Off To London We Go… For Olivia

Posted on by Sarah

Our UK Youth Parliament Member, Olivia, 17 from Hendy is preparing to represent Carmarthenshire and Wales at the UK Youth Parliament Annual Sitting taking place in the House Of Commons, Westminster later this week. ‌​‌​‌​​​‍‌​‌​​‌‌‌‍‌​‌‌​​‌​‍‌​‌‌‌​‌‌‍‌​‌‌‌‌​​The event, which is their twelfth sitting, is taking place on Friday 17th November 2023 where Olivia with other representatives will contribute to a debate and vote to decide the issues they will prioritise for their ‘Food for Learning’ campaign. 

Olivia has been a Youth Council Member for over 5 years and has been elected by other Youth Councillors to represent Carmarthenshire. She will be joining over 200 Members of the UK Youth Parliament aged 11-18 who will take part in a national debate in the House of Commons. Speaker of The House, Sir Lindsay Hoyle MP will be welcoming the Youth Parliament for their annual sitting in the house, with the afternoon sessions chaired by Deputy Speaker of the House of Commons, Nigel Evans MP

Olivia, who is a dedicated and passionate young person said;
“Being able to represent Carmarthenshire at the Annual Sitting in the House of Commons, London excites me. I’m thrilled to have this opportunity but also a little anxious. I’m particularly interested in hearing what young people from other places have to say and expressing my own views. I sincerely hope that I will have the opportunity to speak with many new people and explore a variety of topics that are significant to young people in the UK.”

Members of the Youth Parliament will vote. Each debate topic will be introduced with speeches from regionally elected Members of Youth Parliament, who will put forward arguments for and against the issue, before opening up to the floor. Following the five debates, each Member of Youth Parliament in the Chamber will vote for their top issue to decide which issue will become their national campaign for 2023

THE 5 TOPICS BEING DEBATED;
★ Holiday Hunger – Create provisions to ensure young people have access to meals outside of term time
★ Quality of Food – School meals should be made using good, healthy and nutritious ingredients and no ultra-processed foods. 
★ Standardisation –   Ensure young people all have access to the same quality and volume of food in schools. 
★ Financing and Funding – Create arrangements to fund school meals. 
★ Additional Pricing – Ensure the prices of any additional food are reasonable and consistent across the UK.

Following the sitting, Members of Youth Parliament will campaign on the issues they vote as their priority. They will also conclude their year-long efforts to draft their Parliamentary bill.

Sarah Powell, Carmarthenshire’s Senior Participation Officer said
“Olivia is incredibly excited to be a part of the UK Youth Parliament and it’s an amazing opportunity for her. It’s great to see so many young people engaging in politics to talk about issues that matter to them and contributing to making a difference, especially in the financially challenging climate that we face.  I’m so proud of Olivia in representing Carmarthenshire at such an important national event.”

The debates will be streamed live (with a 20 minute delay) on Parliamentlive.tv or you can follow the conversation on Social Media using #UKYPHoC

CARMARTHENSHIRE’S BIGGEST YOUTH CONSULTATION

Posted on by Sarah
Carmarthenshire’s Youth Consultation

Are you a young person living in Carmarthenshire? Are you passionate about making your community a better place? If so, we want to hear from you!

Carmarthenshire’s Annual Youth Consultation “Our Voice, Our Vote, Our Future” is a unique opportunity for young people aged 11-18 to have their say on the issues that matter most to them. We want to hear from young people from all backgrounds and experiences. Your input will help to shape the future of Carmarthenshire.

So, how do we select our topics?

On November 24th, we will be hosting an exciting event where school representatives will present motions and debate the issues most important to them. Following the event, a vote will take place to determine the top 10 topics for the consultation ballot paper. The ballot papers will be available online from January and will be open to all young people in Carmarthenshire aged 11-18.

How do we vote?

Voting opens online as soon as we announce the top motions that made it onto the ballot papers!

Stay tuned to our social media and the hashtag #OurVoiceOurVoteOurFuture to be the first to know when voting opens and to get updates on the consultation.

Make sure you share with all your friends so that they can get involved too – this is your chance to make a real difference in your community, so don’t miss out!

Article by
Lucas Palenek

OVER 100 YOUNG PEOPLE ATTEND YOUTH CONFERENCE

Posted on by Sarah

We hosted our Annual Youth Conference on, Wednesday, 25 October at Parc Y Scarlets, Llanelli. 160 young people, teachers and practitioners attended the Youth Conference this year, in what is the 20th Anniversary of the Carmarthenshire Youth Council, with discussions and workshops taking place to celebrate and raise awareness of Children’s’ Rights.

Delegates heard from the Children’s Commissioner, Rocio Cifuentes, who, as a guest speaker, spoke of the importance of listening to our young people. Carmarthenshire County Council’s Cabinet Member for Education and Welsh Language, Cllr. Glynog Davies emphasised to the young people that their rights are reflected in the vision and policies of the Local Authority and that he, as does the Children’s Commissioner, has an open door policy to listen and advise our future generation.  

The Conference, named “RIGHTS TOGETHER: A Celebration of Children’s Rights” is Carmarthenshire first Annual Youth Conference since the pandemic and has been organised in partnership with Carmarthenshire County Council Youth Support Services. We invited young people and practitioners from Secondary Schools and Youth Projects from across the county to take part in the event with the aim to bring together services and organisations to create an empowering and informative event for young people aged 11-18 years old within Carmarthenshire.

