NHS Youth Forum Members

Each year we recruit 25 young people to take part in the NHS Youth Forum. They have all have experience of using their voice to shape and improve healthcare in their communities.

Adele

South West

I'm Adele, a GCSE student from Hong Kong. I'm now based in Cheltenham, where I represent and work to ratify young people's demands as an activist and campaigner. I believe that a navigable medical system shouldn’t be exclusive to those who can afford it: at the end of my time in the NHS Youth Forum, I hope to have learned more about transparency and accessibility in healthcare.

Amelia

Yorkshire and Humber

I’m currently 14, still in school. I’m passionate about youth voice and politics. My interest in the NHS and giving young people a voice stems from the fact that as young people we are often overlooked.

Beth

West Midlands

Hi, my name is Beth (she/her) and I am currently studying to become a children's nurse. Through volunteer work within the community, such as at Birmingham Children's Hospital Young Person's Advisory Group, I have become very passionate about making services more accessible and empowering patient voice. Within NHS Youth Forum I would love to help remove assumptions within healthcare and improve equity within services.

Elliot

East of England

Elliot is a mental health enthusiast, activist and aspiring practitioner. He has gathered a vast amount of experience in mental health participation, influencing services, research and policy. Elliot is passionate about connecting NHS services to their communities and empowering them to provide holistic support.

Erin

North West

Hi, I'm Erin McGurk and I'm an A Level student currently studying Maths, Further Maths, Physics, and Computing. Having frequently used NHS mental health services in the past, I am passionate about elevating the voices of young people to create meaningful change within the organisation as a whole. In this time of political, social, and economic change, I feel that it is more important than ever to positively grow the NHS so that it can support every single person within this country.

Esther

East Midlands

Hello! My name’s Esther and I’m currently a second-year Medical Microbiologist. I joined the NHS Youth Forum as I’d like to help improve the services’ accessibility and its outreach to other young people.

Grace

South West

Hi! My name is Grace, I'm 17 and in sixth form. Since spending a few years in and out of the hospital I have become passionate about representing patient voices at a time when people undergoing treatment/in the hospital system are often feeling powerless and most vulnerable. From personal experience i know that there is often a loss of autonomy so people feel they don't have the right or strength to speak up. I want to help make people further aware that they do have the right and also the support to do this.

Jack

South West

Hiya, my name is Jack! I’m a Teaching Assistant from Cornwall, and I am passionate about improving the lives of young people up and down the country. As a Youth Forum member, I will strive to learn more about how the NHS looks after young people with long-term conditions. As someone living with a long-term condition myself, I especially want to look at the disparities in the health care provided withinin different regions, and see what the NHS can do to minimise these.

Jayden

West Midlands

I am currently studying Politics, History and Psychology at A-level and wish to go on to study Sociology and Social Policy at university. I joined the NHS Youth Forum as I am passionate about educating people to make healthcare less Eurocentric and making daily living more accessible for people with hidden disabilities.

Joe

Yorkshire and Humber

Hi, my name is Joe. I'm 21 and I live in Manchester. I'm studying marketing at university and work in the music industry! I joined the NHS Youth Forum based on my previous experience with the NHS and passion to drive improvement - this year is my second year on the forum and I'm excited to continue using my experience about mental health services to better the experience of others!

Lauren

North East

Hi! I'm Lauren, a disabled student, educator and public speaker. I'm passionate about the NHS because I rely on it's services as a disabled person and believe that changes must be made so that people such as myself can feel listened to and respected. My online work (@neurodiversitywithlozza) is already used by mental health workers to increase understanding of autism, and I hope to reach more people.

Lizzie

Scotland

Hi I'm Lizzie I'm so proud to be part of the NHS youth forum and I can't wait to help influence the NHS to make it more young person friendly.

Mabel

London

My name is Mabel, I'm a 22-year-old medical student studying at Imperial College London. I believe it is important to allow the youth voice to be heard both within the healthcare system as well as within the community. My time as a medical student has given me insight into how we can best serve the needs of young patients in the NHS and I hope to create positive change in the NHS Youth Forum.

