- Northern Adelaide Local Health Network – Northern Mental Health - Salisbury
- Salary: $102,171 - $108,071 per annum (pro rata) plus Superannuation and Salary Sacrifice benefits – ASO6
- Temporary Part-Time – 18.75 hours per week, up to 15 April 2028
Shape the future of crisis care in South Australia
This is a rare and exciting opportunity to step into a newly created Contract Manager role overseeing one of South Australia’s most innovative mental health initiatives — the Crisis Stabilisation Centre (CSC), delivered in partnership with Sonder.
As the Contract Manager, you will play a pivotal leadership role in ensuring this brand-new service delivers on its promise: providing safe, compassionate and high-quality support to people experiencing mental health and suicidal distress.
About the Crisis Stabilisation Centre
The Crisis Stabilisation Centre is a transformative new service designed to provide immediate, short-term support for people in crisis.
The Centre will deliver:
- Trauma-informed care that recognises and responds to individual experiences
- Culturally sensitive services, particularly for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people
- A safe, compassionate alternative to emergency departments
- Support for individuals experiencing mental health distress or suicide ideation
Importantly, the Centre has been co-designed with people with lived experience, including Aboriginal, non-Aboriginal and culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) communities—ensuring the service reflects real community needs and perspectives.
With disproportionately higher rates of suicide among Aboriginal people, the Centre provides a critical opportunity to deliver culturally responsive, accessible and meaningful care, strengthening trust and connection with communities.
About the Role:
Based within Northern Mental Health services, you will oversee contract management for commissioned mental health services, ensuring quality service delivery and effective partnerships with external providers.
In this high-impact role, you will:
- Provide end-to-end contract oversight for the Crisis Stabilisation Centre
- Monitor and drive performance against key performance indicators (KPIs), outcomes and financial commitments
- Lead contract governance, reporting and performance reviews
- Build strong relationships with Sonder and key stakeholders to ensure the service delivers safe, effective and person-centred care
- Identify risks, implement improvement strategies and ensure compliance with SA Health frameworks
- Prepare executive-level reports and provide strategic advice to senior leadership
- Support continuous improvement initiatives across commissioned services
This is a hands-on, influential role responsible for ensuring the success of a flagship service within NALHN’s mental health system.
About You:
You are an experienced and confident contract or program manager with the ability to operate at both strategic and operational levels.
You will bring:
- Proven experience managing complex service contracts, ideally in health or human services
- Strong capability in performance monitoring, KPI management and reporting
- Demonstrated experience in risk management, governance and compliance
- Highly developed stakeholder engagement and negotiation skills
- Advanced ability to analyse data and translate insights into action
- Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills, including preparation of executive briefings and reports
- An ability to effectively manage multiple, diverse and competing priorities and demonstrated resilience within a stressful and complex environment
You will be joining a dynamic and expanding Local Health Network that is committed to delivering contemporary, innovative and high‑quality health services within modern facilities.
This is a unique opportunity to be part of a new and innovative service directly contributing to improved outcomes for vulnerable individuals within our community.
About Adelaide:
Adelaide is consistently recognised as a city that artfully combines its compact charm and world-class cuisine with picturesque nature escapes. Ranked one of the worlds “Most Liveable Cities” and “Most Beautiful Cities”, Adelaide provides something for everyone combining a wonderful mix of nature with nearby beaches, rolling hills and wildlife and culinary delights with fine dining restaurants, award-winning cafes, bustling food markets and booming boutique bars. Events like the LIV Golf, SANTOS Tour Down Under, Adelaide Fringe and the Adelaide Cabaret Festival add extra appeal to living here.
About Us:
The Northern Adelaide Local Health Network (NALHN) is a leading provider of public healthcare services in South Australia.
NALHN serves over 400,000 people in northern Adelaide with a comprehensive range of high-quality medical services, including emergency, surgical, obstetric, neonatal, paediatric, oncology, geriatric, palliative care and rehabilitation, and mental health care. Recently, NALHN has upgraded its facilities and plans to expand further. The network provides primary health care with a focus on community health promotion and chronic disease management. With nearly 6,500 employees, NALHN emphasises quality care and a supportive work environment guided by respect, integrity, and accountability. Our core values foster excellence, innovation, and equitable health outcomes.
At NALHN Everyone Has a Story, Everyone Matters, Everyone Contributes and Everyone Grows.
Our Local Health Network Sites and Services:
Lyell McEwin Hospital – The major hospital in the north and north-east for emergency care, complex and multi-day surgery, medicine, obstetrics, paediatrics and outpatient services.
Modbury Hospital – A general hospital with emergency care, elective surgery, medicine, outpatient and sub-acute services, rehabilitation, geriatric and palliative care.
Mental Health - The Division of Mental Health provides a comprehensive range of public mental health services for youth, adults and older people in northern Adelaide. Services are provided through community health centres and hospitals, and to consumers in their own homes.
Community Sites - Elizabeth GP Plus, Modbury GP Plus and Gilles Plains GP Plus Super Clinics providing community based care.
Benefits of working at NALHN:
From salary packaging to flexible working arrangements, a large range of opportunities for movement and career progression, you’ll find there are lots of benefits of working with Northern Adelaide Local Health Network.
Salary packaging is an option for saving money by paying for some of your everyday expenses from your salary before it is taxed.
Relocation assistance may be available for successful applicants from interstate or overseas.
NALHN supports and fosters a culture in which employees feel they belong and feel safe at work. The culture aims to encourage all people to use their talents and to be valued and rewarded for their contributions.
SA Health is committed to providing an inclusive workplace that embraces diversity and inclusion for all employees. We strongly encourage applications from people of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander descent, culturally diverse backgrounds, members of the LGBTIQA+SB community and people who live with disability and/or neurodivergence.
We are committed to making workplace adjustments to provide a positive and supportive work environment. You are encouraged to let us know if you have any support or access requirements during the recruitment process and beyond to ensure you can perform at your best.
The South Australian public sector promotes diversity and flexible ways of working including part-time. Applicants are encouraged to discuss the flexible working arrangements for this role.
Appointment will be subject to a satisfactory Criminal History Check.
Check(s):
- DHS Working With Children Check (WWCC)
- National Police Certificate (NPC) for employment involving unsupervised contact with vulnerable groups required for this position (E.g. aged care employment or work involving vulnerable clients)
Immunisation Risk for this position is – Category C (minimal patient contact)
SA Health Services are required to implement the Addressing vaccine preventable disease: Occupational assessment, screening and vaccination policy in the workplace.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander applicants are encouraged to apply. Job Ref: 936579
Enquiries:
Sarah Burden
A/Divisional Director Allied Health & Community Mental Health
Phone: (08) 7485 4300
E-mail: Sarah.Burden@sa.gov.au
Application Closing Date:
29 May 2026 – 11.55PM
Role Description and Further Information:
936579 - Contract Manager - Commissioned Mental Health Services - ASO6 - Role Description.pdf
For more information about Mental Health vacancies at NALHN visit our Careers in Mental Health page.
* Refer to the SA Health Career Website – How to apply for further information.
