The British Youth Council held it’s annual Youth Voice Leadership Development Programme at the Kingswood Centre in Doncaster last weekend. The three-day flagship residential, which took place from Friday 8th to Sunday 10th April 2016, saw over 200 youth representatives come together for a weekend of training aimed at supporting them in their leadership roles, in their communities
The weekend residential allowed youth representatives to share best practice; meet other young people in similar elected posts; and equipped them with the skills to work on behalf of young people locally and nationally.
Existing youth representatives were challenged to build upon on their current knowledge and experience, whilst newly elected representatives were inducted into their roles. All activities, discussions and simulations culminated in a rally to support the UK Youth Parliament’s national campaign #DontHateEducate. This campaign aims to tackle racism and religious discrimination in the UK.
The residential marks the beginning of a year-long term of office for many youth representatives. Success stories from last year’s residential include raising awareness of the levels of homelessness in Leicestershire; lobbying for free youth transport links in East Belfast; and campaigning to lower the voting age to 16 year olds in Slough.
