Early each year the Youth Council is required to establish an annual list of priorities that will guide its strategic direction during that year. The Youth Council have identified three broad priority areas for 2024 that directly relate to young people. The three priority areas are Advocacy, Engagement and Experience.

Each priority area has a working group with four to six Youth Councillors as members and is chaired by a Youth Councillor. The role of each working group is to explore and develop options for consideration by the Youth Council.

Advocacy

The purpose of the Advocacy Working Group is to explore and develop options and/or recommendations for the Youth Council to consider relating to:

• Amplifying the voice of young people in Greater Bendigo and making sure they are heard;
• The representation of young people and their contributions to the community; and
• Advocacy about the priorities of young people and the issues impacting them.

Contemporary issues concerning young people in Greater Bendigo identified by the Youth Council as important advocacy issues, include but are not limited to support for increased public safety, support for reducing homelessness amongst young people, support for young people living with a disability, support for the LGBTQIA+ community, support for healthy lifestyles, the climate crisis, improving mental health support, and youth unemployment 

Engagement

The purpose of the Engagement Working Group is to explore and develop options and/or recommendations for the Youth Council to consider relating to:

• Engaging with young people in Greater Bendigo to better understand their needs and concerns via listening posts, forums and/or other platforms;
• Engaging with other youth-related stakeholders (such as service providers) in Greater Bendigo to better understand their perspectives; and
• Promoting the Mission Australia Youth Survey in Greater Bendigo.

Experience

The purpose of the Experience Working Group is to explore and develop options and/or recommendations for the Youth Council to consider relating to:

• Professional development opportunities for young people such as micro-credentials training;
• Ideas to improve the experience of young people who live, work and/or study in Greater Bendigo.
• Career and education pathways for young people;
• Opportunities for young people to connect with each other through activities and events;
• Personal development opportunities for young people; and
• Advice on promoting the YO Bendigo facility as a safe study/fun space for young people to utilise.

Youth Council Priorities Statement