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Metro Mayors Youth Impact
Make an impact on your City Region
A message from the Mayor
“Too often young people are excluded from the debate when politicians are making decisions. Yet, it’s the youth that has to live with the consequences of those choices the longest. As Metro Mayor I want to do things differently and ensure that the voices of young people are heard loud and clear when it comes to shaping the future of our region. That’s what the Metro Mayor’s Youth Impact is all about.
The Liverpool City Region Combined Authority and I have powers over key areas including transport, economic development, housing, jobs and skills, the environment, digital connectivity and culture.
We develop policies and make important decisions on all of these key issues and more. By joining Youth Impact, you can influence the big decisions that matter – whether that’s how local buses operate in the future or how I, as Metro Mayor, can help our local town centres to thrive.”
Steve Rotheram
Mayor of the Liverpool City Region
Involvement of the group
Youth Impact was formed when Steve Rotheram said that he was keen to hear the opinions of the youth in the city region, and give them the opportunity to have their voices heard at the most direct level possible. He wanted young people to be involved in major decision-making processes, which ordinarily is carried out by adults – however, these decisions have a significant impact on young people now and in the future. The group was launched virtually during the Coronavirus crisis, giving almost 200 young people the chance to ask Steve Rotheram questions directly.
Fair Employment Charter
Young people may be treated unfairly by employers due to lack of experience. As a result, they can sometimes face less favourable working hours, conditions and workloads than their older work colleagues.
We asked Elevate – an organisation that works with schools and businesses – to help improve the youth’s readiness for work. They have extensive knowledge of ‘what makes a fair employer’ as they arrange work experience and work placements for students.
They interviewed young people, and asked them about their experiences when they were on their work placements. The results gathered will influence future policies of the Fair Employment Charter.
Communications with Young People
Strong communication plays an integral role in helping us make a difference together. To enable us to converse more effectively with young people, we held a workshop asking how we could best reach them. This proved to be very useful and informative. It indicated the most accessible methods in order to become more connected. And now, we’re working hard to put those suggestions into action.
Liverpool: A Child Friendly City
Liverpool City Council is bidding to become a UNICEF Child Friendly City – the outcome will improve the city on a number of levels for children and young people. However, we can’t just assume that we know what makes a place better for a child to live in. Therefore, we held a focus group with 11 young people aged 13-18yrs, and asked questions about health, feelings of involvement, safety, children’s rights etc. The results were welcomed by the council and will be included in future planning.
Spatial development strategy/town centre planning consultation with young people
Spatial development is about planning your town for the future – would you like to see more green spaces? Improved safety in your area? More affordable housing? Better transport links?
20 young people joined the expert town planners at a consultation event, and within their groups, they discussed the various issues and shared opinions and recommendations for the future.
Youth Employment task force
COVID-19 has presented a wealth of challenges for everyone, but one of the biggest concerns of the youth is their employment prospects. The Metro Mayor aims to prioritise and improve opportunities for young people in our region, so back in July, we set up a Youth Employment task force to discover what is needed to enhance their employability skills.
One part of the plan involves setting up youth employment hubs in town centres in our area and also online. Young people in the group helped to develop a survey to ask others what services should feature in the new hubs. The feedback received influenced the plan, and the first hub was launched in December 2020.
FAQs
Metro Mayor’s Youth Impact is made up of any individual young person or youth organisation who would like to have their say on an informal basis on the work of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority. After signing up, you’ll hear from us with opportunities on how you can have your say and it’s up to you which opportunities you choose to take up. You might like to complete surveys every so often, attend one-off events on a subject you’re passionate about or even just sign up to hear about what is going on.
The Youth Combined Authority (YCA) is one component of Metro Mayor’s Youth Impact. It comprises a group of around 25 young people who represent all the city region’s local authority areas. They have signed up to work with us on a more closely and meet regularly to shape the work of the Combined Authority from a young person’s perspective, through the delivery of youth-led projects. When we’re next looking to recruit members to the YCA but, when we do, we’ll be encouraging members of Metro Mayor’s Youth Impact to apply.
- You get to have a say in major decisions that will shape your community’s future
- Our group is led by young people, so you’ll have plenty of opportunities to shape how the group works and the issues it focuses on. If you’re part of a youth group or association already, it provides a platform to highlight some of the work you’ve been doing to a bigger audience.
- It gives you lots of opportunities to develop and enhance key life and job skills like communication, understanding people, problem solving, to name but a few
- Make friends and meet those with similar interests to you.
- Enhance your CV.
Register as a member of Metro Mayor’s Youth Impact and you’ll also receive our regular updates about projects and initiatives relevant to young people. We’d really appreciate it if you would share this with the young people you work with. If you have further questions, please don’t hesitate to contact [email protected].
The Combined Authority is led by Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram and brings together Liverpool City Region’s six local authorities – Halton, Knowsley, Liverpool, Sefton, St Helens and Wirral – to tackle the big issues that matter to us all, together. For more information, please click here.
No, we are an inclusive and welcoming group. We welcome SEND ages 13-25. After you register, write to us at [email protected] to tell us your needs so that we can support you.
Yes, of course. Just let us know how we can support you.
Yes! MMYI is not just about how you can help develop our City Region but how you can develop yourself. You’ll meet lots of new people and get lots of new experiences to help you in your future.
Not all events that you may attend will be run by us so we cannot guarantee that your travel will always be paid or reimbursed. Some events may be run by other organisations. However, if this is the case, we will always give you as much information as possible so you can make informed decisions about whether you wish to get involved.
