How many Children & Young People (0–24) are there in Australia?

~8.0 million (30% of the population).

Which life events most affect Children & Young People (0–24)?

Starting school, Leaving school.

What ideas would help Children & Young People (0–24)?

YourGov tracks 13 reform ideas tagged to this cohort, drawn from citizen voice, government strategy, research, international examples and gap analysis.

Children & Young People (0–24) — Cohort journey

Q: Which organisations advocate for Children & Young People (0–24)?

Key advocacy bodies include ARACY, Youth Affairs Council of Australia, Mission Australia, headspace, UNICEF Australia.

KEY ADVOCACY ORGANISATIONS

ARACY

Youth Affairs Council of Australia

Mission Australia

headspace

UNICEF Australia

Where the pressure shows up

Sentiment 0-100 (lower = more pressure). Click an area to see how every cohort fares there.

Home & Housing

22

Youth homelessness · rental discrimination by age

Money & Cost of Living

32

Youth Allowance below the poverty line · first-job underpayment

Health & Care

28

65% of 18-25 in distress · headspace waitlist

Family & Relationships

38

OOHC churn · family-violence exposure

Work & Income

38

Junior wage rates · sham contracting

Transport & Mobility

40

120 logbook hours · cost of driving lessons

Learning & Education

45

ATAR pressure · school refusal

Community & Belonging

35

Youth loneliness up 8 pts · sport-cost barriers

Safety & Justice

18

10yo age of criminal responsibility · cyber-abuse

Digital Government & Identity

32

Social-media age verification · algorithmic harm

Day in the life

From newborns through young adults — about 8 million Australians, 30% of the population. Pre-voters, school-leavers, early-career — most policy is made about them, less of it with them.

Framing

Three crises define this cohort right now: a youth mental-health emergency (65% of 18–25 in psychological distress), a school-system stretched by teacher shortage and rising school-refusal, and a youth-justice system that still allows criminal responsibility at age 10 in most jurisdictions. Loneliness has grown 8 points in two decades. The system mostly only activates at crisis point.

Day in the life — three sub-cohorts

Primary-school-age child (5–12)

Morning. Breakfast. Lunchbox. School run. Possibly OSHC. Day. Class, recess, lunch, sport. Reading and number progression. Afternoon. OSHC or pickup. Sport / extracurricular. Evening. Homework. Devices (regulated or not). Family time.

Teen (13–17)

Morning. Late wake. Often skipped breakfast. School. Day. Class. Phone. Peers. Possibly part-time job after school. Evening. Homework / scroll / sport / friends. Night. Late screens. Mental-health peak window 8pm–midnight for some.

Young adult (18–24)

Morning. Uni / TAFE / job. Possibly multiple jobs. Day. Study + work. Possibly first lease + housemates. Evening. Social. Caring for friends through MH crises increasingly common.

Top activities by life area

Area	What they do
Home	At home longer; share-housing; first rentals
Money	Pocket money; first jobs; HECS
Health	School health; vaccinations; MH first-contact
Family	School routines; activities; transition to independence
Work	School-based apprenticeship; first job; gig
Transport	School bus; learner driving; PT to uni
Learning	ECEC; school; ATAR; TAFE/uni; apprenticeship
Community	Sport; clubs; gaming; volunteering
Safety	Online safety; bullying; juvenile-justice contact; FV at home
Digital	Social media; gaming; first myGov account

Pain points

Youth mental-health crisis and headspace waitlist.
Age of criminal responsibility at 10 (mostly First Nations kids affected).
Teacher shortage cascading to school refusal and outcome plateau.
Youth Allowance below the poverty line.
Apprenticeship completion under 50%.
Online-safety SLAs and algorithmic harm to under-18s.

Key life events

Starting school
Leaving school — the master transition for this cohort
Major health issue — youth mental health
Moving to Australia — for migrant kids

Sources

Mission Australia Youth Survey
headspace National Youth Mental Health Survey
AIHW Australia's Children and Australia's Youth
Children's Commissioners (state)
ARACY; UNICEF Australia

What they need from government

Same-week access SLA for headspace.
Embedded mental-health professional in every secondary school.
Raise the age of criminal responsibility to 14 nationally.
Lift Youth Allowance toward MTAWE.
Subsidise learner-driver lessons + instructor pool in regional and disadvantaged areas.
Pass a binding Children's Code for any service Australian kids use.

What people are saying

"I've been waiting 8 months to see a psychologist. I can't afford private. My GP said just try to cope."

— 19-year-old, regional Queensland (Citizen Voice 2025, Mental Health)

"My son came home from uni and barely left his room for three months. No friends, no work, no help."

— Parent, suburban Sydney (Citizen Voice 2025, Mental Health)

"I moved to a new city for work and didn't know anyone. Two years later I still don't."

— Young professional, Melbourne (Citizen Voice 2025, Mental Health)

"This silent crisis is often marked by profound loneliness and disconnection."

— Mental health sector leader (Citizen Voice 2025, Mental Health)

Departments serving this cohort

Department of Education

Commonwealth

Schools; ECEC; tertiary

eSafety Commissioner

Commonwealth

Online safety for under-18s

Department of Health, Disability and Ageing

Commonwealth

Youth mental health; headspace

eSafety Youth Council

Commonwealth

Youth voice in eSafety

Department of Employment and Workplace Relations

Commonwealth

Apprenticeships; Youth Allowance / Workforce Australia

Ideas built for this cohort

$100M+

home

Youth foyers expansion

5,000 youth-foyer beds (housing + study + work supports) across capital cities.

$100M+

money

Youth Allowance to MTAWE

Lift Youth Allowance toward minimum wage, indexed to MTAWE.

<$5M

money

First-job pay accuracy tool

Auto pay-check tool for under-25s comparing payslip to award + super check.

$100M+

health

headspace 2.0

Same-week access SLA + extended hours model + outreach to under-served LGAs.

$100M+

health

School-based mental-health professional

Embedded MH professional in every secondary school with referral budget.

$25-100M

family

Care-leaver guarantee to 25

Guaranteed support to age 25 (housing, mental health, study) for all out-of-home-care leavers.

$25-100M

work

Apprentice completion incentive

Completion-bonus payment to apprentices and to employers retaining apprentices to qualification.

$5-25M

transport

Learner-driver subsidy

Subsidised learner-driver lessons + instructor pool in regional and disadvantaged areas.

See all 13 ideas tagged to this cohort →