Although there is increasing recognition internationally of the significance of social and
emotional health and wellbeing for the healthy development of young people, the levels
of support that governments provide for mental health policy and programme initiatives
vary widely. In this paper, consideration is given to Australia’s approach to mental
health promotion from early years to secondary school, including specific reference to
the KidsMatter Primary mental health promotion, prevention and early intervention
initiative. Although it is now well established that schools provide important settings for
the promotion of mental health initiatives, there are significant challenges faced in
effectively implementing and maintaining the delivery of evidence-based practice in
school settings, including concerns about quality assurance in processes of
implementation, translation, dissemination and evaluation.peer-reviewe
