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The Coloured Kit

Empowering young people who have a parent with a mental illness / dual diagnosis and their families

The Coloured Kit is a resource that provides support and information for young people who have a parent with a mental illness / dual diagnosis and their families. The Kit was designed to support and empower young people and their families. It was produced as a collaboration between a group of experienced young people, the Youth Coalition and the Children of Parents with a Mental Illness Project, Mental Health ACT.

It was launched by the ACT Minister for Health, Ms Katy Gallagher MLA, on 16th November 2006. Version 1 was published on November 2006. It was revised and reprinted in June 2007. Hard copies are available to be collected from the Youth Coalition office.

The Kit consists of three booklets, the Young People's Section, the Workers's Section, and the Support Services and Resources Section. A brief description, and PDFs, of the Kit are provided below.

Booklet 1:  Young People's Section (2MB PDF)

Booklet 1 was researched and developed by a working group of five young people and provides practical activities and accessible information to young people in families where a parent has a mental illness / dual diagnosis. Booklet 1 is the focus of the Kit and is divided into four parts:

  • Introduction : Welcome to the Kit!, How to use it, Some key words that might help, What we want to say to you, Your rights
  • Getting Support : Who can help?, Asking for help, Getting support at school, Creating my support list, Getting help for my parent in a crisis, Who can I call?, Using a phone when you have no cash, How to make an emergency phone call
  • My Care Plan : About me, Where am I going to stay?, Things to remember if I'm staying away from home, Organising my week, Money, My medical details, Signing off
  • Getting Info and Keeping in Touch : How do I find out what's going on?, How do I keep in touch with my parent?, Some mental health terms

The following two resources from Booklet 1 can be downloaded separately:

Booklet 2:  Workers Section: How To Support A Young Person To Use The Coloured Kit: A Step-by-Step Guide (940KB PDF)

This Booklet was developed by experienced workers and guided by the input of the Project's Young People's Working Group. It explains the purpose of the Kit, when to use it, how to use it, how to distribute it and how to action the Care Plan. It also provides background to some of the issues for families where there is a parental mental illness / dual diagnosis. Booklet 2 is divided into the following:

  • Introduction : Introducing the Kit to workers
  • The Basics : Basic information about working with children of parents with a mental illness / dual diagnosis and their families
  • How I Want To Be Supported : Tips for Workers From Young People
  • Using the Young People's Section : Information and ideas on how to use the Young People's Section
  • Checklist for Workers : A one page quick reference checklist for workers
  • References

The following two resources from Booklet 2 can be downloaded separately:

Booklet 3:  Support Services and Resources Section (720KB PDF)

Booklet 3 is for young people, families and workers. It provides supporting material, including contact details for youth services, school support services in the ACT, alternative education programs, youth refuges and accommodation support services and crisis services. Information is also provided on rights, education and training for workers, web based information and resources and useful books.

Acknowledgements

The Project was a one-off 12 month project that began on January 9th 2006.  It was funded through the Carer Recognition Grants Program of the ACT Government°s Department of Disability, Housing and Community Services. The Project was a partnership between the Youth Coalition of the ACT and the Children of Parents with a Mental Illness (COPMI) Project, Mental Health ACT.  The Youth Coalition managed the Project and a part-time Project Officer was employed and based at the Youth Coalition for the duration of the Project.

We would like to thank all individuals and services who generously gave their time and effort to the development of The Coloured Kit. It would not have been possible without:

  • All of the young people who were part of the working group or consultations that helped to develop The Coloured Kit.  Thank you especially to Isaac Fox and Joe Smith, Paola Mason and Nerrelle Goad, Children of Mentally Ill Consumers (COMIC), for developing the original "Supporting Our Family Kit" and giving us permission to use it as the basis for The Coloured Kit. COMIC's kit can be accessed from www.howstat.com/comic;
  • Steve Byrne, Project Officer, and Carrie Fowlie, Project Coordinator, of The Coloured Kit, Youth Coalition of the ACT;
  • Therese Foster, Coordinator, Children of Parents affected by Mental Illness Project, Mental Health ACT;

All the workers and services who generously contributed information, assistance and on-going feedback:

  • Youth Coalition of the ACT's Staff Team;
  • Alcohol and Drug Program, ACT Health;
  • CarersACT;
  • Child and Women's Health;
  • Program, ACT Health;
  • Co-Morbidity Project, ACT Health;
  • CYCLOPSACT;
  • Institute of Child Protection Studies;
  • and the Mental Health ACT Consumer Consultant;
  • Philippa Spice and Ken Osborne, Youth Education Program and Youth in the City;
  • Bridget Dillon, Social Worker, Mental Health ACT;
  • Child and Adolescent Mental Health Clinicians;
  • ACT Children of Parents affected by a Mental Illness Project Steering Committee;
  • Mental Health ACT Children of Parents affected by a Mental Illness Interest Group;
  • Sue Roche, Department of Education and Training;
  • The Youth Coalition of the ACT's Alcohol and Other Drug Services Directory 2006.

Evaluation Report

The Coloured Kit:  Evaluation and Project Report , Available late 2007.
 
 

  
         
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