| Coral Tree Family Service | |
|---|---|
| Geography | |
| Location | North Ryde, Sydney, New South Wales, Australia |
| Organisation | |
| Type | Specialist child and family mental health service |
| Network | NSW Health |
| Links | |
| Website | nslhd.health.nsw.gov.au/coraltree |
| Lists | Hospitals in Australia |
Coral Tree Family Service is a specialist child and family mental health service located in North Ryde, Sydney, Australia. It operates within Northern Sydney Local Health District as part of NSW Health. The service provides inpatient family interventions for children aged 12 years and under with complex behavioural, emotional and mental health difficulties. [1] [2]
The service originated in the 1960s as a child and adolescent psychiatric unit at North Ryde and was later known as the Arndell Children's Unit. [3] [ when? ]
In the late 1990s and early 2000s, the unit transitioned from a traditional child inpatient psychiatric model to a family-focused residential model of care, reflecting broader shifts in child and adolescent mental health practice toward systemic and family-based interventions. [3]
The service was subsequently renamed Coral Tree Family Service and began operating as a tertiary-level Child and Youth Mental Health Service (CYMHS) serving families referred from across New South Wales. [1] [ when? ]
The Family Residential Program involves planned short-term inpatient stays, typically of four nights, during which children and their parents or caregivers reside on site and participate in structured therapeutic intervention. Published descriptions indicate that the model integrates parent management training, cognitive behavioural therapy and systemic family therapy approaches within a residential setting, with a focus on strengthening family functioning and supporting parents to manage complex behavioural and emotional difficulties. [1] [3]
Coral Tree operates alongside the co-located Arndell School, a School for Specific Purposes within the New South Wales Department of Education. Through the separate Clinical School Program, children attend Arndell School while receiving therapeutic support from Coral Tree. The program provides structured, time-limited placements for students experiencing significant behavioural and emotional difficulties, with the aim of supporting stabilisation and transition back to their mainstream (census) schools. Research examining the school program has reported significant improvements in students’ behavioural and emotional functioning over the course of placement. [4]
A 2023 longitudinal study of 493 families reported statistically significant improvements in family functioning following participation in Coral Tree’s Family Residential Program, with improvements maintained at 13-week follow-up. [1]
A 2015 study of students attending the co-located School for Specific Purposes reported significant behavioural and emotional improvements following participation in the program. [4]