Mental Health Services Are Under Pressure: See What Is Changing.

The 2025-26 Victorian Budget has once again highlighted the growing need for mental health support across our state. There’s continued funding for services, infrastructure, and workforce development, which is a step in the right direction. But for many organisations on the ground, one challenge keeps coming up: finding and keeping the right people.

At Johnson Recruitment, we work closely with organisations across the mental health and community services space. Lately, we’ve been hearing the same story. Services are under strain, teams are stretched, and it’s getting harder to recruit in key roles.

Some of the hardest-to-fill areas right now include:

• Mental Health Nurses. Especially those with community or dual diagnosis experience
• Psychologists and Clinicians. With strong demand and limited availability
• Youth and Child Mental Health Workers. Particularly in trauma-informed care
• Peer Support Workers. As more services value lived experience, but need help building supportive recruitment pathways

The recent budget includes funding to expand training places, upgrade mental health facilities, and further implement recommendations from the Royal Commission. These investments are essential, but they also create more demand for skilled staff in an already competitive market. The workforce is growing, but not at a pace that meets the scale of the reform now underway.

This is where I hope we can support your organisation.

Whether you’re rolling out a new program, replacing a key team member, or struggling to find the right fit for a specialist role, we are here to help. We take the time to understand what matters to your team, not just the job description, but the people, values, and environment behind it.

If you’re facing workforce challenges, let’s talk about how we can find the right candidates to support the important work you do. Contact me, Lisa Webb, to discuss your recruitment needs.