Newly-elected Youth Council members at H&F Council's offices in Hammersmith last week
A new Youth Mayor, Deputy Youth Mayor, Member of Youth Parliament and Deputy Member of Youth Parliament have been elected.
Young people aged 11-19 who live or study in H&F voted during two weeks in March and the results were announced last week (23 March).
Meet your new Youth Cabinet
Ben Ruzbehan, 16, from the Phoenix Academy in White City, was elected as H&F’s new Youth Mayor. He promised to work towards raising social awareness, reducing crime, increasing tolerance of minorities, and providing better support for H&F’s young people.
Niamh Faleye, 14, from the Hurlingham Academy in Fulham, was elected as H&F’s Deputy Youth Mayor. Within her manifesto she pledged to work to close the gaps between minority groups and to create safe spaces in schools for students to engage in open conversations around sexuality and identity.
Anastasia Odusanwo, 16, also from the Hurlingham Academy, was elected as H&F’s new Member of Youth Parliament. Over the next year she wants to work on increasing career advice, particularly for non-traditional career paths, and life skills taught in schools.
Vince Bigas, 16, from the Fulham College Academy, was elected as H&F’s Deputy Member of Youth Parliament. Within his manifesto he pledged to work to improve the mental health of young people, particularly those suffering from loneliness.
The first task for the newly elected individuals will be to write this year’s 2022-2023 Youth Council Manifesto.
The Youth Council’s role
H&F’s Youth Council meet regularly to discuss issues affecting young people across the borough and to share their own thoughts and experiences.
The Youth Mayor is a figurehead for the borough’s young people and works with the H&F Mayor by accompanying them to events and working with their chosen charities.
The Member of Youth Parliament represents the voices of the borough’s young people, regionally and nationally at conferences and an annual debate in the House of Commons.
Together, the Youth Mayor and Member of Youth Parliament alongside their deputies, form a Youth Cabinet and lead the Youth Council in their manifesto, meetings, decision making and any actions they take.
Building a better H&F
H&F’s Youth Council help with all sorts of projects. In 2020, H&F’s Youth Council created a handy guide for young people across the borough with tips and tricks on how to cope with self-isolating.
Last year, they held a virtual Youth Achievement Awards (YouTube) and in past years have celebrated H&F’s diverse community with National Coming Out Day.
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