[C]umbria County Council has announced that the Young Perspective Board (YPB) has collectively won the ‘Outstanding Young Citizen’ of the year award at the inaugural Police and Crime Commissioner Awards. The award was presented to the team at a ceremony on Thursday 13 July at Cumbria Police Carlisle headquarters at Durranhill.
The Young Perspective Board is part of the Local Safeguarding Children’s Board (LSCB), and is run by young volunteers aged 11 – 19 throughout Cumbria. They hold regular forums around the county where young people can attend and have their say about a range of issues. The aim of the Young Perspective Board is to provide an effective mechanism through which young people can influence policies, services and decisions that affect their lives.
The YPB were awarded the top prize in recognition of their work to engage with young people across the county and to promote the issues that matter to young people – particularly around personal safety, cyber-bullying and mental health. The team also worked with Carlisle-based youth group ‘Streetwise’ (see below case study) to create a Summer Survival Bag, which will be distributed to young people across Cumbria throughout the summer.
Jamie Lea Wright, 16, is a member of the YPB. She said: “As part of the Young Perspective Board I’m really happy that we have won this award because it shows that young people are being recognised for the work that they do, their voices can make a difference and their views are important.”
Kerry Hammond, 18, said: “I’m really pleased and feel very honoured for everyone on the YPB – it’s a fantastic team achievement and shows us that the views of young people are important and taken seriously by the community.”
Councillor Anne Burns, Portfolio Holder for Children’s Services, said: “I am absolutely delighted for everyone involved in the Young Perspective Board – all of the young people who volunteer their time to take part, and all of the staff from the LSCB who support them, this is a fantastic achievement for the team. It is inspiring to see the commitment these young people have to making their communities better places for young people to live, study and develop, and I wish them every success going forward in the work they are doing – they are a credit to Cumbria.”
Case study: Streetwise Youth Group, Carlisle
Streetwise is a community group for young people in Carlisle, established in 2015 by the YPB with the aim of supporting young people to have their voices heard and to develop community projects promoting the safety and advancement of young people.
The group meets every Thursday from 4 – 6pm at Greystone Community Centre in Carlisle and is supported by Cumbria County Council’s Targeted Youth Support Team. Through engagement with young people and partner organisations including the LSCB, Cumbria Police, local schools and colleges, Streetwise realised that personal safety was among the top concerns of young people in Carlisle. This has been the catalyst behind Streetwise theming their summer programme around issues of personal safety.
By working closely with the YPB, Streetwise came up with the idea of distributing a Summer Survival Pack – a colourful shoulder bag full of useful tips, information and freebies for young people to enjoy and to help them learn more about staying safe, particularly when they’re out and about during the summer. The bags also include a guide for young people attending their first summer festival or camping trip.
The Summer Survival bags will be distributed at the following times and places:
- West Cumbria 17 – 20 July: Beacon Hill and Solway schools in their final assemblies of the summer term, Aspatria Dreamscheme.
- Carlisle 19 July: Carlisle City Centre
- Barrow 4, 7 – 11 August: Barrow Friendship Day & Summer Activity Events
- Kendal 14 – 18: August Summer Activity Events
