No mother should have to wait months for help while struggling through pregnancy or the first year after having a baby.

Right now, families across Mackay are facing a critical gap in perinatal mental health care. Our region has just one Perinatal Mental Health Nurse working only 0.5 full-time equivalent, meaning many women are waiting months for an appointment during one of the most vulnerable periods of their lives.

When a mother reaches crisis point, there is another heartbreaking reality: there is no Mother and Baby Unit anywhere in regional Queensland north of Brisbane. Women who require specialist inpatient treatment are often separated from their support networks and must travel hundreds of kilometres to Brisbane or the Gold Coast to access care.

For many families, that distance is overwhelming.

This is where The Held Project has stepped in.

Founded by a local mother with lived experience, The Held Project provides free peer support visits, practical assistance, wellbeing bags, community connection through The Mum Hub, education, referrals, and compassionate support for women throughout pregnancy and the first year after birth.

Every day, our volunteers walk alongside mothers who are anxious, overwhelmed, isolated and struggling. We fill a gap that currently exists in our healthcare system—but we do it with almost no ongoing funding.

Our entire organisation is volunteer-run.

Demand continues to grow, and we know we can do so much more.

We are asking the Queensland Government to provide sustainable funding that would allow The Held Project to:

- Employ a dedicated Perinatal Mental Health Nurse within our service to work alongside our peer support team and reduce pressure on Mackay Base Hospital.

- Expand our peer support program so more families can receive help before they reach crisis.

- Keep The Mum Hub operating as a safe, welcoming community space where mothers can find connection, education and support.

- Reach more rural and regional families who currently have little or no access to specialised perinatal mental health services.

- Build a sustainable community-led model that complements Queensland Health rather than replacing it.

Early intervention saves lives.

It reduces hospital presentations, strengthens families, improves infant outcomes, and helps mothers recover before their mental health deteriorates.

The Held Project has already shown what a passionate community can achieve with volunteers alone. Imagine what we could accomplish with appropriate government support.

We are calling on Queensland Health and the Minister for Health to recognise the urgent need for investment in regional perinatal mental health services and provide ongoing funding for The Held Project and The Mum Hub.

Every mother deserves to be seen.

Every family deserves support close to home.

Please sign this petition and help us ensure no mother in our region has to face the perinatal period alone.