Our August meeting was well really well attended and had a packed agenda, with discussions on the recent Crispin school worker’s speech at an immigration protest, the ongoing projects of the group, Somerset Members of Youth Parliament (MYPs) updates and some August awareness days for the group to consider.
Crispin School worker at anti-immigration protest
As Somerset Youth Parliament are representatives of all young people in the county, the group discussed the recent Crispin school worker ‘incident’.
According to the news, she addressed anti-immigration protestors in Taunton, saying:
“Up until eighteen months ago we only had between three and four, in any thousand kids, Black or Asian children.
“We have now, anywhere between 75 and 80 of them, in 18 months. And that’s a small town called Street, which most of you will know. So it’s on its way.
“Don’t believe all the nonsense they tell you, it’s on its way. And we have to stand and fight against this.”
Members were quick to differentiate between a legitimate debate about immigration and the clear racist language of someone who has been trusted to work with children and their families in an educational setting – which we would assume is safe, respectful and caring.
Somerset Youth Parliament’s ongoing projects
After a period of revision, exams, proms and holidays members of the Somerset Youth Parliament Advisory Group have come back together with a sense of confidence and fun. We revisited the work and ongoing projects that Somerset Youth Parliament has been involved with since January, including:
- Active Bystanders campaign (which is due to launch in Autumn)
- Sustainable Transport engagement (acting as a final steer for new Somerset Council strategy)
- Facilitating activities and promoting Youth Parliament at June’s Children’s Parliament Day
- Attending a Regional UKYP meeting to meet and debate with MYPs and Youth Councils across the South West
- Supporting Public Health with two projects:
- A Period Hygiene awareness raising campaign – check and create resources with the aim of addressing the stigma for young girls around periods, making free period products more accessible in schools – encouraging schools in Somerset to access the Government’s free period product grant, and providing information about periods, sharing experiences and ideas to help manage the discomfort and inconvenience
- Reviewing and contributing to a Sleep Toolkit for the Public Health website before it goes live
- Meeting with the Chair of the Council, Cllr Mike Best who is planning to platform Youth Voice by arranging for Somerset Youth Parliament to attend a full council meeting after meeting the High Sherrif Peter Dixon and the Lord Lieutenant Mohammed Saddiq
- Addressing Youth Workers and Managers about Youth Voice at the Somerset Youth Alliance (they will be hosting and facilitating another event this month)
- Supporting the Creativity in County Hall project by creating art for display and as a talking point/ reminder for services and decision makers of how young people are at the core of their work and planning. The project encompasses paintings, drawings, photos, collages, poetry, song lyrics and speeches, you can view the masterpieces at the project’s virtual gallery. Each artwork will be shared across Somerset Council offices across the county. But, the project isn’t over, we’re always looking for more artwork, so if you have any artwork that you’d like to share, please drop us a line at YouthParliament@somerset.gov.uk
- After the recent heatwaves over the past few months, Somerset Youth Parliament have been doing some work on the effects and implications of severe heat for children, young people, families and the community in terms of contingency ideas and planning. Although still in progress, Youth Parliament’s work will contribute to the next Partners (NHS, Police and Council) executive meeting in September.
- One member, James pitched a proposal for a new project for the Advisory Group, around men’s mental health. (look out for that!)
Members of Youth Parliament updates
Our three Somerset MYP’s are now four months into their campaigns and have another 20 months to achieve their actions. They have been learning and understanding their roles more and have started to research and confidently network and plan their monthly activities.
After updating the Advisory Group the MYP’s are looking forward to schools and colleges restarting to give their campaigns some additional momentum.
The MYP’s will be travelling to Hull later this month to attend a national UK Youth Parliament Annual Conference residential. They’ll meet MYPs from across the UK and will debate priority issues for young people based on what they’ve told us across the UK. The results of the debate will shape the UKYP national manifesto.
You can have your say by shortlisting the topics for MYPs to discuss by voting here: https://wkf.ms/4vTlpgc
Voting for the national priorities closes on Friday 14 August 2026. But if you have any additional topic ideas let us know.
Some key dates this month to consider
- 12th Aug – UN International Youth Day – the theme for this year is ‘Different Contexts, Common Aspirations’
- 26th Aug – Women’s Equality Day – a day for celebrating progress, empowerment and equal rights from women.
- 31st Aug – National Cinema Day – a day for celebrating cinema with special offers and events in cinemas across the country, as well as £4 tickets. Members of the Somerset Youth Parliament Advisory Group talked about the last time they went to the cinema, how Netflix and other streaming services may have become the main way in which they watch new movies because of the perceptions around cost, choice and convenience. But, they also pointed out that going to the cinema is an event in itself, where the shared communal experience of movies can make them more exciting. MYP Eva even wrote a fantastic article on supporting National Cinema Day
Let us know if you are doing anything to celebrate any of these, and don’t forget to check out our other articles this month.
