New Members of Youth Parliament announced

A record number of young people turned out to vote for Shropshire’s new Members of Youth Parliament (MYPs).

Bridie Sedgebeer, 16, from Shrewsbury Sixth Form College and Olivia Barber, 15, from The Priory School in Shrewsbury, were elected on Monday 8 February as the Shropshire MYPs. Ashley Silverstone, 16, from The Bridgnorth Sixth Form Partnership and Hannah Davies, 16, from Belvidere School in Shrewsbury, were voted as deputy MYPs.

Young people, aged 11 to 18, have been voting for their MYPs at schools, colleges and education centres throughout Shropshire.

A total of 14,915 votes were cast between January 7 and 20 this year which is the biggest turn-out since MYP elections were held in Shropshire in 1999 and a significant increase on the 12,037 votes cast last year. The successful candidates were announced on Monday 8 February at an election results day at Shirehall, Shrewsbury, organised by Shropshire Council.

Young people also voted for their top two issues. These were sports/leisure activities for young people and tackling smoking, drugs and alcohol. These will form the MYPs’ manifesto for the coming year.

The new MYPs will represent young people locally, regionally and nationally for the next 12 months. They will ensure that young people’s views are heard and influence policies on a range of issues which affect them.

Councillor Aggie Caesar-Homden, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet Member for Children and Young People’s Services said: “It’s fantastic to see so many young people making their voices heard by voting in the MYP elections. The MYPs will be very active in helping the council to decide its priorities and scrutinise its work.

“I’d like to say a big thank-you to the MYPs and deputies who were elected at this time in 2009 and have worked extremely hard during their year in post.

“I look forward to working with the new MYPs and building on the work of MYPs to date. Year-on-year the number of young people voting is increasing; a trend we hope will continue so that every young person in Shropshire knows about Youth Parliament and is able to vote.”

Bridie Sedgebeer, MYP, said: "This is a great opportunity; thanks to all the young people who voted. I’ve worked closely with the Youth Parliament and the council as a deputy MYP and am really excited to now represent Shropshire as an MYP.”

Young people were invited to join the candidates during the elections results day and attend fun, interactive workshops to discuss the issues which are important to them.

The MYPs will now develop an action plan in consultation with the young people of Shropshire which will guide their work during the next year. Officers from Shropshire Council will support the elected MYPs in carrying out their roles.

Issued: 8 February 2010

Back to top