Menslink released its 2016-17 Annual Report yesterday, highlighting demand for our direct support by young men and their families grew by 33%, our fifth straight year of double-digit growth. At the same time, our award-winning Silence is Deadly campaign reached a record 11,900 young men – an increase of 79% on the previous year.
While service growth rates exceeded 30%, our operational costs only grew by 21%, meaning the unit cost to deliver our services and programs dropped more than 9%. Quality and impact measures across all programs also improved, reflecting a strong focus not only on efficiency, but service quality and outcomes for the community.
As one of our single mum’s put it, “I can’t thank Menslink enough for the last twelve months. I’ve watched my son transform confidently with his schooling, sports and in general his whole attitude is happier with the wonderful support he receives from Menslink and his mentor”
One school reported “the number of interventions with each student from teaching staff has reduced dramatically after they commence counselling” while Galilee School noted that “Galilee has had the Silence is Deadly campaign presented each year for the past three years and every year it gets better.” More quotes from mums, schools and one of our mentors can be read in the report.
At Menslink’s Annual General Meeting, CEO Martin Fisk acknowledged the tremendous effort put in by staff and volunteers alike in helping meet this demand, while still keeping waiting lists for support relatively short. He also acknowledged the fantastic support from our sponsors and donors, who this year increased their contributions by more than a third, providing much-needed funding to support our expansion in services.
The Annual Report can be found here while our audited financial statements are also available on the ACNC website