Happy Relationships Day encourages students to deal with relationship issues and build knowledge about healthy relationships with their friends, families, partners and peers.

The BSSC Language Centre was abuzz with activities and stalls.

Bendigo Community Health, headspace, Youth Empowerment against HIV AIDS and the Centre Against Sexual Assault (CASA)  all ran information stalls and activities. 

BSSC staff member Sue Tarrant said it was important to teach students about healthy relationships.

“Domestic violence is just rife in Australia and (the country) also has a high rate of STI and teen pregnancies, so the idea for today is to teach students about safe relationships,” she said.

“We have got lots of service providers here giving their time, fun activities and free food. It’s a winning combination to get the message across.

“I’ve been here six years and we have done this every year. We have 1700 students and at least 500 will visit at some point. It’s always very well attended.”

Activities on the day included sex education in the form of demonstrating the strength of condoms by filling them with oranges and showing the effect of being drunk with the use of beer goggles.

“Bendigo Community Health and the Centre Against Sexual Assault are talking to students and handing out showbags,” Ms Tarrant said.

“Youth mentors and Youth Empowerment Against HIV Aids are here, as is Bendigo Police’s Emma Gibbons doing quizzes on healthy relationships and sexual health.

“Students from the SRC are supervising activities that make sure students know how put a condom on. To make it fun they are using beer goggles to simulate the dark and being drunk.

“There are also more passive things like matching STI symptoms with their conditions.”

BSSC’s wellbeing staff also distributed healthy food from Foodshare.

The team provides individual support and assistance to students to develop their physical, social, emotional and spiritual health through college programs and events.