Sandwell children and young people elect youth parliament members
More than 9,000 children and young people across 164 organisations, including schools and youth clubs, have voted for
Sandwell’s two new Members of Youth Parliament.Angela Hangero, age 14 from Oldbury pledges to give young people a voice and to make Sandwell’s streets safer, in particular for women and girls. She said: “I will be a good Member of Youth Parliament for our future generation of Sandwell, by developing our young society and being the voice for the voiceless and letting the young community of Sandwell be heard.” Khashvi Khanna, age 18 from West Bromwich pledges to campaign for changes to the educational system and empower young people in Sandwell.
She said: “I am aware of the challenges facing our youth today. From educational disparities to mental health struggles, we confront numerous obstacles. Yet, I refuse to succumb to despair. Instead, I see these challenges as opportunities for growth and resilience. “As Youth Parliament member, I will advocate tirelessly for the resources and support systems necessary to empower each and every member of our youth community.”
The UK Youth Parliament enables young people to use their energy and passion to change the world for the better, providing opportunities for 11-18-year-olds to use their elected voice to bring about social change through meaningful representation and campaigning. Councillor Simon Hackett, Cabinet Member for Children, Young People and Education, congratulated all those young people taking part. He said: “I want to congratulate Angela and Kashvi on becoming Members of Youth Parliament and thank all the candidates that were shortlisted. Their campaigning efforts and pledges have captured children and young people’s imaginations and votes.
“As part of our pledge to gain UNICEF Child Friendly status, it is vital we continue to listen to the views of our young people to enable the child’s voice to have a real influence in or decisions across the whole of the council. I look forward to working with our new members of Youth Parliament to make a real difference to children and young people across the whole of Sandwell. “These young people will represent Sandwell at a national level and I have every faith they will be real advocates for our young people and for our area.” Angela and Khashvi were two of seven candidates who were shortlisted for the ballot. The candidates narrowly missing out were Ayyatulahi Adigun, Abhijay Singh Choudary, Briony Jones, Dileena Kaur and Palak Kumar.