Frequently Asked Questions

You can contact Parentline in two ways:

• Via phone: Call 1300 30 1300. Phone counselling is open 7 days a week, between 8am and 10pm. This is the fastest way to talk to a counsellor and get support.
• Via WebChat: WebChat counselling is open every day from 8am to 9pm.

Parentline is for parents, grandparents and carers living in Queensland and the Northern Territory. We offer support to parents of children of any age and we have a particular interest in supporting parents of young children 0-8 years.

Each time you call Parentline:

• You will hear a recorded message that tells you about how Parentline works
• After listening to this message, you will be connected with a counsellor. When Parentline gets busy, sometimes we will need to put you on hold until a counsellor is available.
• You will be able to leave a short message and your phone number if you’re unable to wait on hold and a Parentline counsellor will return your call at your convenience. The counsellor you speak to may tell you their name, so if you call again, you can ask to speak to the same person
• Your counsellor will ask you what you would like to talk about and ask you some questions to help understand what’s going on for you.

Yes, you can arrange to speak with the same counsellor. You can also choose the gender of the counsellor that you speak to – just let them know at the beginning of the call and they’ll check who is available.

Parents, grandparents and carers contact us for many different reasons. Here are some of the most common reasons people contact us:

• They are feeling stressed, worried or frustrated about a parenting related issue and want to talk with somebody outside the situation who will listen without judgement
• They’re needing ideas and strategies to manage challenging child behaviours
• They’re uncertain about how best to respond to a parenting challenge
• They are seeking specific information or referral for a parenting related issue

The top 5 concerns of parents and carers calling Parentline are:

1. Challenging behaviour and discipline
2. Parent-child relationships
3. Parenting strategies
4. Parent relationships
5. Parent mental and emotional health

WebChat counselling is a type of counselling that provides emotional support, information and ideas for tackling parenting challenges using real-time text communication over the internet. It’s similar to Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp except that you need to login through the Parentline website.

WebChat counselling happens in real time. Because of this, it can still feel like a conversation and the counsellor can still ask detailed questions and understand your situation. Some people like WebChat counselling because they can take their time to think about and type their responses.

However, WebChat is slower than telephone counselling, so less is covered in a session. Sometimes talking via text can lead to misunderstandings because it’s harder to explain things over text. But WebChat can be a helpful first step to talk about what you’re going through and look at some options which may help improve the issue or situation.

Please also keep in mind that there may be a queue for WebChat and sometimes you might have to wait before connecting with a counsellor.

Parentline is for parents, grandparents and carers living in Queensland and the Northern Territory. We offer support to parents of children of any age and we have a particular interest in supporting parents of young children 0-8 years.

If you live in another state or territory, here’s a list of Parentline services around Australia that you can contact for parenting support:

Parentline Victoria – Open 7 days a week, from 8am – midnight

Parent Helpline South Australia – Open 7:15am-9:15pm, 7 days a week

Parentline New South Wales – Open Monday – Friday from 9am – 9pm, and Saturday – Sunday from 4pm – 9pm

Parenting WA Line – Open 7 days a week, 8am - 8pm

Parentline ACT– Open Monday – Friday from 9am - 4pm

Parent Line Tasmania – Open 24/7

For counselling support for children and young people up to the age of 25 years, Kids Helpline is a free, private and confidential 24/7 phone and online counselling service. Call 1800 55 1800 or visit www.kidshelpline.com.au

Young parents can often face a number of challenges, including social isolation and limited parenting and life skills.

The Young Parents Program is a support service for young parents, infants and young children (0-5 years). It offers young parents and soon to be parents support and education, whilst giving them a chance to develop new friendships.

Glugor Young Parents Program is available for those who live in the Moreton Bay Region (priority given to young families in Deception Bay). yourtown has developed a purpose built facility for young families that incorporates training rooms and children’s rooms within a natural setting.

Our Domestic Violence Refuge provides emergency accommodation to women and their children who have experienced the trauma of domestic violence. Unlike most family refuges, we accept male teenage children - meaning that mothers do not have to face the difficult choice of either 'staying for their son's sake' or leaving their son in a potentially violent situation.

Our counselling practitioners and child-centred therapists help these families to reconstruct their lives after long-term trauma. Families are provided with case management and training in life skills such as budgeting, hygiene, health and parenting.

Learn more about the Domestic Violence Refuge here.

Kids Helpline – Australia’s only free, private and confidential 24/7 phone and online counselling service for young people aged 5 to 25. Learn more about Kids Helpline here.

yourtown offers a wide range of services young people can access to find jobs, learn skills, become great parents and live safe happy lives. We tackle issues such as youth unemployment and mental health and take on issues like family and domestic violence. View all of yourtown's services here.