Resources > Websites

Are you looking for online information about parenting, mental health issues, special needs, etc? Are you looking for educational resources or links to major government departments? If you are, click on the links below.

Important State and Commonwealth Government sites
Grandcarer websites (Australia)
Parenting resources
Special needs
Abuse and violence
Mental health
Education resources
General links

Important! Leaving this website
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Department of Health, Government of Western Australia

Essential Contacts - This page lists essential information on a range of services available to provide immediate response to people in crisis, or in need of urgent medical care. It also lists support available to people in need of after-hours GP care.

• Emergency and support service contact numbers and information
• After-hours GP clinics
• Hospitals and Health Services
• 24 hour medical advice HealthDirect Australia 1800 022 222
• 24 hour health service locator HealthInfo on 1300 135 030.

Child Health Services and Resources – provides a list of child health and child health care services and resources available on the DoH website. Of particular interest are the links provided for metropolitan and country child health services:

• Child Health Centres - Community Child Health Nurses can assess children's health and development (0-4 years) as well as provide information about many aspects of parenting, maternal and family health and healthy lifestyles.
  
  
• Community Health Centres - provide services to help people with the most common health problems, particularly to those who may have special needs such as Aboriginal people, women, people with severe disability or disease, older people, low income earners and people in remote areas. They are also responsible for health promotion and education, health screening, immunisation and treatment of infants and school-aged children.
  
  
• Also of interest are the downloadable brochures provided on the homepage under the following headings:
  * child emotions and behaviours
  * child growth and behaviours
  * child’s play and learning

The Consumer Health Services Directory - is the general reference page provided to help you access the vast range of health and community services provided by the State Government.

The Western Australian Country Health Service delivers acute and primary health services to regional WA. This site provides links to the websites of all the regional health services so that you can find information and services in your area.



YourZone - is a site provided by the Child & Adolescent Community Health Service, that focuses on improving the health status of young children and their families with a particularl emphasis on at risk groups. The site covers topics relevant to babies, youth, seniors and families. It also provides information on different health conditions, health and lifestyle issues, etc. The site also has medical centre locator, and provides information via podcasts and videos.

Department for Child Protection, Government of Western Australia

The DCP supports children and families through:

• funding foster care programs in Western Australia
• recruitment, assessment and training of general foster carers
• maintaining the central registration of general and relative foster carers
• assessment and training of relative foster carers
• ongoing supervision and support to registered general and relative foster carers and their families
• provision of intensive support to parents whose children are engaging in antisocial behaviour, truanting from school or criminal behaviour

Contact details for metropolitan and country offices can be found under Contact Us at their website.

Family Assistance Offices, Government of Australia

The FAOs allow families to get all their Medicare, Centrelink and Tax needs met in one place. Information about new rebates, changes to rates, online services, and office locations can be found at their website.

Medicare Australia, Department of Human Services, Government of Australia

Medicare provides eligible Australian residents with free treatment as a public (Medicare) patient in a public hospital, and free or subsidised treatment by medical practitioners including GPs, specialists, participating optometrists or dentists (for specified services only). Information about claiming options, online services, and office locations can be found at their website.

Centrelink, Department of Human Services, Government of Australia

Centrelink is the statutory agency responsible for delivering a range of Commonwealth services to the Australian community. The website provides information on all Centrelink’s services for individuals, and provides access to its online services.

Grandcarer websites (Australia)

Grandparents as Parents (GAP)

GAP is an online information resource developed by Community Solutions Inc. with funding from the Australian Government and the Telstra Foundation. The site contains helpful information on a range of topics, as well as contact details for Government departments and organisations that can support grandparent carers, particularly those that care for their grandchildren on a full time basis. The site is most relevant to grandparents living in the Sunshine Coast and Wide Bay regions of Queensland and caring for grandchildren aged 0 – 12 years.

Grandparents Information QLD Website

The Time for Grandparents and Grandparents Information website is an internet service set up by the Queensland Government Department of Communities to support grandparents who are raising their grandchildren.

Grandparents raising grandchildren NSW

Is a site created by an alliance of grandparent carers and COTA NSW.

Grandparents Support Network, ACT & Region

Is a site supported by a partnership amongst three organisations (Marymead Child and Family Centre, Canberra Mothercraft Society and Relationships Australia Canberra and Region) that support grandparents raising grandchildren across the ACT.

Grandparents Victoria – a community organisation whose role is to provide support services to grandparent across Victoria (and Australia) and to provide a voice for grandparents in public consultations.

KinKare, QLD - is a community organisation working to assist relative carers, particularly grandparents, with resources and support. KinKare is run with the help of Connect the Coast Association Inc.

Parenting resources (includes Grandcarers and other relative carers)

• mychild.gov.au (online)
  Provides a searchable online directroy of Child Care Benefit approved services across all states.
• The Raising Children Network – an Australian parenting website sponsored by the Commonwealth Government to provide information that can help parents with the day-to-day decisions of raising children, and looking after their own needs.
• Parenting Resource Centre Inc - a national, independent, not-for-profit research and development organisation established to help parents raise happy healthy children. The PRC coordinates:
  • MyTime - provide local support for mums, dads, grandparents and anyone caring for a young child under school age with a disability or chronic
    medical condition.
  • Signposts - a program that helps families prevent or manage difficult behaviour of children in the 3-15 years age group, who have developmental delay or intellectual disability.
    
  • Healthy Start - an Australia-wide strategy to support parents with learning difficulties and promote a healthy start to life for their young children.
    
