Lisa Darmanin (Victoria, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In October, with Simone Reeves, Director of Mansfield Autism Statewide Services, and the talented staff and families of children with autism, I celebrated the opening of the Mansfield Autism's Operation Gamechanger retreat in my home state of Victoria. This $12.75 million project, for which the Albanese government provided $3.8 million in funding, is more than an expansion of the great work that Mansfield Autism are already doing. It will be a life changer for families navigating both the challenges and the impacts of autism.

The retreat offers incredible respite services, family camps, farm stays and individual programs to build life skills and independence. The newly opened retreat is a place where families can recharge, reconnect and access the support they need for their children to thrive, and what I learnt from my visit was that the support of families, including siblings, is vital. By building capacity and confidence in both children and their families, this project delivers best-practice services that will create lasting impacts. For families like Penny's, whom I had the privilege of meeting, who moved to Mansfield to be closer to the support they need, this truly is a game changer.

None of this would've been possible without the passion and dedication of those who envisaged and brought this project to life. To everyone involved, congratulations and thank you for your unwavering commitment to this project. To Dani, another one of the parents, thank you for sharing your beautiful poem about your 11-year-old boy. May Operation Gamechanger be something that enables many more families to be illuminated and lit up by their family members with autism. Congratulations. You should be so proud of your achievement, and I am pleased to have participated in just a very small part of that.