General community
See how we may be able to help you with our programs and initiatives below.
Our Health Promotion team is passionate about improving the health and wellbeing of everyone in the community.
Our Health Promotion work is constantly evolving and responding to local needs. We currently manage projects, or collaborate with others, on the following initiatives:
- Cooking for Change program with Bendigo Foodshare. In the 2025-2026 we have partnered with Bendigo Foodshare to fund 36 sessions within our local schools.
- McKern Foundation’s Fresh Fruit Program – In partnership with the McKern Foundation, we fund 3 local primary schools to receive deliveries of fresh fruit on a Friday, encouraging students to try new fruits and increase fruit consumption.
- Supporting the City of Greater Bendigo on their Greater Bendigo Healthy Sports Rewards project – Healthy Sports Rewards aims to offer an alternative to the less healthy food and drink vouchers often presented to junior sporting club participants. The vouchers are a great way to recognise junior players and offer free entry to pools and leisure facilities.
- Community garden projects – In partnership with the BCHS Elmore Social Support group, the Health Promotion team has supported the establishment and ongoing maintenance of a community garden in Elmore (pictured right). Community gardens help increase healthy eating and active living while improving feelings of wellbeing for those engaging with the garden.
Other programs, initiatives and booklets can be found below.
Stalls and community events
BCHS attends a range of community events within Greater Bendigo, where we provide information and resources to our target audiences.
This may include general information about our services or specific resources, such as mental wellbeing promotion and counselling service brochures.
Contact us at if you would like BCHS to attend an upcoming event or submit a request by filling in the form below.
Free condoms and sanitary products
All BCHS sites offer free condom and sanitary packs. Simply call into reception and pick up what you need.
Fresh fruit stands
We understand that cost of living pressures are impacting our community.
We also understand that this is a barrier to eating healthy, which we heard in our community needs survey in 2024/25.
In response we were successful in obtaining a grant for 2026 to offer approximately 20 free fresh fruit stands located at BCHS sites, community houses and libraries, which will be restocked weekly from March 2026 until late 2026.
So come in and grab yourself a piece of fresh fruit and try something you might not have before!
Stands can be found at the following locations
- All BCHS sites (excluding Wanyanimbik Wayawan who has its own food pantry)
- headspace Bendigo
- Haven Home Safe
- Bendigo, Eaglehawk, Heathcote and Kangaroo Flat libraries
- Eaglehawk Community House
- Heathcote Community House
- Long Gully Neighbourhood Centre
- Bendigo Neighbourhood Hub
Reducing smoking and vaping
BCHS support the City of Greater Bendigo’s Smoking and Vaping Strategy to prevent smoking and vaping in the community. We are working internally to have client facing staff become trained in relevant Quit modules to increase smoking brief advice and referral.
BCHS have partnered with the CoGB to develop a set of video resource for parents, carers, and teachers. This resource will be available on our websites and will complement our Prevention of Vaping education for grades 5 and 6, being distributed to parents and carers at the same time as the training is delivered to their children.
Additionally, BCHS have also distributed signage for businesses to display a ‘No Smoking or Vaping’ message, auditing the participation rates.
Finally, BCHS are also commencing work with Bendigo Health and Healthcote Health to develop a localised approach to reducing / quitting smoking and vaping.
Watch this space!
5 Ways to Wellbeing
Focused on improving mental health and wellbeing, this campaign consists of five simple and effective actions individuals can practice every day. We have provided resources on this message below for our community to access at any time.
Please visit our Resource Library.
Weekly Walking Groups
Our Health Promotion team coordinates two free weekly community walking groups. Members of the group come along to improve health and fitness, expand social connections or explore local spaces. The official walk goes for one hour, at your own pace. If you are over the age of 18 come join us! No referral necessary. Contact to register. Locations and times below:
- White Hills Wanderers meet at 9.30 am each Monday at the entrance of Garden for the Future in Bosquet Street, White Hills.
- Eaglehawk Explorers meet at 9.30 am each Wednesday at the gym equipment beside Lake Neangar in Simpsons Road, Eaglehawk.
Our booklets
Let's Get Moving
We are excited to announce that we are launching a resource to help find places to move and people to move with easier.
Our team have scoped all of the free-and fee-based activities across the Greater Bendigo region and placed them into one booklet.
Keep an eye out for Let’s Get Moving, available online and in print this March.
To read Let’s Get Moving click the image to the left.
Let's Talk Lunchboxes
Our Health Promotion team have worked with local kindergartens and BCHS’ School Readiness Team to develop this guide to help grown ups work towards more nutritious lunchboxes.
The guide is written for parents, in consultation with parents in hopes to help with the transition to kinder and giving children the best start.
Inside, we’ve included lunchbox packing tips, information on serving sizes, lunchbox idea inspiration and places to find more information.
If it’s your first time or you’re a lunchbox expert, we hope this guide can help inspire and reduce some of the burdens with providing a balanced lunchbox.
Take the First Step
We have a range of education resources available for use to set goals to move your body and try new foods.
Click the link below to download.
Movement
- Plan My First Steps (would need new logo)
- TTFS DL flyer (would need new logo)
- Get Moving in Greater Bendigo: A guide for older adults to be more active
- More to Explore app
- HLC Adventure Bingo
- HLC Geocaching
- HLC Heathcote WonderWalk
- HLC Active Heathcote Booklet
- Live Lighter Healthy Eating and Active Living resources
- Put the Fun into Fundraising: a guide for healthy fundraising for schools and childcare services
- Park and Walk Map for City Centre Trips
- Physical Activity and Mental Wellness Easy Read resource
Food
- SWAP IT Lunchbox resources
- No Pressure Lunchboxes
- Lunchboxes: What to pack
- What to put in a lunchbox
- Lunchtimes packed with purpose: A teacher’s guide to supporting positive food experiences at schools
- Support Our Own. Choose Locally Grown.
- School Breakfast Resource Kit
- Multicultural and Translated Lunchbox Resources
- Phenomenom
- Food from Home: Edible Garden Resources
- No Money, No Time
Community need
The foundation of health promotion is enabling people to increase control over and improve their health (World Health Organization, 1986). By gaining insight into people’s health needs, as health professionals, we can collaborate and build people’s capacity to make healthier choices.
The purpose of our community needs projects is to gain an in-depth understanding of Greater Bendigo perspectives on how the BCHS Health Promotion team can support them in increasing healthy food consumption, exercise and reducing tobacco and e-cigarette harm. The information collected informs our health promotion work and programs in the future.
Examples of consulting with community since 2024 include:
- BCHS Community Health Survey
- Tailored BCHS Community Health Survey at the BDAC Women’s Day celebration
- Active Schools Survey (Greater Bendigo schools needs survey across a list of health priority areas in alignment with the Victorian Public Health and Wellbeing Plan).
Here is what we heard from the 2024 BCHS Community Health Survey and what we have done to date:
Flyer coming soon