men's centre
Our office in the Griffin Centre (Room 3.01, Third Floor, 20 Genge Street, Civic) is administrative home to our programs, but, as the Canberra Men's Centre, it's also a place where services are provided directly to the community. One of these is the Counselling Service, but the Men's Centre also provides an Information and Referral Service for men living in the ACT and region.
To view a service user survey form click here
1. INFORMATION & REFERRAL SERVICE
Description of service
The working principle of our Information and Referral Service is simple - if you don't know where to go or who to ask, call us. We might not know the answer immediately, but we'll have a go at pointing you in the right direction.
On any working day, Men's Centre staff deal with a diverse range of enquiries and requests for assistance. Sometimes callers are confused, feeling stuck, or simply overwhelmed and need a hand to understand what's going on in their situation and make some plans to deal with it. Other callers know what they want, e.g. they might be looking for a particular type of help, but don't know how or where to find it. Staff spend time listening and talking things through with callers, giving information, brief counselling or personal support, or refer the caller to where they can find the assistance they need - other people or agencies providing services in the community, or to a Canberra Men's Centre service:
Who can use this service?
Anyone with an enquiry that relates to men in some way.
Costs
No charges.
What can I ask for help with?
There's no real restriction on what callers can ask for help with. The only limitation is the level of difficulty involved in finding answers to your questions. You can ask for information about Canberra Men's Centre services, or about our philosophy and the way we might work with various issues (e.g. domestic violence, child abuse, men's rights, relationship counselling). We can also help with locating or referring to a broad range of services which cater to particular needs.
Some of the issues we've helped callers with previously include:
Personal Issues
| anger management | depression | grief and loss |
| loneliness / social isolation | health issues | older men's issues |
| communication | anxiety | sexuality / gender |
| personal support | financial problems | workplace problems |
Family Issues
| relationships | sexual relationships |
| separation | family violence |
| sexual abuse | parenting |
| custody / contact with children | elder abuse |
This isn't an exclusive list, so don't be discouraged if your issue isn't mentioned. Give us a call anyway. Remember, if we can't answer your question ourselves, we'll help you find someone who can.
2. MEN'S GROUPS
People often call to ask whether we are running any men's groups, but what they have in mind varies from caller to caller. Some are looking for discussion and mutual support groups (i.e. the 'consciousness-raising' type) for men who want a place to explore men's issues - male socialisation and child-raising, power, competition and gender, sexuality and other aspects of masculinity. Some callers want groups which deal with specific issues, usually single dads or access after separation, or more social groups, generally for men who are isolated or want to develop some new friendships with other men. Occasionally callers (mostly other professionals) are looking for more traditional counselling groups (usually for male clients who they believe need a peer support environment to help them address their particular needs).
From time to time, our Counselling Service runs men's groups when there are enough men expressing an interest in being part of one. These are usually what we call peer support groups - members share resonsibility for the way the group functions, ensuring a respectful environment where each man is offered support and encouragement to participate. We can also consider requests by men to provide a place for men's groups to meet, as long as the activity is consistent with CMC's vision and values - e.g. our meeting room is used after hours by the local chapter of Dads in Distress, a national peer support group for men who've recently separated.
There are no other men's groups currently running, but if you would like to put your name on a waiting list until we build up enough interest to get one off the ground, please contact us by email giving your contact details and some information about yourself and the type of group you would like to join.
Information and Waiting Lists
For information about groups and waiting lists, please contact the Counselling Services Manager, Alistair Jones (02) 6230 6999 during office hours.
3. OTHER TYPES OF HELP
Occasionally we're asked to help with situations that don't fit neatly with Information and Referral or any of our other services. This is just another call for flexibility in providing support to support men, so we will sometimes agree to step in and offer help where we can. Some requests we have responded to include:
- helping men who have literacy problems with a range of documents - application forms, letters etc.
- negotiating with statutory authorities for a man who speaks English as a second language
- helping a man involved in legal action to clean his house for an inspection
Practical assistance of this type is generally available for men who don't have other supports, e.g. someone who's socially isolated and with no family in the ACT.
