WORCESTERSHIRE Youth Cabinet is looking for more young people to join its ranks.
The cabinet – a group of 11 to 18-year-olds all living in the county – provides a voice at local, regional and national government level and helps make decisions for young people and in their best interests.
The cabinet focuses on the top issues from the ‘Make Your Mark’ survey which young people can fill out to express the issues they care about and want to address.
The Youth Council focuses on the results of the survey from Worcestershire young people and turns them into its campaigns for the upcoming year.
In the past year, the Youth Cabinet has informed visitors from Public Health Commissioning youth services about the development of Youth Groups and provision for young people in Worcester.
It has also fed into a county-wide ‘Future of Play’ survey to increase awareness of Worcestershire’s popular youth zones. The zones are aimed at improving services for play or socialising.
At the group’s last meeting, members hosted a discussion about youth services in Worcester.
Youth Cabinet menber Anusha Salhan attended the annual council meeting of the British Youth Council on behalf of Worcestershire for a day of debating policy and learning about how the British Youth Council worked.
She said: “Having always had a keen interest in representing the voices of my friends in school, I am hoping to make a wider difference.
“I felt compelled to join the cabinet to make a tangible change for young people in my area.”
She added she had met with many councillors and provided information to numerous surveys, enabling informed decisions to be made on young people’s issues.
The Youth Cabinet is entering a transitory phase where it plans to increase the national involvement of young people in Worcestershire.
On March 15, it discussed the local council’s budget for services towards young people with Coun Andy Roberts and Worcestershire Children’s First chief executive Tina Russell, who explained how the budget was allocated.
Stephen Eccleston spoke to the cabinet about the history and importance of the Worcestershire Safeguarding Children Partnership and the importance of these services, asking for young people’s input on the process and how they felt it could be changed.
Over the past few months, the Youth Cabinet has hosted various councillors and, with the help of the dedicated Celena Rossano and Ali Brill, is currently launching its manifesto for next year.
The group hopes to increase its involvement on a national scale and to continue to improve youth services so they are tailored to young people’s needs.
Anusha added: “Being part of the Youth Cabinet has been an incredibly rewarding opportunity.
“I’d encourage you (or your child, if parents are reading this) to get involved with the work of the Youth Cabinet.
“We have so many amazing opportunities coming up soon and it’s a perfect way to get your voice heard.”
The Youth Cabinet wants more young people to engage with its work or join the group.
Visit instagram.com/youthvoiceworcs or email the team at [email protected] for more information.
