

Learn more about how we’re responding to the Royal Commission into Victoria’s Mental Health System.