On Saturday 30th January 2016, seven students from St. Nicholas Catholic High School, attended a selection day to join the UK Youth Parliament.
The UK Youth Parliament (UKYP) is a youth organisation in the United Kingdom, consisting of democratically elected members aged between 11 and 18. Formed in 2000, the parliament has around 600 members, who are elected to represent the views of young people in their area to government and service providers.
On the morning of the day, students learnt about the UK Youth Parliament. Students had the opportunity to interview the current Member of Youth Parliament (MYP). Students from various schools across Cheshire then planned a speech about the issues they are concerned with.
In the afternoon, the hustings took place and each student made their one minute speech. A first past the post voting system was used; votes were cast, counted, and announced by the returning officer.
Two out of the seven students were elected to join the Youth Parliament and will now campaign and take part in an election which will be held in mid-March. The other students were invited to sit on a Youth Senate and will be meeting periodically throughout the year to discuss important local issues. St. Nicholas’ Catholic High School is very proud of the positive contribution these students made.
