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Tackling big issues at a local level

"Young people and their stories are at the heart of what batyr is all about. 'Being Herd' empowers and trains young people to give a voice to what they have been through and build confidence to share crucial messages about accessing support. It is a privilege to see more and more of these stories shared every day." - Nic Brown, batyr General Manager
 

batyr is an organisation proudly created by young people for young people, with a clear mission - to smash the stigma surrounding mental health and empower young people to reach out for support.
 

For every 30 students in Australia, seven will be dealing with a mental health issue, yet only two will reach out for support. This is the reason this preventative mental health organisation works hard to give a voice to what they call the “elephant in the room”.
 

2018 is the second year Westpac Foundation has supported batyr with a Community Grant. The funding this year will be used to fund a Being Herd Speaker Training workshop, with every new batyr speaker trained having the potential to reach over 1,000 additional young people through batyr’s schools and university programs to provide hope to others who may be struggling.
 

batyr has a lot of support among Westpac employees, including through employee action group, The Youth Network, as well as through the support of their Community Grant Ambassador, Nick Lillywhite from the Westpac Technology team. Nick got behind their application, offering his technology skills and rallying other employees to support the group.
 

Find out more about Westpac Foundation Community Grants