Being - Mental Health Consumers

What Being - Mental Health Consumers does

BEING - Mental Health Consumers is the designated peak body representing people with lived experience of mental illness in New South Wales, Australia. Founded in 1992 following its spin-off from the NSW Community Advisory Group - Mental Health, the organization is constitutionally consumer-led, with lived experience of mental illness a prerequisite for governance and leadership roles. It is headquartered in Woolloomooloo, Sydney, and operates with a small team of 11–50 staff.

The organisation's product surface is structured around a portfolio of community-facing services and digital tools. Core offerings include an e-Learning Hub, a Consumer Register, the Consumer Peer Workers Forum, the Peer Workforce Network, BEING Connected (a member communication channel), the Safe Haven Finder (a directory resource), Navigating My Way (a self-directed resource), regional roadshow events, and member surveys. These are positioned as capacity-building and advocacy-enabling tools rather than commercial software products.

BEING's business model is that of a non-profit advocacy organisation dependent on government grant funding. The most recent disclosed funding is a $4.3 million NSW Government commitment over four years, shared with Mental Health Carers NSW and a third peak body. Strategic partnerships with the University of Sydney, the National Mental Health Consumer Alliance, the Human Rights Act for NSW Alliance, Wayahead, and Mental Health Carers NSW extend its reach, while leadership (Chair Tim Heffernan, CEO Giancarlo de Vera) signals continued operational and public-facing activity.

Name

Being - Mental Health Consumers

Legal name

BEING – Mental Health Consumers Ltd.

Website

https://being.org.au

Company type

Private

Founded year

1992

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

BEING is the NSW peak body representing people with lived experience of mental illness, delivering advocacy, peer workforce development, e-learning, and member services to mental health consumers across New South Wales.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Mental Health Advocacy Services

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAAAHAK

Mental Wellness & Resilience Education (Non-clinical)

Education/Adult & Continuing Education/Health, Wellness & Lifestyle Education (Nutrition, Fitness, Mindfulness)

Keywords

• Mental health advocacy
• Consumer peer support
• Lived experience representation
• Systemic mental health reform
• Peer workforce development

Headquarters

HQ city

Woolloomooloo

HQ country

Australia

HQ region

Oceania

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Funding: BEING receives government funding as the NSW peak body for mental health consumers. The NSW Government invested $4.3 million in mental health advocacy across three peak bodies over four years in the 2026 Budget.
2. Donations: The organization accepts donations through Raisely platform (being-donations.raisely.com) for supporter contributions.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

BEING - Mental Health Consumers operates as the NSW peak body for people with lived/living experience of mental health issues, delivering systemic advocacy, professional development, peer workforce support, and consumer-led research. Its offerings include the BEING e-Learning Hub for online professional development, the Consumer Register of lived experience leaders, the annual Consumer Peer Workers Forum, the BEING Connected peer networking series, the Peer Workforce Network, and the Regional Roadshow outreach program, all provided free of charge to mental health consumers.

Product overview

Being - Mental Health Consumers is the NSW peak organization for people with lived/living experience of mental health issues. Rather than a unified technology product, the organization operates a portfolio of service offerings including: the BEING e-Learning Hub (online learning platform for professional development), the Consumer Register (a network of lived experience advocates available for consultations, focus groups, and advisory roles), annual events including the Consumer Peer Workers Forum and BEING Connected networking events, survey-based research initiatives, the Peer Workforce Network for NSW peer workers, and resource tools like the Safe Haven Finder and Navigating My Way. The organization focuses on systemic advocacy, supporting the lived experience workforce, and providing professional development opportunities for mental health consumers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• BEING e-Learning Hub Online learning platform providing educational resources and professional development courses for the mental health peer workforce across NSW.
• Consumer Register Membership registry of mental health consumers with lived experience who participate in focus groups, consultations, co-design activities, committee meetings, advisory groups, and media speaking opportunities.
• Consumer Peer Workers Forum Annual professional development event for public mental health peer workers featuring keynote speeches, workshops, and networking, co-presented with the Consumer Peer Workforce Committee.
• BEING Connected Networking and professional development event series designed specifically for NSW peer workers.
• Peer Workforce Network Professional network open to all peer workers throughout NSW currently working in designated lived experience (consumer) roles across public, private, and community managed sectors.
• Regional Roadshow Outreach initiative travelling across NSW to engage directly with mental health consumers and stakeholders in regional communities.

