St Augustine’s College students in Kyabram teamed up with headspace to create an episode in their youth-led, youth-focused podcast.
On Tuesday, May 14, the students recorded their podcast episode about anxiety and depression.
In the lead-up to the big day, they did different work learning about the topic.
The podcast involved the students interviewing two mental health clinicians at headspace, Kirby Weldon and Liam Brett.
Ms Weldon, whose focus was on anxiety, said it was a pleasure to be part of this project with the students.
“It’s been great working with the kids, and I think talking to them removes some of the mystery around mental health clinicians and what we do at headspace,” she said.
“I’ll be talking to them about how headspace works, and also about recognising anxiety within ourselves and our friends, and then how we can support friends and young people within a headspace setting.”
The pressure to support friends in difficult times has been a recurring issue for people coming through headspace, according to Ms Weldon.
“So, I think from that perspective, it’s really great to get some of the information out about how young people can support their friends, recognise when someone might be having a difficult time, and then what they can do with that,” she said.
Mr Brett said it’s been great to give a voice to young people in the area about the issues that are affecting them.
“I’m really proud to be a part of this project. Our community awareness officer, Jayden (Howe), has championed it,” he said.
“It’s awesome to have a few different schools from around the community participate in creating resources and podcasts, especially ones that are not only tailored for this community but also created by community members.
“So rather than someone else coming in and telling them how to work with this stuff, they’re telling us from their lived experience. I think it’s really important to hold the voice and champion the voice of the young people that have been a part of this project.”