Nicolette Boele (Bradfield, Independent) Share this | Hansard source

Over the coming months or so, the beautiful trees of our nation's bush capital will turn from yellow to orange to red, and we all know what that means. The budget is in the air. This will be my first budget as a member in this place, so my focus has been, and will be, on the things that matter most to my community in Bradfield.

My prebudget submission to the Treasurer asked for many things. The process of laying out in black and white the funding that so many organisations and community groups in Bradfield need made me realise—with pride and no small amount of humility—just how many good people we have doing such important work for others. Here's who they are, what they do and what they need.

Let's start with mental health—an area of so much need, with so many grassroots organisations stepping up to help with the crisis. The organisation Empowering Parents in Crisis, or EPIC, is a peer led organisation that has provided over 1,700 connections with parents caring for young people aged 12 to 25 experiencing mental health issues, school disengagement and high-risk behaviours. The 2023 Senate inquiry into school refusal recognised the urgent need for a fully funded peer-parent support network, highlighting the value of lived experience in helping families navigate complex challenges. EPIC's work directly responds to this recommendation, offering scalable, community based support that strengthens families and improves outcomes for young people. EPIC is seeking $600,000 over two years to enable it to expand this vital work.

Next is the Ku-ring-gai youth development service, or KYDS—with a y—a community organisation delivering structured, evidence based interventions for young people experiencing mental illness. Seventy-five per cent of mental health difficulties emerge before the age of 25, and young people have some of the highest rates of psychological distress and suicide risk. KYDS acts as a clinical bridge, addressing gaps in access for that missing middle—those not eligible for headspace and those who are less critical than those needing acute care. KYDS needs only $500,000 per annum to deliver 2,325 sessions, benefiting over 230 young people and over 2,300 community members.

Then there's the sporting community. Ku-ring-gai Council, the Lindfield rugby and junior rugby clubs and Lindfield District Cricket Club have a joint proposal for upgrades to their existing clubhouse at Lindfield Soldiers Memorial Park, including the provision of changing rooms for girls and women and access for people living with disability. This is to support the rapid increase in female participation in both cricket and rugby and to provide compliant ambulant and disabled access points for the elderly and the less able-bodied members of our local community—$1.5 million from the federal budget will see this project completed. Still on sport, the Willoughby squash and racquet club needs just $250,000 to part-fund the installation and maintenance of a temporary indoor racquet-sports court while the new, purpose built centre is developed.

Moving from sport to social services, Transitional Community Housing is a registered charity which supports high-risk, high-need groups—women over 55, and women with dependent children, who are experiencing, or are at risk of, homelessness; exiting women's shelters or specialist homelessness services; or referred from housing services. The need is great, and the service that TCH provides is incredible. They're asking for just $500,000 over two years to support 50 women and 75 children to access affordable and secure transitional housing for up to two years.

Now, to the arts—the beloved Zenith theatre plays a critical role in supporting the local community performing arts sector in Chatswood. The Zenith offers opportunities for multicultural and amateur organisations that don't have the funds or the patronage to access larger venues or to showcase to the broader community. The theatre is seeking $2.5 million to undertake a major upgrade to revitalise the venue with new facilities and enhance the audience experience, attracting varied productions and increasing visitors to Chatsworth's cultural precinct.

It is an honour to have these organisations in Bradfield—to know them, to work with them and to be able to represent them in the federal budget process. I urge the government to grant these funding requests.

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