Since its inception in 2017, the Student Voice Program has been driven by one mission: to ensure students are actively and continuously involved in creating and strengthening safety, well-being, and learning in BCE schools
Over the years, we’ve gathered valuable feedback from students across BCE, and 2024 has been a pivotal year in creating accessible pathways for students to share their voice.
This year, the team's vision centred around four key goals: creating accessible and inclusive pathways for student voice, building student capacity and skills, and amplifying, embedding, and advancing student voice throughout BCE.
The Student Voice Program staff, along with a team of 17 Student Voice consultants, continued to focus on these goals and advance the Future of Voice priorities by collaborating with BCE to provide feedback on several exciting projects!
Learn more about the Student Voice Team’s achievements for this year:
Student Voice Network
2024 was the launch year of the new Student Voice Network. The Student Voice Network, which is a community of students interested in discovering opportunities and developing skills to share their voices. This online platform was created in response to student feedback which identified the need for the Student Voice Program to be more accessible and inclusive. The Student Voice community currently has 134 students across 34 of our BCE schools. If you would like to join this online community learn more here and share this opportunity with a friend.
Voice in Student Protection
The BCE Safeguarding and Student Protection teams collaborated with Student Voice consultants and staff to create student-accessible safeguarding and student protection resources, while also gathering valuable feedback on the BCE Complaints Policy. The aim was to actively involve students in shaping policies, especially those that promote a safe and respectful school environment. The goal is to make these policies more accessible to all students. Providing students with opportunities to give feedback on policies that affect them is crucial for safeguarding students and strengthening student safety in BCE school communities.
Earlier this year, students received an update from the BCE Strategy Team, learning how their feedback at the 2023 Festival of Ideas shaped BCE’s 2025-2027 Strategic Plan. This plan sets the key priorities for Brisbane Catholic Education, and it’s fantastic to know that students contributed their insights to such an important initiative.
Training and Development Opportunities
Students in the Student Voice Network and Consultant team were given exciting opportunities to attend in-person training, designed to build their capabilities and skills. This training focused on understanding the purpose of student voice, advocating for others, and learning how to create meaningful change. We look forward to offering many more training opportunities in 2025 and beyond.
Student Voice and Safeguarding
As part of the Safeguarding Project, the BCE Student Voice program partnered with the external consulting firm, The Culture and Leadership Collective (CLC), to review and benchmark student voice structures across BCE schools.
The overarching goal of the project is to review, assess, and benchmark student voice programs and structures across BCE schools. Stage one of the project focusing on secondary schools in the metropolitan area began this year. Students from the Student Voice Network and Consultant team had the opportunity to validate the proposed research methodology and advice on strategies to maximise student participation in the project. Feedback from the seven BCE secondary schools who volunteered to participate in the project is currently being analysed, and we expect to receive detailed insights at the start of 2025.
Student Protection Contact ( SPC ) Conference
Every BCE school has a Student Protection Contact (SPC), who is trained in student protection processes and serves as a trusted adult for students seeking support. SPCs undergo mandatory training to continually enhance their skills and knowledge, ensuring they are well-equipped to safeguard students and respond to their needs.