23 July 2026

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23 April 2026

28 July 2026 Media Release Closing YiSSA Will Put Lives at Risk — NT AOD Sector Sounds the Alarm The Northern Territory’s peak body for Alcohol and Other Drug services is calling on the NT Government to urgently reconsider its decision to close a major Darwin homelessness shelter, leaving hundreds of Territorian children and adults without access to housing and crucial services. The Association of Alcohol and Other Drug Agencies NT (AADANT) said that the decision to not renew the lease at YiSSA Short-Stay Accommodation Centre would have dire consequences for Top End communities. “ YiSSA is not just a roof over someone’s head, it’s a critical part of a system that engages people with services that make everyone safer and healthier .” AADANT CEO Stephanie Holmes said. “ Housing instability is one of the biggest barriers to people engaging with and staying in AOD treatment. When someone does not have a safe and stable place to stay, treatment does not work. People cannot focus on recovery when they do not know where they will sleep. They disengage. They relapse. In the worst cases, they do not survive. ” Ms Holmes said that the Government cannot ignore the impact that removing transitional housing will have on many other services that will absorb this pressure without additional support. “ Without YiSSA, our frontline AOD services lose a crucial avenue to provide support for a huge number of people struggling with complex health needs such as AOD dependency, mental ill-health, disability, domestic & family violence. This decision compounds and exacerbates these issues, pushing NT AOD and mental health facilities that are already operating at capacity to breaking point .” “ The NT Government must recognise that housing and AOD treatment are not separate systems, they are interdependent and decisions that destabilise one will inevitably strain the other .” AADANT is calling on the NT Government to: Extend the transition timeline to allow for genuine planning and adequate alternative pathways to be established. Commit additional funding to ensure no person currently supported by YiSSA is left without safe accommodation and appropriate support. Engage meaningfully with the homelessness, AOD, health and community services sectors on a transition plan that reflects the true scale and complexity of what YiSSA does. Honour its Closing the Gap commitments by ensuring decisions of this magnitude do not further disadvantage Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and families. AADANT stands with Yilli Rreung Housing Aboriginal Corporation and all partners in advocating for the people who rely on YiSSA. We urge the NT Government to get back to the table before more harm is done. Media enquiries: Stephanie Holmes Association of Alcohol and Other Drug Agencies NT (AADANT) eo@aadant.org.au (08) 8166 2446

The Northern Territory continues to experience the highest levels of alcohol consumption, risky drinking, and alcohol-related harm in Australia. This contributes to significant health, social and community impacts, including hospitalisations, deaths, family and domestic violence, antisocial behaviour and crime. In response, a coordinated whole-of-community approach is needed to reduce harmful drinking, strengthen local controls, and improve safety across the Territory. This includes working with police, health and treatment services, Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Organisations, local councils, community services and industry partners to deliver practical, place-based solutions. The focus is on reducing public drinking and antisocial behaviour, supporting services that address the underlying causes of alcohol-related harm, and building safer, stronger and more liveable communities for all Territorians. Click to download the Plan

A toolkit to support organisations implement the Guidelines on the management of co-occurring alcohol and other drug and mental health conditions in alcohol and other drug treatment settings (3rd edition) into practice is now available. Developed by researchers from the Matilda Centre at the University of Sydney in collaboration with key stakeholders, including AOD organisational leaders and workers, people with lived experience and loved ones, with funding from Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing, the Guidelines implementation toolkit aims to assist organisational leaders to identify and address the following: evidence-to-practice gaps in relation to Guidelines recommendations; barriers to the implementation of Guidelines recommendations; implementation strategies and tools to address identified barriers; and processes for implementing and evaluating change. What is the toolkit? The Toolkit guides organisational leaders through a five-step implementation process for putting Guidelines recommendations into practice. Steps 1-4 inform the development and evaluation of an implementation work plan described in Step 5. Each step is accompanied by: i) guidance on how to complete the step; ii) an example of the step being completed in practice; and iii) implementation tools. The toolkit is designed to be flexible and adaptable to individual AOD treatment settings, and guidance and tools do not need to be used prescriptively. Instead, organisational leaders can use their experience, judgement and expertise to apply the toolkit within their local context. Who is the toolkit for? The toolkit has been developed for people working within AOD treatment settings who have the capacity to influence change, such as organisational leaders, service managers, clinic directors, quality assurance and improvement officers.