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Consultation with young people on the Corporate Priorities 2007-2010.
Youth Council event
Springfields Conference Centre
Friday 13 October 2006
SHDC consulted with young people on the six proposed priorities:
Affordable Housing
Care of Villages and Towns
Secure and Diverse Employment
Improved Leisure Services
Access to Services
Democratic Community Leadership
Groups of up to six young people looked at each priority and were asked:
Access to Services
Was this a priority – yes access to leisure services was a priority and it was difficult in smaller towns and villages.
What should the council be doing?
• Transport needs to be child friendly
• Better access to leisure facilities.
• Advertise services in different languages.
• More information about what’s on for young people and everybody else
Other priorities
• Community safety
• Better jobs for graduates
Democratic Community Leadership
Was this a priority? We are in a good democracy but we should concentrate on youth. Instead of working for us they should work with us.
What should the council be doing?
• Small town and village councils should choose representatives to feed into the youth council and then into the district council.
• More money to fund more multiculturism projects
Other priorities
• Multicultural projects
Improved Leisure Facilities
Was this a priority?
• Stop you from getting drunk
• Lower teenage pregnancy
• Prevent anti social behaviour
• Gives you a higher self esteem
• New skills
• Lower obesity
What should the council be doing?
• More swimming pools with better leisure slides
• Clubs (chess, sports etc)
• More affordable social events
• Cheaper gyms
• Maintaining current successes
• Encouraging participants by cracking down hard on youth crime and under age drinking
• Using leisure facilities to integrate migrant workers
• Super dooper hands on museum
Other Priorities
• Better transport
• Better shopping facilities in south Holland
• Better film facilities
Affordable Housing
The group discussed the concept of affordable housing and felt that it was important but that education was most important. The group felt that affordable housing should mean affordable in relation to the wages and therefore relative to the type of jobs in the area. As
The group felt that environmental factors were extremely important and that the Council should aim to use cheaper resources and buy un-used land and old buildings which could be re-juvinated. The group suggested that that more flats should be built similar to that of student halls at University. The group discussed the other Corporate Priorities and felt that secure and diverse employment was very important for young people. The group felt that University was very expensive and excluded some local youngsters who could not afford to go. The group also felt that many young people are going to university and not returning to the area because there are no jobs.
Care of Villages and Towns
The group took a community safety approach and felt that this was a priority as people of all ages need to be able and feel safe in their community. The group felt that the inclusion of community support officers were important in maintaining facilities for young people. The group also felt CCTV cameras were important to ensure the safety of residents.
The group also picked up on the community cohesion aspect of the priority and felt that awareness and support to/from everyone in the community was important. The group felt that public spaces for young people were an issue; places for young people to play football and a hall for clubs etc.
The group felt it was important to have things like a post-office, doctors, dentists, post box and transport for people to get from one place to another.
The group also felt that there should be a Council Tax grant for ‘un-well off’ children to pay for poorer children; the group discussed the ‘smart card’ for young people which is currently being piloted.