headspace warmly welcomes new Board Chair, Dr John Harvey.
A member of the headspace board since May 2018, John is passionate about supporting the mental health and wellbeing of young people and their family.
John is a scientist by trade with extensive experience in health and agriculture sectors as a researcher, executive leader and director. He has a strong interest in innovating services and outreach activities that are effective for young people in rural, regional, remote and metropolitan communities.
"It's an exciting time to step into the Chair role for headspace. In the last financial year, headspace supported more than120,000 young people and provided over 710,000 services across our in-person and digital mental health programs, including through eheadspace, the Early Career Program, and Work and Study online," John said.
"We have the honour and responsibility of holding young Australian's trust, which is not something we take lightly."
John accepted the Chair role following the stepping down of Mr Ben Shields. Ben will continue his contributions to headspace by staying on the Board as a member. During his four-year term, Ben oversaw the development of a new national direction and strategy. He also established a First Nations cultural governance advisory committee, which provides informed and expert advice on embedding cultural safety and model innovation to meet the needs of First Nations communities.
headspace CEO Mr Jason Trethowan thanked Ben and welcomed John as the new Chair.
"I extend huge thanks on behalf of headspace to Ben Shields for his leadership and exceptional strategic focus. We are thrilled that he will continue contributing as a headspace Board member.
"I look forward to working with Dr John Harvey and the Board to continue supporting young people and their families across Australia, which is more important than ever," said Jason.
John's term began in December 2025 and continues until the 2027 headspace annual general meeting.
