Strengthening and supporting our workforces, together
From 1 July 2025, the Collaborative Centre is honoured to lead a new workforce development function for Victoria’s mental health and wellbeing sector.
We are committed to building on the strong foundations established by the Centre for Mental Health Learning (CMHL), continuing their work while evolving to meet the future needs of Victoria’s mental health workforce.
Our mission is to support, strengthen and grow workforce capabilities – working alongside people in all roles, professions and settings to enhance the care, treatment and support they provide.
We are proud to contribute to a learning ecosystem where every person working in the Mental Health and Wellbeing system, no matter their discipline, background, experience or location, has access to high quality continuing education and professional development opportunities and a shared foundation of skills and knowledge.
Explore Our Workforce, Our Future: Victoria’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Workforce Capability Framework
Our focus in 2025
In our first year of delivering this function, we’re focused on delivering activities and initiatives that meet current needs while shaping long-term impact. This includes:
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Delivering a core suite of workforce development programs in areas such as trauma-informed care, crisis prevention and de-escalation, culturally safe and inclusive care, strengthening allyship with the lived experience workforce, and early career support for health professionals
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Co-ordinating and promoting training and development opportunities delivered by our partners across the sector
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Supporting communities of practice to foster shared learning, connection and collaboration
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Taking a strategic approach to evolve and grow workforce offerings in 2026 and beyond, listening to our diverse workforces to understand their future capability needs and partnering with them to develop innovative and responsive training programs
Supporting continuity
Please note that as of 31 December 2025, the CMHL website ceased operation. In line with the Collaborative Centre's commitment to continuing to deliver and maintain the tools, platforms and structures that CMHL were providing to mental health professionals, we are currently transitioning the following from the CMHL website:
- The Supervision databases
- Key sector and discipline specific resources
- The CMHL Learning Management System
We will provide updates as these elements become live, and appreciate your patience during this transition period. All training events can now be located on the Collaborative Centre's Events page.
Embedding lived experience
Embedding lived and living experience is core to how we design, deliver and evaluate workforce development initiatives. We’re also proud to work closely with The Collective, a dedicated new consortium delivering supervision and training for Victoria’s lived and living experience workforce.
Our work will focus on the continued growth, training and sustainability of a diverse, supported and empowered lived experience workforce across the Mental Health and Wellbeing system.
Putting knowledge into action
Our approach draws on translational research, implementation science and co-production to ensure what we do makes a real and lasting difference to workforce capability and consumer and carer outcomes.
We aim to:
- Equip the workforce with the tools, knowledge and support they need to deliver better experiences of care, treatment and healing
- Increase opportunities for practitioners to contribute to innovation and reform
- Strengthen connections between evidence, practice and lived experience through our Knowledge Sharing Platform
- Harness AI for evidence-based, real-time decision making and outcome evaluation to grow a learning mental health system
Let’s work together
We’re looking forward to connecting with you – our diverse workforces, training providers, service organisations, professional associations and the Department of Health.
Your insights and expertise will help shape our work, ensuring that workforce development in Victoria is aligned with what matters most and drives meaningful change for consumers, families, carers, supporters and communities.
Let’s build the future of our workforce, together.
