Child Friendly Warwickshire

On Thursday 21 April, over 70 young people from across Warwickshire came together for the first Child Friendly Warwickshire Youth Conference: Future Ready, to discuss important topics facing them today.

True to the ethos of Child Friendly Warwickshire, the event was organised with the help of young people who chose the five themes for the day which were climate change, mental health, careers, respectful relationships and youth homelessness.

The young people were joined by local organisations, including Kooth, St Basils, Prospects and Warwickshire Climate Alliance. Also in attendance was Leader of the Council, Councillor Izzi Seccombe, who spoke to young people about including the voice of the children in future Warwickshire County Council policies. To top it all off, there was even a visit from the Child Friendly Warwickshire bear.

The feedback received from the young people in attendance mentioned how ‘inspirational’, ‘exciting’ and ‘interesting’ the day was and that they were pleased to have an opportunity to have their voices heard. Many left the day keen to make a difference in their community and are already looking forward to the next chance to get together.

A key part of the day was the quiet space, supported by the county council’s Voice, Influence & Change team, for any person who needed time away from the activities and the crowds. This area proved to be very beneficial to many young people in attendance and will be a priority for all future Child Friendly Warwickshire events.

Leader of the Council, Councillor Izzi Seccombe, said: “The youth conference was a chance for young people to come together to talk about issues that matter to them and to amplify their voices across the county. This is one of our aims for our Child Friendly Warwickshire programme.

“It was a joy to attend the youth conference, and to hear the inspirational ideas from young people all over the county. I look forward to attending future conferences with young people, and to include their ideas and thoughts in future policies from the county council.”

Warwickshire’s Youth Conference: Future Ready supports the Child Friendly Warwickshire programme which delivers the council’s ambition to ensure Warwickshire is a great place where all children and young people are safe, skilled, healthy, heard and happy.

To keep up to date with Child Friendly Warwickshire and any future events visit the website: https://www.childfriendlywarwickshire.co.uk/

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