Future Proofing Study Milestone Reached
On International Youth Day, Peet proudly supports Black Dog Institute in celebrating a key milestone through the Future Proofing Study.
Future Proofing is Australia’s largest and most comprehensive study of adolescent mental health, surveying over 6,000 students between the ages of 13-18. The study aims to understand why mental health rates are increasing in young people, identify targets for early intervention and prevention and use data to inform education, guidelines and policy to improve youth mental health and wellbeing.
This month, the first cohort of students surveyed since 2019 will complete their final survey, including questions about their retrospective reflections on school life, their chosen paths and trajectories post-school.
Insights from the study to date highlight sleep problems, feeling disconnected from peers at school, and feeling unsupported by family are some factors that put students at greater risk of developing symptoms of depression and anxiety in the future.
Over the past 12 months, the study’s data has been leveraged in nine policy submissions to state and federal parliaments on diverse topics relating to young people’s mental health, including school reform, community healthcare reform, equality and anti-discrimination, and social media and screen use.
This year marks the third year of Peet’s support for Black Dog Institute, which includes funding for the Future Proofing Study to provide capacity for delivering follow up face-to-face sessions with participating students. The partnership also helps facilitate community and workplace education sessions, giving participants the opportunity to talk about mental health and receive the support they need. Additionally, the partnership is supported through Peet staff participation in One Foot Forward, the annual walking challenge each October to raise awareness and funds for mental research and support.
“We have a strong focus on prioritising mental wellbeing within the workplace and in the community, so are very proud of our partnership with Black Dog Institute and are pleased to join them in celebrating this research milestone,” said Peet Managing Director and CEO Brendan Gore.
“The ability to support a program that helps better understand the pressures young people experience, to provide preventive interventions on a large scale and create meaningful change in an area that impacts most families in some way is invaluable”.
The study has a further three years of surveys with participants, now aged 16-19 years old, to complete.
“We are proud to work with Peet who share our vision of creating better mental health for Australia's youth, and are helping us to understand the triggers and preventions of mental health in young people.” Stevie Anderson, Senior Corporate Partnerships Manager.
Peet is one of Australia’s leading residential developers with 130-years of experience creating award-winning master planned communities, townhouses and apartments. Peet builds connected, liveable communities where residents can find their special place to belong.
For media enquiries, please contact: tom.horn@bcw-global.com