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