We held a formal Conference in the morning, where we ran workshops and discussions exploring what is a Right and an energetic Rights Auction which introduced the 42 Articles of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child or UNCRC for short. Working with partners, service areas, projects and organisations we hosted a ‘Showcase’ during the afternoon where young people took part and got involved in a range of fun, informative and engaging activities around Children’s Rights. We are extremely grateful to all the organisations, projects and service areas that supported this part of the event and played an important part in making the event such a success.

Thomas Vaughan-Jones, Youth Conference Planner said “I was really looking forward to the ‘Rights Together’ conference! It was a fantastic celebration of young voices and the importance of children’s rights. I hope the young people, teachers and professionals have leave the event feeling inspired and empowered to create positive change. It’s was a day filled with learning, and fun; and I’m so proud to have been a part of it!”

Cabinet Member for Education and Welsh Language, Cllr. Glynog Davies said: “It was a privilege to be present at this year’s conference, to meet with our young people and hear their views on the issue of children’s rights. It is so very important to celebrate and raise awareness of children’s rights, in our goal to make a better Carmarthenshire for young people. Thank you to each and every one that attended our Youth Conference today and for your valued contribution.”  

For more information you can follow the conversation on Social Media using #RightsTogether

#NeverSilenceTheViolence

Posted on by Sarah

Our project aims to raise awareness of domestic abuse. It will include information about this topic area, recent statistics, interviews with professionals, a support directory, and blogs. 

Following the Make Your Mark Consultation, we focused on domestic abuse as their priority issue for the past year. With the project’s name “NEVER Silence the Violence” decided on, our group began the research.

We held several meetings, both online and in person, to discuss approaches that they can take to try to bring more attention to this important topic. As part of our project, we attended training about domestic abuse, which included learning about the different types of abuse, challenging myths, and facts about the topic. We have also learnt how to keep ourselves safe in such situations and know where to go for support/guidance all factoring itself into our research and our ability to raise awareness of the matter.

Our members met with many professionals to ask for guidance and gain more information.  We met with Ellana Thomas, DA Project Coordinator and Catrin Rees, Healthy Schools Coordinator. We have also been in touch with the Violence Against Women, Domestic Abuse, and Sexual Violence Partnership Coordinator and Dyfed Powys Police to develop the ideas for this project.

We are so glad to hear that Relationships and Sexuality Education (RSE) is part of the new Curriculum in Wales and it is being introduced in schools this term. We strongly believe that this will equip children and young people with understanding and skills to lead healthy, happy and safe lives.

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
★ Carmarthenshire Domestic Abuse Service
★ Live Fear Free Helpline – 0808 80 10 800
★ In an emergency, CALL THE POLICE on 999

Join the fun with us at our RIGHTS TOGETHER: A Celebration of Children’s Rights Conference

Posted on by Sarah

Hey, as a Youth Council, we’ve got something really exciting coming your way, it is our FIRST Youth Conference since the Covid lockdown;

RIGHTS TOGETHER: A Celebration of Children’s Rights!
Get ready to have a blast on Wednesday, 25th October 2023, at Parc y Scarlets, Llanelli 9:30am – 2:30pm. Click HERE to book your places.

Why children’s rights are cool: Children’s rights are like superpowers – They give you the freedom to be yourself, learn, have fun, and grow up in a safe and fair world. We are here to show YOU just how amazing and important they are.

Here are some of our Event Highlights:
★ RIGHTS CHAMPION: Children’s Commissioner for Wales: Rocio Cifuentes, to give the Key-Note speech
★ SUPER WORKSHOPS: We’ve got interactive workshops that will make learning fun! Dive into topics that will empower you to speak up when your rights are not met.
★ YOU LEAD THE TALK: We want to hear YOUR thoughts! There will be discussions led by our Youth Council members, who will listen, and truly care about your opinions and ideas.
★ THE BARN: There will be an abundance of organisations, with information and activities for everybody. Make sure to take part, as this is a once in a lifetime experience!
★ MEET NEW PALS: Connect with other young people and groups, who are passionate as you are about making Carmarthenshire a better place.

Why you should come:
★ LEARN COOL STUFF: Find out about Children’s Rights, and why they matter.
★ BE INSPIRED: Hear stories from young people and organisations who are changing our world for the better.
★ MAKE NEW FRIENDS: Meet other awesome young people and organisations who believe in you.
★ FEEL EMPOWERED: Get ideas on how YOU can make a real difference in your community.

How to be a part of the action:
If you’re a school, or part of an awesome group, working with young people aged 11-18, we want YOU to join the fun! Its your chance to shine, make new friends, and learn how to be empowered through children’s rights. Please click here for the draft programme.

★★★ SAVE THE DATE ★★★
Circle Wednesday 25th October 2023, on your calendar. Hopefully, we will see you there!

“RIGHTS TOGETHER: a celebration of children’s rights” is not just a conference; it’s a place to  have a great time, make friends, and be a part of something BIG. Together, we’ll make sure children’s rights are known and celebrated!

Stay tuned for more updates, live on #RIGHTSTOGETHER on social media, and on our website – We’re counting down to an epic day of fun, learning, and making Carmarthenshire  a better place; one step at a time!

BOOK YOUR PLACE

Article by Tom