Quantifiable outcome

• 250 delegates at 2023 Consumer Peer Workers Forum - biggest ever held
• +1 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and major.

• University of SydneycoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2026BEING is partnering with the University of Sydney on the Mental Health Discharge Project to better understand and improve mental health discharge and transfer of care practices by learning directly from consumers who have experienced them.
• Consumer Peer Workforce CommitteecoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2023Co-presents the annual Consumer Peer Workers Forum with BEING. The Committee works with BEING to plan and deliver professional development events for the mental health peer workforce across NSW public, private, and community managed sectors.
• Human Rights Act for NSW AlliancecoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerBEING is one of 120+ peak bodies calling for a Human Rights Act in NSW. The alliance advocates for legislative change to protect the rights of all NSW citizens, including those with mental health and psychosocial challenges.
• Wayahead - Mental Health AssociationmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-hosted the sold-out 'Path to a NSW Human Rights Act' event at Parliament House alongside BEING and Mental Health Carers NSW, bringing together legal experts, policymakers, and advocates.
• Mental Health Carers NSWmajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCo-hosted the 'Path to a NSW Human Rights Act' event and collaborate on joint advocacy initiatives for mental health reform in NSW.
• National Mental Health Consumer AlliancemajorStrategic or Co-development PartnerBEING participates in this national coalition of mental health consumer peaks that conducted Australia's first National Mental Health Human Rights Survey in 2025 and released the first National Mental Health Human Rights Report.
• Joint Statement Endorsing OrganisationsmajorGTM or Marketing PartnerMore than 20 leading mental health, community and justice reform organisations endorsed the joint statement 'Having a Mental Health Crisis is Not a Crime' including ACON Health, Australian Lawyers for Human Rights, Australian Society of Psychiatrists, Carers NSW, Justice and Equity Centre, RANZCP, RACGP, and others.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Mental Health Australia: Australia's national peak body for the mental health sector and a natural umbrella above BEING in the advocacy hierarchy. Comparable as the convener of national consumer peaks, including BEING itself through the National Mental Health Consumer Alliance.
• Lifeline Australia: National crisis support and suicide prevention service with comparable advocacy and public engagement functions, but with substantially larger operational scale and a crisis-line service model BEING does not operate.
• Beyond Blue: Australia's largest mental health organisation, providing information, support, and advocacy at national scale. Comparable in mission (reducing stigma, supporting people with mental health issues) but with substantially larger donor base, brand recognition, and government relationships.
• Black Dog Institute: Mental health research and clinical translation institute affiliated with UNSW. Comparable in the broader Australian mental health ecosystem but oriented toward research output and clinical tools rather than consumer-led advocacy.
• headspace: National youth mental health foundation providing clinical services and peer support. Comparable on the lived-experience and youth mental health dimensions that BEING addresses through the Consumer Register and Peer Workforce Network.
• Mind Australia: Major community-managed mental health service provider with lived-experience workforce programs comparable to BEING's peer workforce agenda, but operating as a direct service provider rather than a peak advocacy body.
• SANE Australia: National mental health advocacy and peer-support organisation with comparable brand recognition, lived-experience focus, and policy advocacy remit, but operating at national scale with a broader service portfolio than BEING's NSW-only mandate.

Direct peers

• Mental Health Carers NSW: The carer-side counterpart that was split from the same NSW Community Advisory Group – Mental Health in 1992. It is the most directly comparable peer, operating as a state-level peak advocacy body with a parallel funding model, board structure, and Parliament House co-hosted event history with BEING.
• WayAhead – Mental Health Association: NSW-based mental health association focused on mental health promotion, peer support, and advocacy. Already co-hosts events with BEING (e.g., the Parliament House Human Rights Act forum) and overlaps directly on lived-experience workforce development.

Emerging players

• COPMI (Children of Parents with a Mental Illness): National initiative focused on supporting children of parents with mental illness. Comparable as a niche lived-experience advocacy body with a defined population focus, and thematically aligned with BEING's family-and-carer adjacent work.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/BEINGMHC
• Facebookfacebook.com/BeingMHW
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/being-mental-health-consumers
• Instagraminstagram.com.au/beingmentalhealthconsumers

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Being - Mental Health Consumers