Giving a say to Macedon Ranges youth

Last updated on 24 April 2024

Youth Summit

Council’s future plans and actions for young people in the Macedon Ranges will be better informed, following a Youth Summit held last month.

On 21 March, around 90 young people from local secondary schools convened at Woodend Community Centre alongside Council’s Youth Services team, Councillors, Sunbury Cobaw Community Health, Woodend Rotary, headspace, and Djaara Balaki Wuku, marking the first summit of its kind in several years.

The day-long summit provided an opportunity for young people in the shire to come together to have their voices heard and give valuable feedback on key issues outlined in the ELEVATE – Macedon Ranges Shire Council Youth Strategy 2018-2028, including:

  • Public transport and isolation
  • Environment and global warming
  • Physical activity, art and leisure
  • Mental health and wellbeing, Alcohol and Other Drug (AOD) matters and body image
  • Career and education
  • School holiday program, tech space and coding

Council’s Director Community, Maria Weiss, said the ELEVATE Youth Strategy provides a comprehensive roadmap guiding Council on how to effectively support and engage with the shire’s young population now and into the future.

“It’s essential that we actively listen to, learn from, and collaborate with our young people to ensure any initiatives we implement under the ELEVATE strategy are relevant to their needs,” she said.

“The summit has provided an excellent opportunity to do this and it was fantastic to see so many young people engage in it in such a positive way and contribute their ideas.”

Council is now analysing the summit findings to ensure the ideas, opinions, concerns, and aspirations raised are included in relevant future plans and actions, with Council committed to supporting ongoing engagement with children and young people.

Quotes from participants:

“It was the first time I had been invited to an event like this and I have enjoyed being asked about my ideas and suggestions and I feel heard.” -  Gisborne Secondary College Student

“I’ve had so much fun. My favourite key issues were mental health and also physical activity. I enjoyed sharing ideas around these topics.” - Salesian College Student

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