Hume Council and the Sebastian Foundation Mental Health Expo
On Monday 9th October, six Year 9 students from Hume Central represented our college at World Mental Health Day run by Hume Council and the Sebastian Foundation. The Mental Health Forum brought 10 local secondary schools together and asked students to recognise the range of services available in the community and encouraged young people to seek help if needed. In the morning, students were able to explore the expo around the Broadmeadows Town Hall and completed a series of tasks where they were introduced to services such as Headspace, Youth Projects, Centre for Multicultural Youth, and others. After lunch, we heard from the Hume mayor, Jospeh Haweil who talked about how mental health can affect young people especially. We also heard from a local university student, Sharanjit who shared her experience of mental health during secondary school, and seeking support from Headspace, Craigieburn. At the end of the day the keynote speaker Guy Sebastian spoke about why he has set up the Sebastian Foundation and how this has reached over 150 schools across Australia. One of his key messages was how the landscape has changed for children and how social media, online bullying and comparison are huge challenges to navigate as young people grow up. Hume Central students communicated and listened well all day and there were even some selfies with Guy Sebastian.
