We’re facing big challenges: rising rents, climate chaos, mental health crises, and a cost-of-living squeeze that makes just surviving feel like a full-time job. But this year’s state budget doesn’t do enough to help young people through it.
If we want to stop harm before it starts, we have to focus on more than just surface-level fixes.
Real safety and stability come from addressing what’s underneath: things like access to housing, education, jobs, and mental health care. These are the things that give us hope. They’re how we build a future worth planning for.
What this budget missed for young people
- No funding to end youth homelessness: Even though more than 1 in 4 people experiencing homelessness are aged 12–24, there’s no targeted support for young people doing it tough.
- Nothing to ease the rental crisis: Rents are skyrocketing, especially in Melbourne. But there’s no support for young renters, no protections, and no relief.
- Public schools still waiting on full funding: While it’s good that no funding was cut, public schools remain underfunded due to delays in meeting the minimum Schooling Resource Standard. Meanwhile, private schools continue to be funded above the standard. This delay affects most young people, especially those already facing disadvantage.
- No new support to help us find work: Youth unemployment is rising. Many of us are applying for job after job, often with nothing to show for it.
- No clear action on climate resilience: Young people are already feeling the impacts of the climate crisis, but this budget doesn’t step up to prepare us or protect our future.
There are some small wins; it’s good to see that no major youth services were defunded. But that’s just the baseline. Real, sustainable, and systemic change needs increased investment, not just maintenance.
These gaps aren’t just policy oversights, they send a message. That our wellbeing doesn’t matter. That our futures aren’t a priority. And when people feel unsupported, excluded, or unseen, that’s when harmful ideologies can take hold.
People don’t turn to hate because they’re evil, they turn to it because they’re hurting. And when society fails to offer help, others step in with blame, fear, and false promises.
So what would real support look like?
- Free, high-quality education so we can understand the world around us and how to change it.
- Affordable, secure housing so we’re not stuck in survival mode.
- Meaningful jobs and income support to stop people falling through the cracks.
- Serious action on climate to protect our mental health, safety, and future.
These aren’t radical demands. They’re how we build safe, connected, hopeful communities. They’re how we give people something to hold onto. They’re how we stop the cycle of harm before it starts.
And yeah, thanks for taking the load off with the free public transport for under-18s. But it’s going to take a lot more than that.
Where do we go from here?
Young people deserve real investment. Real security. Real futures.
Your voice matters, especially when it feels like they’re not listening.