Student Leadership

Student Leadership Excursion: Youth Leadership Conference 2026 

Last week, a group of Northcote High student leaders attended the Youth Leadership Academy Australia Secondary Youth Leadership Conference at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. The day was packed with inspiring keynote speakers, interactive workshops and opportunities to connect with other young leaders from across the state. 

One of the highlights was hearing from speakers like Forbes 30 Under 30 entrepreneur Lexi McDonald and Lucy Thomas from Project Rockit, who shared powerful messages about using your voice to create positive change and standing up for inclusion in our communities. Lucy’s work focuses on empowering young people to act against bullying and build respectful, supportive environments. 

Throughout the day, we explored what it means to be a leader, starting with leading ourselves first, before learning practical skills in communication, teamwork, and creating change. The conference also gave us time to collaborate with students from other schools, share ideas, and reflect on how we can make a difference back at NHS. 

We left the conference feeling motivated, inspired and full of ideas that we are excited to bring back to our school community. 

- Year 8 and 9 Student Leaders