Stronger Families Alliance – Year in Review

The Stronger Families Alliance (SFA) has held conversations with 100 students in four local high schools across the Blue Mountains as part of a project to understand what resources they need to support their mental health.

The project, one of the SFA’s focus areas for 2018-19, is bringing young people’s voices and ideas forward in co-designing the solutions to mental health challenges in conjunction with their schools.

Blue Mountains City Council is one of the backbone agencies of the SFA and has facilitated and resourced the collaborative network since 2006.

Blue Mountains Mayor, Cr Mark Greenhill, said: “The Stronger Families Alliance is a network of government, non-profit and voluntary organisations that are working together to promote resilience and wellbeing for children and young people living in the Blue Mountains.

“Katoomba, Springwood, Winmalee and Blaxland High Schools took part in this project. Workers from the Department of Education, CatholicCare and Belong Blue Mountains were part of the team holding the conversations across the Mountains.” 

Other focus areas for the SFA in 2018-19 are: •    Children start school ready to learn – working with Community Health, Early Childcare providers and schools. •    Parents are confident and engaged with their children – through easy access to information to support them. This year the Stronger Families Alliance launched the school holiday calendar of low cost activities at strongerfamilies.net.au, and  •    Blue Mountains is recognised as a child and youth friendly city asking young people and the community about what community safety means to them.

“Council continues to invest in supporting the SFA to increase the positive impact for families when services work together around a common agenda of support for children and young people,” the Mayor said.

“Future generations will prosper with vibrant, child and youth friendly neighbourhoods and services that nurture wellbeing and resilience.

“SFA members harness the latest evidence about how to improve outcomes for children and young people in the Blue Mountains and include them in the design of new initiatives and approaches.”

Go to strongerfamilies.net.au for more information on the Stronger Families Alliance and other resources to support children, young people and families.