Students are calling for public funding for mental health services in VUWSA’s latest campaign, The Wait is Over.
Student mental health services are in high demand, with Student Counselling wait times regularly exceeding a month.
“Our campaign is about coming together as students and young people to reclaim our mental health,” said VUWSA President Marlon Drake.
VUWSA is calling students to assemble for a public statement midday Wednesday 22 August on Bunny Street at Pipitea Campus. The congregation will then cross the road to Parliament.
“We are going for two reasons. First, tertiary mental health services need public funding. Second, we are showing that as a community we are ready to end the stigma on poor mental health,” said Marlon.
The rally will be the first of a series of events, which Marlon hopes will increase awareness of the degree of difficulty students are facing.
“Once we have rallied we will reach out to MPs and bring them onto our campus to hear from our students, face to face.”
VUWSA’s “The Wait is Over” banner was filled with messages of hope and support within a week. They are now working to fill a second banner, which they will present at “The Wait is Over” rally.
Further information about the march, which takes place this Wednesday, can be found on the Facebook event “The Wait is Over – A Rally for Our Mental Health”.