Ms SPENDER (Wentworth) (09:30): I often say that this job brings me joy, and a big part of that joy is getting to see up close just how much volunteers do for our community. Last week was volunteer appreciation week, and I want to take a moment to recognise the incredible breadth of volunteer effort that makes Wentworth the community that it is. Volunteers keep our beaches safe, running patrols and teaching our kids in Nippers. They keep our sporting clubs going, not just on the fields but all through the admin, the organising, the early mornings and the fundraising that nobody sees. They run community centres and neighbourhood services, preparing meals and supporting people doing it tough. They tend community gardens, growing food and building connections, and they support our most vulnerable residents, through housing services, mental health programs and aged care. What moves me is the sheer diversity of communities being served. Volunteers in Wentworth show up for people of every background, every faith, every age and every walk of life, making sure that no-one is left behind.

I'm also really proud that my own team, including our volunteers, are part of this spirit. Members of my team have been lending a hand to support the Woolloomooloo community for some time now, and earlier this month I had the joy of joining the many volunteers from my community and the people who've supported me, alongside Alex Greenwich and so many other wonderful locals, at the fourth annual Woolloomooloo Parade. Watching Forbes Street come alive with costumes, music, handmade floats and the legendary showdown between Bruce the Giant Brush Turkey and the Rubbish Monster was just a delight. It was a beautiful reminder of what community looks like when people show up for each other. To every volunteer across Wentworth: thank you. You are the heart of this community, and it is a privilege to represent you.

Volunteering in Wentworth is not only about practical support. Sometimes it's about something harder—building understanding across difference. Last Wednesday, we held the final session of the Wentworth student-led social cohesion initiative at Ascham, and I want to thank Ascham for hosting us so generously. Seventeen schools have been part of this journey: Ascham, Centennial Park, Cranbrook, Kambala, Kesser Torah, Kincoppal - Rose Bay, Moriah, Reddam, Rose Bay Secondary, St Catherine's, St Clare's, SCEGGS, Scots, Sydney Grammar, the Emanuel School, Waverley College and WAYS Secondary.

Here's what I find so remarkable about this initiative. Students came to us and told us about the challenges they were facing and what they thought could help. Principals listened and committed to a year 8 social cohesion program across our schools, and then students—some returning and some new—came back to help shape the program and trained as peer facilitators to help deliver it. Young people identified the problem and shaped the solution, and they are now leading the way forward. While they were doing that, the educators who accompanied them were doing their own work, with the Brave Conversations Project.

The students said it best. One told us that being vulnerable is key to understanding each other and building connections, and another said it broke down the public and private school stigma. One student simply said: 'We're just trying to find our place in the world.'