Reflections on Activate Mental Health becoming a registered charity

Activate Mental Health officially became a registered charity in November 2024. Founded in 2016 by Rahul Seth CA, a Chartered Accountant, the group was created as an outlet for him to make new friends and have fun. Despite its small size, the group has made a significant impact on many individuals in the Perth community. I asked Rahul to provide answers to these five questions listed below. In his own words, here’s what he had to say.

1. What does this milestone mean for you personally?

Activate Mental Health's endorsement as a charity is a significant recognition of the invaluable contributions made by all past and present volunteers and stakeholders of this group over the past eight and a half years. This endorsement not only validates our organisation's historical achievements but also instills a sense of legitimacy in our ongoing efforts to make a positive impact.

Since my teenage years, I’ve always been passionate about entrepreneurship and business. Initially, I envisioned building an accounting firm, which was part of my chosen career path. However, I never imagined that I’d actually turn an entrepreneurial idea into a tangible entity. It’s particularly fitting that this “business” is a charity, as I genuinely love to help others without expecting any compensation in return.

Activate Mental Health was never intended to be a charity when I founded it in 2016. I was struggling with my mental health and sought a simple way to connect with others and have fun. It all came together when I won Victoria Park Neighbourhood Soup just two weeks into the organisation’s existence. This victory led to the establishment of our monthly board game nights, which continue to this day. It also opened up opportunities for networking with other organisations, such as the local council’s staff members, who were present at the soup event.

The organisation has accomplished so much in the past eight years, particularly considering the limited financial and other resources we’ve utilised to make a genuine impact in the community. From assisting individuals in combating social isolation by engaging in enjoyable activities, to introducing novel forms of volunteering opportunities, we’ve witnessed profound benefits for those who have actively participated in our group. It’s an absolute privilege to lead this group.

2. What differences does the title of charity make for the organisation?

The charity status not only enhances the credibility of our volunteers’ daily endeavours but also enables us to legally secure grants that were previously unavailable. Additionally, it facilitates the collection of tax-deductible donations.

Despite the temptation to seek additional funding to expand the group’s size, our leadership circle intends to adopt a systematic approach to growth. This ensures that we maintain good governance practices and provide the best possible support to our volunteers. Activate Mental Health, in its current form, is an incredible organisation, so we will ensure that we achieve “considered growth” as we take this group to the next level.

3. Has it been a long process to get here?

I began planning to establish Activate Mental Health as a charity in December 2020. It was then that my now mentor, Godfrey, planted the idea in my mind to pursue this endeavour. At that point, I had established myself in my professional career, working at my current employer. This company fostered a supportive and nurturing environment that enabled me to thrive as a support worker, which allowed me to feel confident about taking this next step with Activate Mental Health in my personal life.

The process of establishing a charity doesn’t necessarily require four years. In fact, the legal process could span a couple of months. Nevertheless, I chose to take this time for the following reasons, presented in chronological order:

1. I needed to assemble a team of individuals to support this change. Between 2016 and 2019, Activate Mental Health underwent two distinct phases as I attempted to build a leadership team. During this period, I was overly ambitious and naïve about the potential of our team and what our whole group could do to help the community. In what became the third phase, I found support from Cyrille, who connected with me through a volunteer advertisement I had placed. Subsequently, I gradually expanded the team from there with Cyrille’s help and guidance.

   
   

2. I was determined to learn about corporate governance. I actively participated in the Not-For-Profit Board Experience Program, organised by Chartered Accountants. This program allowed me to shadow a not-for-profit board and earn a certificate of governance specifically designed for not-for-profit organisations from the Governance Institute of Australia.
   

3. I sought actual not-for-profit board experience. After obtaining my corporate governance qualification, I joined the board of the Victoria Park Community Centre. Since August 2016, we’ve hosted our monthly board games night there. Initially, I served as a regular board member before taking on the role of the organisation’s treasurer.
   

4. We had to go through the charity application process. Once I achieved the first three goals, we applied to become a charity. I was fortunate to meet Nigel, who had extensive experience in corporate governance due to his illustrious career, and he offered to help us write our constitution and apply to the ACNC to become a charity on a volunteer basis. This experience was further supported by Lana, a consultant we engaged with through a grant provided by ConnectGroups WA. Despite facing a few challenges to obtain charity status, with the assistance of many individuals, we provided sufficient information to qualify as a charity.

Running a not-for-profit has its own unique set of challenges. Despite taking a methodical approach to getting to this stage over a long period of time, I know that it will be a constant and complex challenge to maintain it.

4. Is there anyone you would like to acknowledge on this journey to become a charity?

I believe it’s unfair to single out any individual or group who has helped us build a charity. Every group member, volunteer, stakeholder, peak body organisation, and even friends and family who have had a connection to Activate Mental Health have all contributed to this amazing outcome.

5. Where to from here for Activate Mental Health?

In a planning session with our leadership circle last year, we collectively came up with the term “considered growth.” We want to make a concerted effort to scale in size without burning out our volunteers and without forgetting to serve our grassroots-based community members.

My dream with Activate Mental Health is to continue to promote the benefits of peer support and being connected to communities for positive mental well-being. I would love to see the establishment of similar peer support groups worldwide and have them be adequately supported by both the relevant government and corporate sectors. The intention with Activate Mental Health is that it will only operate in Perth, but it will be a proud day for me to see the concept being replicated elsewhere.

We, as a society, must shift from raising awareness about the fact that it’s ok to get help for mental health issues to actually providing accessible and affordable services that provide help. These services should be locally available and also be accessible outside of standard business hours.

My catchphrase that encapsulates the essence of peer support: “If social isolation is the world’s biggest epidemic, then community is the simple solution.” Complex solutions aren’t necessary to assist others in overcoming social isolation. The mere presence of a safe, friendly and welcoming volunteer can serve as quite a powerful beacon of hope and optimism.

About the author: Rahul Seth CA is the Founder of Activate Mental Health. Rahul has volunteered for various organisations since 2013, and you can read his volunteering journey here. Rahul is a passionate fan of Formula 1 racing and enjoys photography, graphic design, walking, hiking and swimming as hobbies. You can connect with him on LinkedIn.

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