WE HOST OUR 20TH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

Posted on by Sarah

Our Annual General Meeting or AGM for short is a way that we as Young People are able to show, say and celebrate the work, projects and the positive achievements that we have had as a Youth Council over the last year.

ELECTIONS

During the evening, we were treated to inspiring speeches from our talented members who had put their names forward as candidates. The speeches gave us an insight into the skills, qualities and experience each candidate would bring to the role, helping us making the decision on who we would vote for in our Elections.     

All the young people at our AGM took part in the Elections. The votes were in, the final count took place… it was a nail-biter and a very closely fought Election.

The Official Results of the 10 April 2024 Election of Carmarthenshire Youth Councils Executive Board are:

★ Chairperson – Magda Smith
★ Vice Chairperson – Toby Bithray
★ Secretary – Evie Somers
★ Treasurer – Sam Kwan
★ Communications Officer – Zach Davis

We are grateful to all our members who stepped forward to stand as candidates and give speeches, well done! We welcome our newly elected Executive Board with excitement and look forward to the next two years. Congratulations!

Magda, our newly appoint Chairperson said “ I am so grateful to have the votes and trust of my fellow Youth Council members, in my 2 year term as Chair I aim to support all young people in Carmarthenshire the way I have been, I want to help their ideas flourish, give them all every opportunity, and push their voices above and beyond while supporting them in every way they need. The future I see is the young people of Carmarthenshire paving the way for the next generation with their ideas leading the way.”

It was a very busy and full meeting held in County Hall, Carmarthen on Wednesday 10th April 2024 and once again, this year we were fortunate to have the support of decision makers, managers, elected members form Carmarthenshire County Council and guests from Schools and national organisations attending our meeting.

OUR SUCCESSES

Over the last 12 months we have been involved in a variety of projects, here are just a few of our highlights:  
★ Our Voice, Our Vote, Our Future
★ Never Silence the Violence DocuDrama
★ Young Wales
★ Welsh Youth Parliament
★ UKYP
★ Rights Together Conference
★ Summer Camp
★ Youth Symposium, Messines Belgium
★ Consultations and Campaigns             

SUPPORT

We were pleased have the support of County Council Executive Board Members, Decision Makers and Managers from the County Council.  We welcomed Gareth Morgans, Director of Education and Children’s Services to officially open our 2024 meeting, along with the support from County Council Leader Cllr. Darren Price who also addressed the meeting.

GETTING INVOVLED

If you are interested in joining us on Carmarthenshire Youth Council or would like to find out more about us then please reach out and contact us by clicking HERE.



Win The Fight Against Domestic Abuse

Posted on by Sarah

My name is Toby, and I am the Lead Officer for the Never Silence the Violence campaign. This campaign, created by the young people in Carmarthenshire Youth Council, aims to raise awareness of domestic abuse. So far, we’ve had several meetings, and training sessions which include discussions with the Violence Against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence Partnership coordinator, Dyfed Powys Police, DA project coordinator and Catrin Rees Health Schools coordinator. These discussions between our members of the Never Silence the Violence campaign and many professionals, we are equipped to bring action against domestic abuse.  

Our main project as part of the Never Silence the Violence campaign is our DocuDrama. Our members decided to create a DocuDrama looking at the steps of what happens after you report domestic abuse.

We felt that this was important to us as everyone focuses on actually reporting domestic abuse while the aftermath is rarely spoken about. This causes people to feel like they can’t report anything as not knowing what will happen afterwards is scary. 

To complete this DocuDrama we all attended training in filming and sound by Sharon from ‘Curious Ostrich’, who is also the director of this project. We had meetings to create scripts about the events after reporting domestic abuse, this information was collected by speaking to Dyfed Powys Police, Carmdas, and other services. 

I have been proud as the lead officer of this campaign because the project was based around the new law stating that seeing domestic abuse makes you a victim of domestic abuse.

You don’t have to experience it. I feel that this was important to promote in this project to help raise awareness of the effects of witnessing domestic abuse to use their voice and stand up against domestic abuse and make reporting domestic abuse that little bit easier. 

It has been an amazing experience working with such talented young people who are so passionate about this project, all the young people involved have inspired me and everyone else involved to create amazing work to win the fight against Domestic Abuse. 

Article By
Toby

Find out how to get help if you or someone you know is a victim of domestic abuse:
★ Remember that you can talk to your Teacher, Youth Worker, Coach or an Adult you trust
★ Live Fear Free – National Website
★ Carmarthenshire Domestic Abuse Service
★ Live Fear Free Helpline – 0808 80 10 800
★ In an emergency, CALL THE POLICE on 999

Making a Difference Together: Young Wales Representative

Posted on by Sarah

Hi, I’m Kai and I am the representative of Young Wales on the Carmarthenshire Youth Council. Over the past year Young Wales has done some amazing work and this Article is going to share it all with you.

What is Young Wales?

Young Wales is an organisation under the umbrella of Children in Wales, with the main focus being on Article 12 of the UNCRC. Young Wales, allows all children and young people from the ages of 11 – 25 to be involved in boards and forums to get their voices heard. We work closely with the Welsh Government on many of our projects and also have close connections with the Children’s Commissioner for Wales and her team.

Boards & Forums

Young Wales is made up of a number of boards and forums, each one with a particular focus on a subject, some of the boards and forums are:
★ National Youth Stakeholders
★ National LGBTQIA+ Board
★ Young Carers Board
★ The budget Improvement Plan Advisory Panel
★ Voting Democracy Board

National LGBTQIA+ Board

I currently chair the National LGBTQIA+ Board, with the main aim being to raise awareness and increase education around the LGBTQIA+ Community. We are currently working on a document to send to the UK Government to show them our stories, as well as working with the Welsh Government on the LGBTQ+ Action Plan for Wales.

