Type 1 Diabetes Family Centre Secures Landmark Funding to Transform Community Care Across Western Australia

MEDIA RELEASE

PERTH, WESTERN AUSTRALIA 18 February 2026 – The Type 1 Diabetes Family Centre (the Family Centre) has formalised a $3.6 million, four-year grant agreement with the WA Government Department of Health to significantly expand its reach and impact across Western Australia. This government funding, a first for the Family Centre, validates its unique model of combining clinical expertise with the power of lived experience to support Western Australians living with type 1 diabetes (T1D). The grant ensures delivery of critical education and support to help individuals stay healthy, empowered, and out of hospital.

The ‘Comprehensive Type 1 Diabetes Self-Management, Education and Support Program’ will provide intensive education for people newly diagnosed, mental health support, and expanded regional peer networks to thousands of Western Australians. This initiative is designed to empower individuals to move from a reactive, acute-care cycle to a proactive, self-managed lifestyle that prevents hospitalisations and long-term complications.

A primary focus of this program is to significantly improve accessibility. By delivering a range of the Family Centre’s programs through a new model of both fully funded and subsidised options, financial barriers that often prevent families from accessing essential education and specialised psychological care will be reduced.

This new government investment will support a statewide expansion of services, including the growth of peer support chapters in regional areas to combat isolation. Accessibility to community-based psychology services will also increase especially for young adults and individuals who are newly diagnosed. Additionally, the Family Centre will deliver intensive bootcamps and workshops designed to bridge the gap between diagnosis and real-world application, while fully funded training for informal carers such as grandparents and babysitters will build a confident support network around children living with this autoimmune condition.

Board Chair Peter Bennett welcomed this grant funding from the WA Government Department of Health.

"This grant is a powerful endorsement of the Family Centre’s community-led model. It provides the long-term stability needed to expand our reach, ensuring that every Western Australian can access high-quality support regardless of where they live," said Mr Bennett. 

Type 1 Diabetes Family Centre CEO, Ms Jemma Iles, said this investment is a vital catalyst for the Family Centre’s mission.

"Our mission is to ensure every person impacted by type 1 diabetes feels confident, competent, and connected. This funding allows us to accelerate that mission. By shifting the focus from hospital-based crisis management to proactive, community-led care, we are providing individuals and families with the tools and the lived-experience connections they need to live well with type 1 diabetes," said Ms Iles.

With programs launching from March 2026, the Family Centre is entering a new phase of impact, reaching more Western Australians than ever before.

About the Type 1 Diabetes Family Centre: The Type 1 Diabetes Family Centre is a non-profit organisation based in Perth dedicated to helping people with type 1 diabetes thrive. We envision a world where all people impacted by type 1 diabetes feel confident, competent and connected, resulting in improved health and wellbeing, a thriving community, and greater awareness. By blending clinical excellence with lived experience, the Family Centre works to ensure that everyone in the T1D community has access to the support they need to live without limits.