Thursday, 28 November 2024

 Ben CARROLL (Niddrie – Minister for Education, Minister for Medical Research) (11:09): We all believe in second chances, but in Melbourne’s west we believe in Western Chances. I had the great pleasure of joining former Prime Minister Julia Gillard and the wonderful founder Terry Bracks to celebrate 21 years of Western Chances in Melbourne’s west, giving young people scholarships for everything from textbooks to transport, making sure they get to live their dreams and have the opportunity to fulfil a life of purpose. It was wonderful gala evening at the Melbourne Town Hall celebrating more than two decades. On that night we raised $185,000 for kids in the western suburbs of Melbourne. This will see 185 scholarships going to young people in Melbourne’s west, motivating them, making sure they are the leaders of tomorrow. We heard from former Prime Minister Julia Gillard that night. She said:

… postcodes were the strongest factor in determining a person’s chances of success …

I know the people of Niddrie, 3042, and growing up in Niddrie and Airport West and going to St Christopher’s Primary School and St Bernard’s College was a lottery I won, going to those two schools. Since 2004 Western Chances has invested more than $9 million in life-changing scholarships, providing over 10,000 scholarships, a remarkable achievement. To the current chief executive officer Zac Lewis, congratulations, and to the visionary leader and founding chair Terry Bracks and to the patron the Honourable Julia Gillard, here is to another 21 years of transforming lives and supporting motivated people in Melbourne’s western suburbs.