National Youth Stakeholders

In the past year the National Youth Stakeholders have been working hard in partnership with the Welsh Government on the Mental Health Strategy.

Young Carers Board

In the Young Carers Board we are currently working on improving support for Young Carers, working closely with the Welsh Government to try and find ways that Young Carers can be more supported and recognised within society.

The budget Improvement Plan advisory Panel

The budget improvement plan is a government document that we as a panel aim to make young people friendly. We are doing this with the Welsh Government by making a bilingual, video game style animation, that summarizes the official document. We are now in the process of recording the voice over for the animation.

Voting Democracy board

This is a new group that has been set up to encourage young people to vote. We are currently working on a campaign to ensure that young people will be educated about voting and will vote when the opportunity is given to them.

The 30th anniversary book advisory panel

This project is to celebrate 30 years of Children in Wales, the book aims to educate young people on their rights and the history of Children in  Wales.  We are currently working with a team of illustrators to design the book.

Young Wales Festival 2023

The Young Wales festival 2023 took place on the 18th of November at Swansea University. During the festival many roundtable discussions took place where up to 15 young people were given the opportunity to share their views and opinions with ministers, the children’s commissioner, and government officials. The festival was a joyous celebration as it marked 30 years of Children in Wales.

Residentials

Young Wales has 4 residentials a year which take place all over Wales, the residentials last 3 days and give all volunteers the opportunity to socialize through fun activities, and share their views and opinions in meetings.

If you are interested in joining Young Wales, you can do so through their website Children in Wales | Putting children at the heart of our work or if you would like to learn more from a young person’s perspective feel free to contact us.

Article by
Kai

OUR VOICE: HAVE YOUR SAY AND VOTE NOW

Posted on by Sarah
A young person voting on a ballot paper.

We are excited to share “Our Voice, Our Vote, Our Future“… Our BIGGEST Youth Consultation! Have your say on what is important to you! This is your chance to directly impact the future of Carmarthenshire. The top issue voted for, will become the focus of our projects and campaigns, ensuring your voices are heard and acted upon.

Take a look at the TOP 10 ISSUES that made it onto the ballot paper…. and don’t forget to use your VOTE!

The TOP 10 ISSUES

Improving Mental Health Awareness in Schools
Promote mental well-being with additional well-being days and expanding opportunities for more extracurricular activities

Stop Body Shaming
End body shaming and raise awareness of its harmful impact on young individuals

Stop Anti-social Behaviour
Engaging with and creating more community spaces for young people. Educate more people about anti-social behaviour

Stop Vaping/Smoking
Limit access and make vapes less appealing for young people

Teach First Aid in Schools
Expansion on basic first aid by learning more life-saving techniques to save more lives

More outdoor lessons in Schools
Encourage greater outdoor engagement. Discover, grow, and learn where your food comes from.

Stop Bullying
More safeguarding and education for bullying of all kinds

The state of school and lack of funding
Increase funding for schools to improve their quality, giving young people a better learning experience

More Opportunities for Young People
More open days, apprenticeships and work experience for young people

Teach real life lessons in school
Beyond textbooks: Teach skills that launch life (finance, careers, CVs)

VOTE HERE!

Click HERE to download a copy of our Poster.

Together, we can make sure every young voice in Carmarthenshire is heard! Join in the conversation on socials by using #OurVoiceOurVoteOurFuture

TOM AT YOUTH SYMPOSIUM, MESSINES

Posted on by Sarah
Image of the group (18 people) who took part in the Youth Symposium. They are standing in front of the large central stone tower in the Island Of Ireland Peace Park.

Our member Thomas Vaughan-Jones, 19 of Llandyfan recently represented Wales and the UK in the Island of Ireland Peace Park: Youth Symposium held in Belgium.

The Island of Ireland Peace Park in Messines, Belgium recalls the shared sacrifice of those from the island of Ireland from all political and religious traditions who fought and died in World War One. A Peace Pledge, written 25 years ago, is on display in the central circle of the Peace Park.

As the Park marks its 25th anniversary, this year, Tom was one of fifteen young adults who were invited by Youth Bank International, and run by members from Corymeela, to create a new Modern Peace Pledge that reflects their priorities at the event that took place between the 9th and 13th November, 2023.

During his time in Messsines, Tom had the opportunity to meet with other young adults from across the world, from Australia, New Zealand, Germany, Ukraine and other home nations. Together they explored opinions and experiences of conflict, peace, harmony and justice. It was very interesting for Tom to hear the stories and history of others cultures and nations while also sharing his own experiences.

Image and PDF Link to the new modern Peace Pledge created by the group in Messines, Belgium.

Over the five days Tom contributed to reviewing the Peace Pledge and collaboratively creating a new Modern Peace Pledge which was presented on Saturday 11th November at a formal ceremony at the Island of Ireland Peace Park. Tom also took part in a tour of battlefields and met with Major of Messines.

Tom said “I had a really fun experience that I will never forget. I have made new connections with young people from all around the world, and hope that our important work over these five days will not be forgotten. I’m really thankful for this opportunity, and hope to take part in similar projects like this one in the future”

Sarah Jones, Senior Participation Officer for Carmarthenshire County Council said “This five-day programme empowered and inspired Tom and other young minds to explore conflict and building peace in global and local context. It was a fantastic opportunity and we are grateful to Youth Bank International for making the experience possible.”