On Friday 22 March, 130 South Australian students from Years 10, 11 and 12 gathered at the Adelaide Festival Centre for the 2024 SA SRC Summit.
The South Australian Student Representative Council (SA SRC) was created as part of the Commissioner’s response to continuous feedback from young people that they were not being listened to or heard by decision-makers.
An initiative of the Commissioner for Children and Young People, the statewide student representative council provides an avenue for young South Australians to create change in their local communities through grassroots campaigns on issues that matter to them most.
Past SA SRC campaigns have included improving road safety for students, modifying school timetables to better support students and their learning, protecting threatened species, and educating students on how to recycle properly.
The 150 members of the 2024 SA SRC are a diverse group of students who come from 44 electorates throughout South Australia. Representing 80 schools, students travelled from metro and regional locations that include Mount Gambier, Berri, Gladstone, Port Lincoln, Whyalla, and Cowell to attend.
Attending the Summit provided students with the opportunity to meet their fellow council members in person and to start discussions around their campaign ideas. Students were also able to meet with their local Member of Parliament, seventeen of whom attended the Summit specifically to meet and hear from some of their youngest constituents.
Summit attendees also received a campaigning masterclass and media 101 tips from experts from the Foundation for Young Australians (FYA) which is supporting the Commissioner with the initiative.
Throughout the year, SA SRC members will work across five campaigns identified as key issues in young people’s lives: sustainable school canteens, lowering the voting age within local government elections, providing free public transport to school students, developing a diversity audit tool for schools, and offering free fitness for school students seeking to improve their wellbeing.
Summit attendees have all taken surveys on their various campaigns back to their school communities so their peers can have input, thereby ensuring the campaigns are truly representative of young people throughout South Australia.
You can keep up to date with the SA SRC campaigns on Instagram and via Hub.
