I’m a Councillor 2008 – final report
Young people deserve a voice. The minority group we call youth includes the “hoodie” who nicked my mobile telephone, the 18 year-old winger your football team just signed, and the sixth former who will, some day around 2040, be elected Prime Minister. It’s unsurprising, then, that young people are eager participators in politics. All they need is a voice!
Our flagship youth engagement event, I’m a Councillor, Get me out of Here!, has finished for the sixth year. The event – featuring local councillors and young people from 22 counties across England, Wales and NI – put school pupils and youth group members in contact with local politicians live and online. Young people also met volunteers from abroad: a former MP from Taiwan, a political activist from Zimbabwe, a city politician from the Netherlands…
But, enough sales pitch. The best thing about I’m a Councillor isn’t the event: it’s the young people, who logged in, read manifestos, asked questions, completed quizzes, attended live chats, and so on. For our final report, we’ll focus on the young people that are I’m a Councillor‘s heart and soul.
What gets young people going? What did they ask about? How did their local councillors respond? Quotes, and a final report on the event, in this extended entry.