Latrobe City Council has launched its Kindness is Key: Stop Bullying campaign, shaped by the voices and experiences of young people across the region.
Earlier this year primary school students from across Latrobe City came together to tackle the growing issue of bullying in their communities.
Over the past three years, with the support of VicHealth, Council has worked with local schools through co-design workshops. These workshops revealed that bullying is one of the most pressing health and wellbeing concerns facing students in the region.
Through these sessions, students shared ideas on how bullying could be addressed within schools. Over 80 percent of students voted in favour of implementing upstander training, saying it would empower them to act and support others.
Following this, the Stand-Up Project developed workshops tailored for local students. These were delivered to student leaders from eight primary schools within Latrobe City: Traralgon South Primary School, Morwell Park Primary School, Hazelwood North Primary School, St Gabriel's Primary School, St Vincent de Paul Primary School, Yarragon Primary School, Moe (Elizabeth Street) Primary School, and Yallourn North Primary School.
The workshops covered the causes and impacts of bullying, the bystander effect, and strategies for becoming an effective upstander. In a follow-up session with Council, students collaborated to create community project ideas to spread the upstander message across Latrobe City.
Latrobe City Council Mayor, Councillor Dale Harriman, said the initiative is a significant step in engaging with and learning from young people.
"One of the key ideas students developed was the message 'Stop Bullying, Kindness is the Key'," said the Mayor.
"The students envisioned this as a bright, colourful campaign to be shared on digital screens, billboards, and in every school across Latrobe City.
"It is a message that can resonate directly with students but also their parents and more broadly in the community."
Students left the workshops feeling empowered and excited about making a real difference in their schools and communities.
