Children and young people leading healthier communities
Greater Dandenong City Council has partnered with VicHealth on a three-year project to create communities where children and young people grow up active, socially connected and healthy.
Greater Dandenong is home to approximately 55,000 young people aged 0-25 years, representing 31 percent of our population which is projected to increase to 66,500 by 2030.
Local research shows many children and young people in Greater Dandenong experience several barriers to practising healthy lifestyles.
- Only 1.5 per cent of residents eat the recommended amount of vegetables per day
- Only 38 per cent of residents eat the recommended amount of fruit per day
- 7 per cent of residents have low rates of physical activity, three times the Victorian average
- 53 per cent of adolescents lack positive psychological development.
The VicHealth partnership will strengthen Council to work closely with local children and young people to understand, identify and prioritise actions that will drive positive change for better physical and mental health.
What will we be doing?
Council has established a working group which includes staff from across the organisation who work with young people. We will be working with four age groups 0-5, 5-12, 12-18 and 18-25 . Stage One of the project will involve running workshops with young people to understand the barriers to being active and ways they would like to get more active.
The next stages of the project will involve working with young people to run projects based on the feedback from stage one.
Where can I learn more about the project?
To learn more about the partnership with VicHealth visit the VicHealth website.
If you would like to get involved contact Council's Local Government Partnerships Officer Sarah Fowler.
Where can I learn more about what Council is already doing in this space?
Read more in Council's Make Your Move - Physical Activity Strategy 2020-2030
