MHCN Board Election Nominees 2025

Below are the nominations received to fill the following vacant and expiring MHCN Board positions for 2025:

-President,
-Secretary and,
-3 x Ordinary Board Members

Positions will be announced at MHCN’s Annual General Meeting on Thursday 27 November 2025.

Nominee for President – Anne Stedman

Anne Stedman has returned to the Board of MHCN after a period of time. During that time she has been contributing her lived and learned experience to the MHCN’s carer peer training and facilitation, stakeholder engagement, as well as teaching TAFE community services at TAFE. This was such a valuable experience as Anne was able to utilise her knowledge of Standards within the sector to contribute to the growth and change processes MHCN has undergone in the past few years.

Anne has been the Primary Carer for her son for the past 22 years, and has gained experiential knowledge of the complexity of issues regarding the care and support of people with experiences of chronic mental illness in the community. Her engagement with the carer community has strengthened her understanding of the range of knowledge and supports mental carers would benefit from, to contribute to positive outcomes for all.

As President, Anne will continue to advocate for recognition and adequate funding for the peak to continue to grow and consolidate its advocacy role, and continue meeting its strategic objectives.

Nominee for Secretary – Matt Floro

Matt Floro is a passionate advocate for mental health care, particularly for older Australians and individuals from culturally diverse backgrounds. Driven by personal experience as the sole carer for his mother and his own background as a recipient of mental health care, Matt has a deep commitment to supporting individuals facing mental health challenges.

Professionally, Matt is an experienced lawyer with a focus on environmental, planning and climate change law. He is Principal Lawyer at Johnson Legal and previously held the role of Senior Advisor to the NSW Minister for Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Heritage. Matt is also a dedicated volunteer, currently serving as the National President of the Asian Australian Lawyers Association, the national peak body promoting cultural diversity and access to justice for Asian Australian lawyers.

Matt aspires to give back to the mental health community, apply his skills in the health sector, and learn from leading professionals in the field. His experience with non-profit boards, such as the National Environmental Law Association and Out for Australia Victoria, reflects his strong belief in the power of civil society organisations to drive meaningful change. Matt holds undergraduate degrees in Law and Economics and Master’s degrees in Law and Public Administration.

Nominees for Ordinary Board Member – Chris Avent

Christian Avent has been an assistant Principal at a NSW DoE Special Needs School with students with Mental Health diagnoses for over 35+ years and a member of MHCN since 2017.

She is a PAC member and has served as Board Secretary for several years. She is also the chair of Operation Art, a joint state-wide initiative of DoE and Children’s Hospital at Westmead which has provided art for the psychological and therapeutic benefit of children by children for over 30 years.

Chris has lived experience of with family members and has a passion for young people’s mental health welfare.

Nominees for Ordinary Board Member – Simon Johnson

Simon is a full-time Family Carer with lived experience of Inpatient and Community Services in Northern Sydney. Prior to working with the NSW Health as a Casual Carer Peer Worker he has over 25 years of experience in education and business.

Dr Johnson has an interdisciplinary Ph.D. in Management/Anthropology from the University of Melbourne that focused on organisational effectiveness and street youth.

Simon’s corporate career focus is on entrepreneurship, project financing, fundraising, investment risk management, project management and compliance globally. He is active locally in advocacy work on many technical clinical standard committees and is Co-Chair for the Northern Sydney Carer Network. In 2021 Simon won the Unsung Hero award for MHDA by leading the development of a carer video project through an innovation grant. He is also an Aged Care Board Member and an Owners Corp Treasurer.

Nominees for Ordinary Board Member – Nikkie Shoveller

Nikkie is an experienced public relations and communications professional with over 16 years working across the health, not-for-profit and government sectors. She specialises in turning complex information into accessible content, securing strong media coverage, boosting social engagement and improving organisational communication strategies.

Nikkie is also a carer for her dad, who lives with complex mental health conditions, additional health issues and addiction challenges. Her personal and professional experiences have given her deep insight into the NSW Health system, with much of her career spent in NSW public hospitals and health-focused not-for-profits including The Children’s Hospital at Westmead, Sydney Children’s Hospital, Randwick and Central Coast Local Health District.

She currently wears many hats: Director of Bright Side Communications; PR and Communications Manager for Life Ed Australia; and a volunteer with Coast Shelter. Through MHCN, she has also recently joined the NSW Health Family and Carer Mental Health Program Steering Committee as a lived experience representative.

Having navigated the challenges of a complex system, Nikkie knows the impact that the right support and follow-up can have, fueling her passion for advocacy. She lives on the Central Coast with her husband and energetic four-year-old son and frequently travels to Western Sydney to support her dad.