Albury MP Justin Clancy urges schools to join Butterfly Body Bright program

Schools have until August 15 to register for three years of free access to the Butterfly Foundation's Body Bright program to foster student wellbeing and body positivity.

The whole-of-school program, backed by the Federal Government, is designed to help children develop a positive body image and healthy attitudes and behaviours towards the body, eating and physical activity from a young age.

The call-out comes on the back of research, which shows 50 per cent of 8 to 11 year-old girls report wanting to be thinner and 90 per cent of children between 12 and 18 years report concern about their body image.

Albury MP Justin Clancy has met with local educators to encourage participation in what he describes as a "vital" early intervention and education program.

Mr Clancy said he had reached out to the Butterfly Foundation as part of ongoing efforts to address the rise in the number of eating disorders and lack of specialist services in the community.

The organisation has also joined the MP in advocating for a regional co-ordinator to be appointed to help streamline access to services for individuals and families grappling with an eating disorder.

But Mr Clancy said it was also imperative to look at "community channels" to find solutions to the crisis, including in the area of early intervention.

"Really we need to try and head this off at the pass," he said.

"And as with any health condition or social condition, the more we can do in the prevention space the better.

"I would love to see local schools get involved in the Butterfly Foundation program; the organisation is happy to work with schools virtually or spend time here in the community."

In April 2023, a pack was mailed to every primary school in Australia outlining the Butterfly Body Bright program and including a sample lesson plan to allow teachers to gain valuable insights into its benefits.

The foundation reports that 54 per cent of students note an immediate improvement in body image after just one lesson of the program, which aims to empower students to:

The acronym - which highlights that every student deserves to feel "bright in their body" - has been developed as part of an evidence-based program to address the devastating impacts of body dissatisfaction.

It's particularly pertinent given the Butterfly Foundation's Body Kind Youth Survey (of 1635 children across Australia), which revealed body dissatisfaction stops nearly 50 per cent of children taking part in physical activity/sport and even raising their hand in class.

Almost 50 per cent of young people say that social media makes them feel bad about themselves and 73 per cent report that they experienced appearance-related teasing at school.

"These findings are particularly concerning given research shows that appearance and weight-based teasing is a contributor to the development of disordered eating," the foundation stated.

"Body dissatisfaction is also associated with depression, anxiety, poor quality of life outcomes and academic achievement."

It's why Mr Clancy believes an uptake of the program by local schools is a critical part of putting together the pieces of this complex puzzle.