A state funeral has been held for Twentyman at St Patrick’s Cathedral this morning after his death in late March at age 76.

The service was open to the public and streamed online.

Speaking at the funeral, Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan said Twentyman was “darkly funny, fiercely honest” and well known for his big heart.

“(Since Les’ passing) we have witnessed an outpouring of grief and gratitude,” she said.

“Stories from the many people whose lives were changed through Les’ work, saved by Les’ work.”

Allan spoke about how every youth minister would meet Twentyman upon taking up the role, something she did in 2002.

“Les put me through my paces. And I know from many of the faces here today, I was not the only one,” she said. 

“You (Les) simply refused to give up on this case, or allow them to give up on themselves.

“You lived a good life and on behalf of a grateful state, thank you Les, for your words and your work.”

Federal Minister for the NDIS, Bill Shorten, who was a friend of Twentyman, said he was the same in public and in private.

“I learned that with Les, there was never a performance. It wasn’t just an act,” Shorten said.

“He was straight, no artifice, nothing put on.

“No distance between his beliefs and his passion and his determination to make this city more fair.”

Shorten also paid tribute to Twentyman’s work that “reminds us of a part of Australian life which perhaps seems a memory”.

“Les represented the Australian tradition, the old-school tradition, of showing kindness in another’s troubles and courage in his own,” he said.

“Les opened the eyes of so many to disadvantage, so we couldn’t pretend it didn’t exist.”

Garry Twentyman said his brother would have been taken aback by the honour of a state funeral service.

“I’m quite sure that Les is looking down here now thinking ‘Geez, I’d have loved to have been up on that microphone in front of all those people’,” he said.

“I never got a crowd that big before’.”

Twentyman was best known for his advocacy for disadvantaged and vulnerable Victorians, tackling issues such as youth homelessness, drug abuse, prison reform and social welfare.

A foundation bearing his name works to engage young people with their education, families and communities.

Working across Greater Melbourne, the foundation’s dedicated team supports hundreds of children aged between five and 25, who face multiple stresses, including poverty, mental health, unemployment, racism, addiction, domestic violence and crime.

Its work focuses on building hope and ensuring they do not end up homeless, living on the streets or engaged with the youth justice system.

Twentyman has been widely mourned, with tributes remembering him as one of “Melbourne’s big characters” and a devoted servant to Victorian people in need.

A statement from the Les Twentyman Foundation on Saturday announced his death, noting: “Les inspired us all with his lifelong dedication to helping those in need and his profound contribution to our community has positively changed the lives of thousands of young Victorians and their families.

“Our thoughts, love and prayers are with Les’s wife Cherie and his family at this most difficult time.”

Foundation chief executive Paul Burke said the outpouring of tributes in recent days had been heart-warming.

“As we farewell Les we need to remember that he was not someone to stand on ceremony,” he said.

“Les was a rebel, who loved a laugh, loved a red and loved the west.

“He was larger than life and would want us to come together in celebration of a life well lived, to share in his stories and to acknowledge the incredible legacy he leaves – a legacy of helping those in need that will continue through the foundation he created.”

Twentyman received an Order of Australia medal in 1994 for his service to youth as an outreach worker.

“In life Les was never afraid to say what was needed to be said, he gave a voice to the voiceless and leaves a legacy of helping the disadvantaged and those in need that will live long past his extraordinary life,” the foundation said.

Born the eldest of five children to fruit shop owners in 1948, Twentyman was raised in Melbourne’s western suburb of Braybrook.

He was a candidate for Victorian parliament’s upper house in 1992 and 1996, and in the lower house at the Kororoit by-election in 2008.

“There are no bad kids, they are the victims of the environment in which they find themselves, and the earlier we can get in and provide the support they need, the more positive the outcomes for everybody,” Twentyman, far right, told Taylors Lakes Secondary College students during a talk last year on the devastating consequences of knife crime. PHOTO: Les Twentyman Foundation

Last week, Deputy Premier Ben Carroll recalled how – when he held the youth justice, crime prevention and education portfolios – Twentyman reminded him “to see the child first and focus on the causes of crime”.

State opposition leader John Pesutto said Victoria was a better place for Twentyman’s lifelong work and passion.

“A fierce advocate on social justice issues, thousands of young and at-risk Victorians had their lives changed for the better due to the tireless efforts of Les and the foundation he established,” Pesutto said.

Federal Assistant Minister to the Prime Minister Patrick Gorman said it was a time to reflect on Twentyman’s mission to lend a helping hand, reach out to people who needed support and find ways of showing compassion through action.

“We can all take that message away as we reflect on his life and his contribution, and maybe take a little bit more of Les Twentyman’s contribution into our own lives and our own actions,” Gorman told reporters in Perth on Saturday.

The Western Bulldogs AFL club remembered Twentyman, who served on its committee, as a dedicated teacher and youth worker whose love for football and the club was “fierce and enduring”.

“The 2016 men’s premiership meant an enormous amount to Les and in the days afterwards he wrote movingly about what a profound impact the win would have on the western suburbs and its people,” the Bulldogs said in a statement.