In 2022 Knaresborough Voice produced artwork to illustrate the priorities for community development that had been identified for the town. Whilst this was a really positive demonstration of our joint working, we mused that not one person who had contributed was under the age of 30.

 

Youth engagement is one of the themes of Knaresborough Voice's activities and we were failing miserably. As a result, Chain Lane Community Hub applied to North Yorkshire Council’s UK Shared Prosperity Fund, in partnership with Inspire Youth Yorkshire and Yorkshire CREATE.

 

In the words of Coretta Scott King (Martin Luther King's wife) "The failure to invest in youth reflects a lack of compassion and a colossal failure of common sense". The Youth Voice project aimed to put this right and place young people at the centre of community development activities.

 

We have now built a foundation of youth engagement to build on:

• Young people told us they wanted a voice in local decision making, so a Civic Youth Council has been created by Inspire Youth Yorkshire and Yorkshire CREATE, supported by Knaresborough Town Council

• A comprehensive engagement project that provided every young person in the town with the opportunity to contribute

• Artwork, a video and a report have been produced so that we can share what young people have told us.

 

The young people who have contributed have been impressive. Their love for the town, their enthusiasm for the future and their willingness to engage has been inspiring. We are so fortunate to have such wonderful young people growing and learning in our community – we are determined that not only will their voice be heard, but their views will be taken seriously and be built into our plans moving forward. The future is theirs and it's our responsibility to ensure it is shaped in the way they want it to be.Read the report here