Year 12 student Jessica Hodge has recently become a member of the Australian Government Youth Advisory Group for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention.

With upwards of 1000 applications from across the country, Jessica said that she applied to join the group as mental health and suicide is close to her heart and family.

“I wanted an opportunity to represent my community and generation, by working towards making a positive change where our actions can make an immediate impact around Ballarat and Australia,” she said.

In late March she travelled to Canberra to meet her fellow group members, to collaborate with parliamentarians, ministers, federal departments, and agencies.

The Labour government has introduced the Youth Advisory Groups to work with and increase the voice of young people in parliament, and for them to share their lived experience, views, and ideas on issues that are affecting today’s young people. There are five groups consisting each of eight people aged 16-25 from all around Australia, each of the groups focusing on: First Nations, Promotion of STEM, Climate Change, Safe and Supported: Protection Australia’s Children, and Mental Health and Suicide Prevention.

“During our time in Canberra, we spent time in Parliament House, where we explored the restricted areas of the building, sat in on Question Time from the House of Representatives, and were lucky enough to watch the second reading of the Constitution Alteration regarding the Indigenous Voice to Parliament which was exciting to experience.”

“Whilst at Parliament House, our Mental Health Advisory group had the opportunity to meet and speak with Hon Dr Anne Aly, Minister for Youth, and Emma McBride, Assistant Minister for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention. It was wonderful to see how enthusiastic these people are about making a change for young people, and it made me hopeful that the work we do in the group will be implemented to make a difference towards the mental health of young Australians,” she said.

For the remainder of the year, the Youth Advisory Group will work closely with the Department of Health and Aged Care, the National Mental Health Commission, and the National Suicide Prevention Office. The group will provide advice, expertise, guidance, and feedback in the form of lived experience, working on policies, programs, and prevention strategies to be implemented on a national scale.

“I am very lucky to have been involved in this group, as it has helped my confidence levels, built relationships with new people and learnt how to communicate my thoughts and ideas to people in power representing my peers.”

“I want to see the impacts we make take affect around me, and although it is important for movement to come from government power, still so much can be done on a local level, around Ballarat in particular. Together, I hope we can continue to reduce the impact of mental ill-health for young Australians, and I am proud to contribute a small part in creating that movement,” she said.