Twenty-one student leaders from Booral, Tea Gardens and Bulahdelah Schools developed their Leadership skills last week when they attended the National Young Leaders Conference in Sydney.

The students heard a number of prominent speakers including NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione, Paralympian Ben Austin OAM and Youth Speaker Nathan ‘Dubsy’ Want.

Tea Gardens School Prime Minister Sophia Jeffries, said the most memorable part of the day was the talk by Ben Austin.

“I loved the Paralympian Ben,” she said.

“He worked so hard, did lots of training and it paid off.”

Booral School Leader Madison Hart also enjoyed Ben Austin’s presentation.

“His speech taught me that if I believe I can do it and try my hardest all the time, I can achieve a lot,” Madison said.

For Bulahdelah Central School Captain Olivia Smith, the session about Kids Care Program was inspiring.

“I particularly liked Kids Care because it was created by a nine-year-old boy,” Olivia said.

“He raised money to help people in Indonesian Villages get clean water, something we take for granted.”

Accompanied by teachers Mr Anthony Pearson from Booral Public School, Ms Karina Kerr from Tea Gardens Public School and Mrs Carol Wills from Bulahdelah Central School, the group joined over 6000 other young leaders from primary schools across New South Wales.

Mrs Wills said the theme of the conference was “Master the Little.”

“The key message of the day was that achievements add up over time,” Mrs Wills said.

“By concentrating on the little things and remaining determined, the students can achieve their goals taking one step at a time.”

Now in its nineteenth year, the Young Leaders Program aims to develop strong leadership values amongst young Australians.

“Hopefully the students will bring back the determination to remain focused on their own personal goals,” Mrs Wills said.

“Anyone can make decisions, but leaders follow through by taking action. This action creates change.”