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The KYCC (Kent Youth County Council) are pushing the boudaries of what young people as a group can achieve, are getting involved with numerous innovative projects and are creating imaginative and intelligent solutions to problems across the county. This is the November update on what the KYCC have been up to, keep your eyes peeled for more updates in the upcoming months!

October proved to be a busy month for the Kent Youth County Council as they travelled to Germany, sat in the House of Commons and were consulted on the Kent County Council’s budget.

Flemish Youth Council meeting

Tessa and Libby travelled to Brussels on the 15 October to attend a conference promoting “Financial literacy as a condition to bolster the future of the youth”

Members of the Flemish Youth Council were also there and everyone was invited to take part in the workshops in both the morning and afternoon that explored different themes that are helpful for young people with money.

In the afternoon, Libby and Tessa took part in discussions about their experiences with finance and the impact of the current financial crisis with 3 different groups.

It is hoped that this meeting will be the start of closer links with the Flemish Youth Council and have more opportunities for meeting up.

Kent Youth Council Budget Planning Meeting

On 27 October, KYCC met with the Financial Strategy team to discuss how they think Kent County Council should spend its money. Ideas included cuts to investment in education and waste disposal and highways but greater investment in children's social services, adult social services and communities. Their views will be included in a report that will be sent to the Kent County Council Cabinet.

4Way Exchange: Germany

10 KYCC members travelled to Mözen, in Germany, to meet and work with young people from Estonia, Finland, Poland and the host nation. They got to know each other quickly and spent the week discussing how to encourage greater youth participation amongst young people and adults.

Each night provided an opportunity to experience the culture of each country in the ‘national evenings’ as the young people sought to break down stereotypes and learn more about each other’s background.

There were also visits to local schools and Councils in nearby towns where they discussed the role of young people with Head Teachers, Mayors and politicians.

UKYP in the House of Commons

Friday 30th October saw history being made as young people from across the United Kingdom sit on the green benches of the House of Commons and debate issues that affect the country’s youth. 7 Kent members were there with Ariba Karim (KYCC member for Ashford) closing the debate on the abolition of University tuition fees. The four other topics that were discussed were:

• Lowering the voting age to 16
• Youth crime and how to tackle it
• Public transport for young people
• Jobs for young people and the economy

Full coverage of the debate can be accessed here.

- A special thank you to Marc Burrett for the blog post.
Picture: KYCC in the House of Commons.

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Your monthly dose of KYCC

Kent Youth County Council (KYCC) is a non-party political organisation, focusing on the issues of young people. KYCC members work closely with officers and elected members of the KCC, informing them of young people's issues and concerns. Each year there are 10 formal sittings of KYCC that take place in County Hall. There are also optional work groups and other meetings including KYCC meetings that take place at a district level encouraging the members to campaign and work on issues that affect young people in their constituencies.

Kent members of the UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) are elected for the KYCC by the members to take Kent issues to the national sitting.

The 2009 elections for KYCC will take place at 160 Polling Stations in the schools, youth centres and projects across Kent from 14-22 November.

This year sees the launch of the Communities of Interest seats where 12 young people will be elected to represent their communities in KYCC and bring a greater awareness of the issues that face young people in Kent.

The results will be announced on Saturday 28 November at a ceremony in Sessions House, County Hall.

Recent events:

National Youth Takeover Day - More than 500 organisations and 5000 children and young people joined the Children’s Commissioner for England to take part in the 11 MILLION Takeover Day in November. From chairing the Head Teacher conference to planning the County Council’s budget - children and young people took their place in the decision-making hot seat!

Positive Activities Select Committee Report - KYCC members recently joined the County Councillors in the chamber to discuss and advise on the provision of activities from young people around Kent.

Kent Cultural Summit - Invited to share and exchange views on the strengths and needs of culture in the County, as well as agree on the process of working with other agencies and have a consensus on high level issues.

Intergenerational Cohesion Seminar Meeting with 30 EU commissioners and members of the European parliament, KCC officers and researchers from the University of Kent. KYCC were invited to discuss the relationships between young and older people and how they can be developed.

- A special thank you to Marc Burrett for the blog post and the image. For more information please visit the KYCC homepage here.

Picture: KYCC cheering on the stairs in Sessions House, Maidstone.

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