Our first youth debate
The Commission's first ever youth debate was held in the Parliament on Thursday 19 June. Working with the youth charity Envision, the Commission welcomed 30 young people aged 16-21 from across London who engaged in a lively discussion about equality and human rights.
In preparation for the debate, participants took part in workshops. These looked at:
- good relations,
- what the media says about young people, and
- young people's rights.
They prepared questions and motions on how the Commission could support young people and what young people can do themselves. These were then debated in a mock House of Commons chamber within Westminster Hall.
The main points raised included:
• young people themselves need to take action and assume leadership roles
• young people need more opportunities to interact with decision-makers
• examples of young people doing positive things in society need to be covered by the media
The Commission's Chair Trevor Phillips said:
'Yesterday’s youth debate in the House of Commons was insightful and inspirational. This debate marks the Commission's first step in working with young people. It is part of a programme of projects and activities aimed at bringing the Commission closer to young people.
The views they raised in this debate will help ground the Commission’s work in the real life experiences of young people and shape our future youth projects. It is only by really listening to their voices that we can understand what matters to them. We have heard what they have to say. They want to be proactive and take a leadership role and we will do everything we can to support them.'
Video clips
Below are clips documenting the debate. Please note that the clips open in a new window.
Subtitles version
British Sign Language version
Youth projects
Trevor Phillips also announced the Commission's youth projects set to run this year. These include:
• Our Space summer camp, which aims to bring together young people from diverse backgrounds
• an arts competition to be launched at the start of the academic year this autumn, and
• more youth debates to take place across England, Scotland and Wales.
These projects will help the Commission to engage with young people directly, to listen to their opinions, and to use what it learns in the way it develops future policy.