Second chance for women leaving prison

• Second Chance Day: Yellow Ribbon Project launched

• Builds on a program supported by the WA Suicide Prevention Strategy

A campaign to give women a second chance in life after release from prison was officially launched today by Mental Health Minister Helen Morton.

The Second Chance Day: Yellow Ribbon Project Australia, established by Jade Lewis and Friends, aims to engage the community in accepting former women prisoners and their families by giving them a second chance to succeed in life, helping them gain employment and build a supportive community around them.

By wearing a yellow ribbon on Second Chance Day, every year on May 1, supporters will spread the message of hope that women can build a successful life after prison.

Mrs Morton applauded the new project which built on the work Jade Lewis and Friends' were already doing for women before and after prison release which is funded by the WA Suicide Prevention Strategy.

That $165,554 Community Action Plan aims to build mental health awareness, resilience, personal self-esteem, positive mindsets and fit bodies, helping women find a life purpose and hope for their future.

"I believe everyone deserves a second chance. Many women, when leaving prison, return to the same environment in which they offended in the first place. This program will help them manage better in those circumstances," the Minister said.

"Women leaving prison deserve a second chance. Their families, spouses and children, deserve a second chance and their communities deserve a second chance. A second chance means an opportunity to turn a life around. A chance to break the grip of a drug habit. A chance to support a family, to pay taxes, to be self-sufficient."

Mrs Morton said not only did the programs teach women essential life skills and personal they also empowered women with confidence leading to an improvement in their physical, mental, emotional and spiritual wellbeing.

      Fact File

• Yellow Ribbon Program is an international initiative

• One in five Australians will experience some form of mental illness each year

• Almost half the population experience at least one mental health problem in their life

Minister's office - 6552 6900