Four Barnet school pupils have been chosen by young people across the borough to represent their views at the national and local levels.
Thousands of youngsters voted to elect their Members of Youth Parliament and Youth Ambassadors for the 2024 - 2026 term.
The newest Members of Youth Parliament are:
• Connor Gill, age 15, Finchley Catholic High School
• Freddie Atkinson, age 16, Saracens High School
Barnet’s newest Youth Ambassadors are:
• Eleanor Sidnick, age 15, JCoSS
• Sylvia Bega, age 13, East Barnet School
Barnet’s Youth Ambassadors chair the council’s Youth Board, where officers seek feedback from young people about policies, strategies and projects around the borough.
The Members of Youth Parliament represent Barnet as part of the national UK Youth Parliament, which sits annually at Westminster and campaigns on youth issues across the country.
All four young people will also progress their individual campaigns for better youth mental health support, diversifying the curriculum, supporting students with school stress and tackling knife crime.
Forty young people aged between 11 and 16 stood in the elections - a record number of candidates. There were 5,831 votes cast for the Youth Ambassadors and 7,596 cast for the Members of Youth Parliament across 14 schools.
The results were announced at Hendon Town Hall on 21 March at an event hosted by Barnet’s Mayor and attended by candidates, their schools and families. Also present were local councillors, Barnet’s Director of Children’s Services, and the Chief Executive of Barnet Education and Learning Services.
The night was also a chance to thank the outgoing youth representatives for 2022-24, MYPs Elysse Adil and Isaac Reuben and Youth Ambassadors Ania Siad and Deetya Pardasani.
Elysse said: “I’ve learnt many important life skills that I will definitely need in the future, like public speaking and debating, which are used in the Houses of Parliament.”
Isaac is now studying Politics at the University of Leeds – a decision he said was inspired by his time on the Youth Parliament.
He said: “It’s been amazing seeing the practical level of politics alongside doing it academically for A-level as well. We’ve done all sorts of things locally, testifying to council about things like trans children in schools, accessibility in various areas. And then on a national level, that’s been really fun. We’ve met people from across the UK who you would just never meet.”
The Worshipful Mayor of Barnet, Cllr Nagus Narenthira, said: “I would like to congratulate all those who took part in this year’s elections.
“These initiatives are a great opportunity for all students in Barnet to take part in democratic processes at such a young age – and that is very, very valuable.”
To find out more or get involved click here or email mysaymatters@barnet.gov.uk.