Maddi N

East of England

Hello! My name is Maddi (She/Her) and I am a returning member of the Forum. Outside of the Forum I am a youth leader in St John Ambulance and I am currently learning pilates! My passion for the NHS stems from my own positive and negative experiences and hope to use this role to empower young people about their health and the service which supports them.

Maddie G

North West

Hi, I'm Maddie, and I'm currently studing at college! I am passionate about the NHS because I think it is so important that every person has an equal opportunity to healthcare, because it's a human right! As a sufferer of mental health, I am so glad that the NHS is able to support mewhen I was suffering, and I want to guarantee that everyone else can have that same experience. Our wonderful health services are relied upon by nearly the entire population, so using this opportunity to work with the NHS, helping it to flourish, is so valuable to me.

Maria

East Midlands

Hi! I’m Maria, and I’m currently taking a gap year before hopefully starting Uni for Earth Sciences! I really want to make a difference in the NHS because I know how life changing their services can be, yet I’ve seen how many people struggle accessing them. I strongly believe that young people should have easier access to much needed mental health services - and want to work towards a future where that’s possible!

Matthew

East of England

I am a councillor in my local youth council and I care a lot about young peoples' voices being represented. I am passionate about ensuring disabled, queer and trans people receive healthcare that fulfills all their needs efficiently and fairly, and in which these communities are able to shape their own healthcare as is best for them.

Nahida

West Midlands

Hi, My name is Nahida and I have joined the NHS Youth forum, to help empower young people to advocate themselves, with regards to their health care. As someone who has struggled with engaging with treatment plans, I've been involved with my local youth advisory groups, in helping youth voices be heard and I hope to continue this work at the NHS Youth Forum. I'm passionate about the early diagnosis of rare diseases and the support provided through palliative care, ensuring young people receive the best treatment option available for them. During my time in the NHS youth forum, I aim to bring about positive changes to help improve the services available at the NHS.

Reeshab

London

Hello ! My name is Reeshab. I started Year 10 and I look forward to having an understanding of the NHS and contributing towards a positive impact guided by the NHS.

Seina

Yorkshire and Humber

Hi, my name is Seina. I have been involved in local youth advisory groups for over 4 years and I am currently a member of Sheffield Teaching Hospitals (STH) working group. I am passionate about empowering young people and improving access to healthcare services. I am interested in public health, specifically the social determinants of health and tackling the inequalities within healthcare. I feel honoured to have the opportunity to represent my community and am I looking forward to helping influence change on a national level.

Sneha

Yorkshire and Humber

Hi! I'm Sneha and I'm currently studying my A-levels as an aspiring medic. As a state school student, I am passionate about bringing healthcare knowledge and insight about the NHS to every young person, no matter their background. Awareness of basic life support (CPR) in the youth community should also be focused on. I believe we should all have easy access to understandable information to reduce health anxiety and promote better self-care!

Victor

West Midlands

Hi, my name is Victor, I’m 17 and from Birmingham. Being a representative of young people in my city I realized that the more I was representing young people and worked in different projects to bring change, the more I strived for improvement. The NHS Youth Forum is an incredible opportunity to increase my reach and be able to influence change not only for the people in my city but every young person in the country.

Yasmin

London

Hi, I’m Yasmin. I’m 20, originally from Liverpool but currently studying Medicine at Imperial College London. Having personal experience as a patient, I started to recognise the health inequalities present, which can be improved by listening to young people. From this, I became a NIHR Community Champion and Generation R Young Person Advisory Group member, going into my 5th year, where we collaborate with paediatric researchers to improve the design and delivery of their research. I’m an incredibly passionate advocate for young people involvement to drive best healthcare and empower our voices, especially for those from BAME communities and people with learning difficulties/disabilities, to create positive change in the NHS.

Luke

North West

I'm currently taking a gap year, hoping to study medicine. Living with a chronic condition, NHS services has been vital in my life to allow me to live a healthy life. I believe that an ongoing relationship with healthcare should be available to anyone at any age, wherever they are.

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