Friday was a great day for the local LGBTIQ community in Castlemaine and surrounds with news of a $76,140 state government grant delivered through the LGBTI community grants program.
Castlemaine District Community Health was the successful applicant – in partnership with Castlemaine Community House, the Central Victorian Primary Care Partnership, and the local LGBTIQ community.
Bendigo West MP Maree Edwards was in town to announce the $76,140 grant as a significant step toward improving the lives of local lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans and gender diverse and intersex locals.
Castlemaine District Community Health interim CEO Di Couch was among those celebrating the $76,140 announcement.
“It’s a great opportunity to engage with the local community, to build on some initial work that we’ve done talking to the LGBTIQ-plus community about needs,” Ms Couch said
“It really enables us to carve out the time to come together and to put a whole range of processes in place.
“We just really can’t do that within existing roles so this really gives us that capacity to have a person on the ground who can support our community leaders and bring them together.
“I think that, between the partners we’ll look as to whether we put in a paid position or we work with some consultants who are experienced in this particular area, so it’s really something that we will decide together with the community.”
Ms Edwards said Castlemaine had a very strong LGBIQ-plus community.
“These community grants are part of a $700,000 program of grants that the Andrews labor government has been rolling out and this is about supporting our LGBTIQ-plus communities across regional Victoria,” Ms Edwards said.
“This will be funding that will assist with a strategic plan in partnership to make sure that our LGBTIQ-plus community is looked after, whether it be through their mental health needs, their health needs more broadly, whether it be through education.”
