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    What is Cracks in the Ice?

    Cracks in the Ice is an online toolkit providing evidence-based and up-to-date information and resources about crystal methamphetamine ('ice') for the Australian community. It was developed in response to the Final Report of the National Ice Taskforce which was established in 2015 by the Australian Government to provide advice on the impacts of ice in Australia. The report stated that “The first priority must be supporting families, workers and communities to better respond to people affected by ice.” (Commonwealth of Australia, Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, Final Report of the National Ice Taskforce, 2015)., opens in a new window

    Cracks in the Ice is committed to supporting health consumers and making sure they know their healthcare rights. The Australian Charter of Healthcare Rights is about high quality and safe healthcare. It explains what you, or someone you are caring for, can expect when receiving health care.

    Statement of Healthcare Rights: Click here to learn more about your healthcare rights

    Who is behind Cracks in the Ice?

    Cracks in the Ice is supported by funding from the Australian Government Department of Health, Disability and Ageing and was developed by the Matilda Centre for Research in Mental Health and Substance Use at the University of Sydney (formerly known as the NHMRC Centre of Research Excellence in Mental Health and Substance Use at the University of New South Wales).

     Australian Government Department of Health Logo    Matilda Centre logo     

    Cracks in the Ice was informed by input from over 500 members of the Australian community and was developed in collaboration with researchers from:

    We would like to acknowledge the many community members and health professionals from around the country who provided their input and feedback during the development of Cracks in the Ice and thank those who so generously shared their personal experiences with us and allowed us to use their stories on the website.

    Find out more about the development of Cracks in the Ice.

    We would also like to thank our external collaborators for their input into the development of Cracks in the Ice.

    After playing basketball at a high level and being an incredibly fit and healthy young man; addiction took over Jack's life, taking his health, integrity and spirit out from underneath him, robbing his parents of a son and his brother of a role model. From these experiences, Jack was extremely passionate about using the destruction of his past as his greatest asset to give hope of freedom to people suffering with addiction, educating the community with the sometimes confronting but shattering reality of addiction. Sadly, Jack passed away in December 2025. His loss is felt by many but the legacy of his advocacy work continues. 

    Jenny is a journalist and author who has a keen interest in alcohol and other drug treatment and information dissemination. Jenny has a graduate certificate in Alcohol and Other Drugs from Turning Point/Monash University and recently published Woman of Substances, a book which investigates the female experience of drug use and draws on her own lived experience of alcohol and other drugs.

    Netfront is a digital agency based in Sydney's inner west, offering custom web design, web development, graphic design and online services. With extensive experience working with non-profit organisations, Netfront is proud to support and be part of research and development work in health and education.

    Gilimbaa is an Indigenous creative agency, born out of a passion to work with Indigenous art and story-telling and the elements it can bring to contemporary design and communication.

    Cracks in the Ice Mobile App

    The Cracks in the Ice mobile app was a condensed version of the Cracks in the Ice online toolkit designed for mobile and tablet devices. The app allowed access to the online toolkit’s key information, resources and functionalities even when users were offline. Launched in January 2018, the app had over 10,000+ downloads across the App Store and Google Play. The Cracks in the Ice smartphone app was officially retired in May 2026 following changes in technical requirements and resource allocation.

    We would like to acknowledge the many community members from around Australia who informed the development, and engaged with, the Cracks in the Ice mobile app.

    Find out more about the development of the Cracks in the Ice mobile app.

    Awards

    In 2026, Cracks in the Ice and Positive Choices were awarded the University of Sydney, Faculty of Medicine and Health Makers & Shapers Award for “Better place to work – team” as the first AOD information services to be accreditation for compliance with the National Safety and Quality Digital Mental Health (NSQDMH) Standards, and the first service at the University of Sydney. The Award recognises creating a positive, high performing and collaborative workplace by building best practice governance, safety and quality systems that strengthened staff experience, teamwork and organisational confidence while achieving landmark national accreditation.

    In 2025, Cracks in the Ice was awarded the Matilda Centre Leonie Manns Community Impact and Engagement Award for the development and dissemination of Cracks in the Ice Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Lived Experience Videos. The Matilda Centre Leonie Manns Award for Community Impact and Engagement recognises an individual or team who have made significant contributions to engagement with the broader community through the Matilda Centre’s research activities and who effectively transfer research knowledge into real-world settings, influencing policy, practice, and engaging with and impacting the lives of people with lived experience, their carers or families, and other key stakeholders.

    In 2025, Cracks in the Ice was awarded 'Highly Commended' in the Engagement Australia Excellence Awards 2025 for ‘Excellence in Indigenous Engagement’ for the Cracks in the Ice Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Lived Experience Project. These Awards identify and celebrate the most exciting engagement activities undertaken by universities that demonstrate far-reaching impact and innovation in the Australian and New Zealand economy and community.

    In 2025, Cracks in the Ice was awarded the Lived Experience Led Storytelling award by The Mental Health Services Learning Network of Australia and New Zealand for the development of culturally informed lived experience videos about methamphetamine inspired by real interviews with Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities. The award recognises storytelling productions and resources that contribute to improving media reporting, addressing stigma and elevating the voice of lived experience.

    In 2017, Cracks in the Ice was recognised by the Australian Rotary Health Knowledge Dissemination Award (now called the Australian Rotary Health Mental Health Impact Award) at the annual Society for Mental Health Research Conference. The award was for excellence in bridging the gap between knowledge gained through research and the dissemination of that knowledge to clinicians, consumers and carers, and its implementation into policy and practice.

    In 2019, Cracks in the Ice was shortlisted for the 2019 National Alcohol and Other Drugs Excellence and Innovation Awards. 

    In 2021, Cracks in the Ice was awarded the Mental Health Promotion/Mental Illness Prevention Service Award 2020 by The Mental Health Services Learning Network of Australia and New Zealand. These awards celebrate best practice and recognise excellence and innovation in mental health service delivery across Australia and New Zealand, and were established in 1992.

    National Safety and Quality Digital Mental Health Standards Accreditation

    In November 2025 Cracks in the Ice were awarded accreditation for compliance with the National Safety and Quality Digital Mental Health (NSQDMH) Standards which were developed by the Australian Commission on Safety and Quality in Health Care.

    These standards help people identify high quality digital mental health services. Accredited Service Providers must meet rigorous safety and quality requirements that reflect a commitment to high standards in digital mental health care.

    To become accredited, an independent agency conducted a thorough assessment to ensure Cracks in the Ice could demonstrate that we keep your information safe and private, ask for your feedback to make the service better, and make sure that we provide care that is safe, evidence-based, and responsive to users’ changing needs.

    Cracks in the Ice are proud to have met the NSQMDH standards to achieve accreditation. This accreditation reflects our commitment to providing high quality, person-centred, and evidence-based care to improve the wellbeing of our service users.

    Visit our NSQMDH Accreditation page to learn more. A full list of Digital Mental Health accredited services can be found here.

    Photo Credits

    We would like to acknowledge the photographers who generously donated their images to Unsplash for use by the public. We use images from the following photographers on Cracks in the Ice:

    Stock photos have also been purchased from Shutterstock, iStock by Getty Images, Fotolia and CanStock Photo.

    Page last reviewed: Tuesday, 28 July 2026