  • ABCD parenting adolescents - is a program that offers strategies and ideas to help parents/carers learn new skills and build confidence in raising adolescents. All ABCD information is designed to help parents/carers understand their own approach to parenting and to come up with solutions to particular problems.
    
• The Foster Care College – is a U.S. website that provides online interactive training courses for kinship, foster, adoptive, and birth parents. The courses are based on information, insights and advice from experts on dealing with serious child behaviour problems. Each course costs $8.00 USD.

Special needs

• Siblings Australia Inc – provides services to families and, in particular, siblings of children with special needs. The site offers print and web-based resources, including a chat room for users to have contact with other siblings who can understand what it is like to have a brother or sister with special needs.
  
  
• Grass Roots, Growing Intellectually Impaired People
  The goal of Grass Roots is to support intellectually impaired individuals and their families to achieve realistic outcomes. It offers assistance in the areas of respite, crisis care, family support, employment, accommodation and programs to assist preserving the family unit and the transition to independent living facilities.
  
  
• The Learning & Attentional Disorders Society (LADS) of WA – is a support, information and advocacy agency for people with ADHD and associated conditions. LADS supports children and adults with ADHD and their families, as well as the professionals who treat, teach and work with them.
  
  
• The Dyslexia-SPELD Foundation (WA) Inc – provides information, counselling, support and advice throughout Western Australia to children and adults with specific learning disabilities. The Foundation also maintains a register of qualified tutors who provide individual tutoring for children.
  
  
• National Autistic Society (UK) – provides information about autism and Asperger Syndrome, as well as its services in the UK. The Information Shortcuts section provides information for Parents and carers (and guardians) of people with an autistic spectrum disorder, as well as for Siblings and Professionals.
  
  
• The National Organisation for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome and Related Disorders Inc.  (NOFASARD) - is Australia's peak body representing parents, carers and others interested in, or affected, by Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). The site is an excellent source of information, advocacy, education and support for carers of children affected by FASD. Under Internet Resources there is link for Parents, Carers and Teachers that provides information about online resources for educators.
  
  
• Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, Department of Health & Social Services, Alaska – this site is a comprehensive informational, research and training site for the State of Alaska. The section on Information on FASD provides information that is applicable worldwide, such as diagnostic criteria and symptoms, examples of how FASD impacts developmental attainment, secondary disabilities and FAQs.
  
  
• Department of Education and Early Development, State of Alaska - website provides information and resources for Alaskan educators.
  
  
• HaysKids pathways to understanding – is a site presented by John and Holiday Hays who are foster parents experienced with caring for children with fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD). This lay website is aimed at teaching practical parenting techniques specific to FASD.
  
  
• about.com – is an information bank owned by The New York Times Company and as such has a lot of advertising. This link is provided because there are some interesting subjects discussed under the essentials and topic sub-headings under the following sections:
  • parenting special needs children
  • learning disabilities
  • parenting K-6 children

Abuse and violence

Content not yet available

Mental health

• The Office of Mental Health, WA - maintains a comprehensive database of Health service contacts within the state of Western Australia, as well as range of brochures, policies and other resources to both the public and clinicians.
  
  
• Sane Australia – is a website designed to promote understanding of mental illness. There are fact sheets about different illnesses, and a special Youth section.
  
  
• Children of Parents with a Mental Illness (COPMI) National Resource Centre – is an Australian information and resource site for children, young people, parents, family members and professionals who either are working with children of parents with a mental illness, or who are family members.
  
  
• BluePages Depression Information – is a site produced by the Centre for Mental Health Research (CMHR) at the Australian National University (ANU). The website provides information about: symptoms, diagnosis, treatments and resources (including where to locate help in WA).
  
  
• beyondblue, the national depression initiative – is a national, independent, not-for-profit organisation working to address issues associated with depression, anxiety and related substance misuse disorders in Australia.
  
  
• youth beyondblue – is a special site aimed at encouraging young people to talk about depression, and to encourage young people and their family and friends to get help when it's needed.
  
  
• headspace - is provided by the National Youth Mental Health Foundation. The site aims to deliver youth friendly, community based health services for young people aged 12 – 25 years, and their families.

Education Resources

• Getting to Know Your Classmates with Special Needs -a unit developed by the Yale-New Haven Teachers Institute to help raise awareness of both students and teachers to special education students and their needs and their rights.
  
  
• "Making a Difference: Working with Students who have a Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder" - is an online manual that sets out 12 essential elements and practical strategies for helping young people with FASD, in both the classroom and the community. The manual is published by Yukon Education, Canada.
  
  
• SEN Teacher – a website that provides cost-free teaching & learning resources for students with special needs and learning disabilities.
  
  
• Do2Learn.com – is a site that provides information, games, songs, communication cards, print resources for children with special needs.

General links

• Another site which deals with this issue is about.com, under the section on adoption and foster care. The page is called Teaching Foster/Adoptive Children How to Answer Questions.
  
  
• The Western Institute of Self Help (WISH) Inc - a community-based organisation that provides support and assistance for individuals and self help support groups with start-up, ongoing development, advocacy and networking. The WISH directory is a list of self help support groups and community organisations in WA.
  
  
• The Virtual Medical Centre is an industry sponsored medical information website that delivers the medical information written by medical professionals. The site aims to provide patients, their families and friends, information about diagnosis, treatment, and support of patients with a disease, illness or medical condition.
  
  
• The Teen Health website is sponsored by the Children, Youth and Women's Health Service (CYWHS) in South Australia. The site aims to provide accurate information about issues affecting the health, well-being and development of children and young people aged 12 to 17 years.