Takeover Shepparton

Members Statement: For a whole week year 9 students across the whole of Shepparton took part in the Takeover Shepparton activities promoted by VicHealth and the ABC. Young people prepared stories. They could be written or delivered by audio or video. I had the opportunity of going to see many of the videos at the Village Cinemas in Shepparton. I enjoyed learning about the stories of our young people, the problems they face and how they overcame major obstacles such as mental health concerns, disabilities and learning difficulties. They told stories about excelling in sports and the arts; succeeding in unusual jobs; and facing adversity, such as homelessness and teen parenthood, and they did that with amazing frankness. Shepparton has a large population of young people, and to see and hear and read those stories that they bravely told will give us all an insight into their world and will also help other young people who have yet to experience many of the issues that they have faced. It was an outstanding effort by the ABC’s Triple J and VicHealth to promote opportunities for young people to prepare and record their stories for radio or film and have them aired across the country, and they are readily available on ABC websites. It created a platform for students across the regions to be heard. The diversity was extraordinary and so was the bravery. Many talked about connecting to culture. One young man, an autistic young man, told about starting his own honey business.