Priorities

• Mental health 
• Youth crime and safety 
• Digital safety and Cybersecurity 

Priorities

• More Recreational and Leisure Spaces for Youth.
• Mental Health Awareness – Promoting awareness, reducing stigma, and providing accessible support services in schools and communities.
• Safer Public Transport – Reliable and safe public transport is essential for everyone.

Priorities

• Public Transport – Better safety for women on public transport.
• Women’s Safety – More effective methods of reporting sexual harassment on public transport.
• Awareness – Increased awareness about sexual harassment against women.

Priorities

• Cutting Roots: Identifying and solving issues that young people face from their root cause
• Local Roads Being better: A local street near me is cut in half by a dead end. Making school traffic more jam-packed.
• Disability Schooling Crisis - from personal experience.

Priorities

• Opportunities – Free sports in the community to help mental health, physical activity and refugees.
• Revamp and Reclaim - Unused and rotting community spaces for youth.
• More Hangouts – Better parks, youth spaces and sports facilities and infrastructure.

Priorities

• Dead Afternoons – After school, there’s nothing happening. We need stuff to do all over Hume so it isn’t just home–school–repeat.
• No Safe Spots – Late at night, most areas don’t feel safe. Young people deserve spaces anywhere and anytime where we actually feel comfortable.
• Job Hunt Struggles – Whether its part-time or causal hours, we need better pathways for young people starting out their first job.

Priorities

• Awareness for neurodiversity
• A sense of belonging in classrooms for all
• Student leadership opportunities

Priorities

• Fitness access – outdoor gym equipment, cheaper rec center memberships.
• Events & festivals → multicultural fairs, youth music nights, local markets.
• Tree planting & green spaces → shade in parks, urban greening, native plant gardens.

Priorities

• Support – Creating more awareness and support for young people’s wellbeing and safety
• Access to Programs – Expanding access to sports, leadership roles, and activities
• Equality – Promoting respect, equality, celebrating cultures and opportunities for everyone.

Priorities

• Improved services and facilities for young people in sports, mental health and parks.
• Better drug and alcohol and crime awareness – to educate kids on these matters.
• Cleaner streets and buildings – Create safer and less polluted areas.

Priorities

• Mental health awareness and advocacy
• Create a sense of belonging for those who feel excluded
• Safe space for teens to hang out for an escape from the world.

Priorities

• Promote safe schools and communities
• Empowering youth to speak up
• Advocate for stronger community trust.

The Youth Council decides their priorities based on issues identified by young people in Hume.

The projects run by youth councils around Australia and the world have covered a range of issues, including: 

• Mental Health First Aid training for young people
• Tree planting project for sustainability outcomes
• Activating public spaces including libraries and local parks 
• Music and recreational projects
• Life skills and employment / education pathway projects 
• Bus safety and transport advocacy projects

During the Term in Office, the Youth Council will regularly consult with their constituents to make sure their work is meeting the needs of young people in the community.

The Youth Council meet once a fortnight.

As well as fortnightly meetings, Youth Council members may have the chance to go to Hume City Council meetings and other events, which are decided as the Term in Office rolls out.

Over the course of their term in office, the Youth Council will have opportunities to meet with and provide feedback to Hume City Councillors and Mayor.

The current Hume Youth Council are carrying out their term in office, which ends in December 2026. There will be multiple opportunities to meet with the Hume Youth Council and share your perspectives on being a local young person so look out for these opportunities. 

Watch this space for the next Nominations for 2027. 

Young people aged between 12 to 17 years, living and studying in the Hume region are welcome to get in touch with the Hume Youth Council.

The program is completely free to participate in.

The Young Mayors program works with young people aged 12 to 17 years. We recognise this program puts young people in the public spotlight, and this can create vulnerabilities.

A well-being plan tailored to each community is developed at the beginning of the program, based on a thorough co-design process undertaken with each local government area.

The well-being plan includes, but is not limited to specific actions and support available to keep young people safe, processes to report harm, and clarity on expectations young people can have of each other, partners involved and the general public.

FYA and our partners are required to have Working With Childrens’ Checks and adhere to a comprehensive set of safeguarding policies and legislative requirements.

We are working hard to make every part of the program as accessible to as many people as possible. This includes using wheelchair accessible venues, having the option to provide Auslan Interpreters for events, providing single and gender-neutral bathrooms, creating social scripts and maintaining COVID safety. 

We are committed to supporting all access requirements and welcome suggestions for any access needs not covered here. Please email Mehak Sheikh (she/her) at mehak.sheikh@fya.org.au or call FYA on (03) 7046 3837 to book a time to chat.

The Hume Young Mayors Team are available to provide any support you need to nominate or answer questions that you have.  

Contact Siyoda on SiyodaJ@hume.vic.gov.au or call 9205 2556.