Start Court

What is Start Court?

Start Court is a therapeutic court for adults who are before the Central Law Courts and have mental health challenges.

The program provides participants with holistic support to help address the underlying causes of their offending behaviour.  We aim to improve participants’ health, wellbeing and reduce likelihood of future contact with the justice system. Participation can run for up to six months and is entirely voluntary. Participants can opt-out at any stage.

Start Court consists of a multi-disciplinary team, including people from the WA Department of Health and WA Department of Justice, who work closely together and collaborate to best support its participants needs.

How can it help?

We can help with things like:

• Assistance in finding accommodation
• Getting and keeping a job
• Assisting with family issues
• Accessing education or training
• Alcohol and drug support

Who can participate?

Prospective participants must have a mental health condition, be willing to plead guilty to their offences and be deemed eligible for bail.

You can refer yourself to us by contacting the Start Court clinical and Outcare team on (08) 9218 0416 or Start Court Administration (Magistrates Court) on (08) 9425 3423.