Panthers and Office of Sport team up to address domestic, family and sexual violence in the Central West
Saturday, 14 March
Editor’s note: images of the Panthers Foundation and Denison College of Secondary Education, Bathurst High Campus students are available here: https://officeofsport.intelligencebank.com/customshare/index/OEdny
The NSW Office of Sport and Panthers Foundation, the official charity of the Penrith Panthers, have joined forces on a program aimed at reducing domestic, family and sexual violence in the Central West.
The two-year partnership will see the Panthers Foundation deliver its Building Young Men and Empowering Young Women mentoring programs to teenagers throughout the region.
Building Young Men involves experienced role models delivering activities that build participants’ empathy, accountability and courage.
Empowering Young Women involves experienced role models from a variety of backgrounds and cultures delivering activities that challenge teenage participants’ assumptions and broaden their perspectives with the aim of empowering them to share their experiences, challenges and successes.
One of the key objectives of both programs is to create a better understanding of gender equality and how to approach and maintain healthy relationships between genders so teenage participants can be role models for their peers and positively impact their communities.
The Panthers Foundation launched the program in the Central West yesterday when they visited Denison College of Secondary Education, Bathurst High Campus and delivered the Programs to Central West students.
The project is an outcome of NSW’s first standalone $38 million strategy for the Prevention of Domestic, Family and Sexual Violence 2024-2028 which aims to address the drivers of domestic, family and sexual violence by working with communities, schools, workplaces, sporting clubs and organisations.
Minister for Sport Steve Kamper said:
“Rates of sexual and domestic violence against women and children in NSW remain unacceptably high.
“Sport is part of the fabric of communities across NSW and sporting organisations like the Panthers can play a key role in influencing behaviour and changing perceptions towards domestic, family and sexual violence.
“The NSW Government is proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with the Panthers and is steadfastly committed to addressing this terrible blight on our society.”
Minister for the Prevention of Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Jodie Harrison said:
“The NSW Government is partnering with local communities to bring down the rates of domestic and family violence, and importantly, stop the violence before it starts.
“Sport has a huge influence in the lives of young men and women – whether they play or follow a team.
“Local sporting clubs are our link into the community and that’s why this partnership with the Panthers in the Central West is crucial to help drive messages of respect, healthy relationships and gender equality.”
Duty MLC for the Bathurst Stephen Lawrence said:
"The Panthers are much loved across the Central West, and their influence here is critical in the fight against domestic, family, and sexual violence."
“We’re excited to be partnering with them to influence the drivers of domestic, family and sexual violence in the region.”
Panthers Foundation Head of Foundation and Community Alex Reilly said:
“The support from the Government is greatly appreciated and will allow us to take our tried and tested programs from Penrith to Bathurst, addressing vital social needs in this area.
“We are delighted to be working with the pupils at Bathurst High and look forward to seeing the very real growth they will experience over the course of the mentoring program.
“Our objective as both a Club and a Foundation is to be a source of community pride and that very much extends to ensuring our young people are also role modelling behaviours that makes their community proud of them.
“Being able to partner with the government address a very real problem in a proactive and preventative way aligns strongly with our values and we once again thank the Government and the minister for their support.”
Media contact: Steve Norris 0417 291 346
