Year 10 students from St Joseph’s College at Lochinvar have spent the day inside NSW Parliament House, meeting Maitland MP Jenny Aitchison and taking part in a hands‑on Legal Studies program. The visit took place yesterday and forms part of Parliament’s expanding education outreach to regional communities.
The students observed Budget Estimates and visited both the Legislative Assembly and Legislative Council chambers before taking part in the Legal Studies and the Legislature program, designed to support Stage 6 syllabus content. Parliament’s Regional Travel Subsidy helped fund the visit, with the subsidy recently increased to $500 to make access easier for schools outside Sydney.
During the visit, Ms Aitchison spoke openly about being bullied as a teenager and how missing out on studying law redirected her into politics. She encouraged students to stay resilient ahead of their future exams and spoke about current work underway in the Maitland area, including road upgrades and improvements to the driving test system.
Year 10 student Olly said it was meaningful to meet a local MP face‑to‑face.
“It was a good experience to meet an actual member from the electorate,” he said.
“It was cool to see where she came from, how she grew up, and how she wants to improve our community.”
Parliament says participation in its education programs continues to grow. Last year, 126 schools and almost 3,000 students took part, and Term 1 this year has already recorded a 41 per cent increase in participating schools. All programs are free and open to every school across NSW.
