Council launches Thanet Youth Council to give younger residents a voice

Thanet District Council will launch its first ever Youth Council in the coming weeks, after the initiative was put before Cabinet at a meeting on Thursday 17 November 2022.

The Thanet Youth Council will provide a space where the district’s younger residents can meet to learn more about local politics and discuss current council projects. It comes as a result of close collaboration between Councillors and the council’s Community team. 

Thanet Youth Councillors will not have any official decision-making powers, but they will have the opportunity to voice their opinions on council projects at various stages of the decision-making process. 

There are already some young people signed up to take part but the council is encouraging local 14 to 18 year-olds who have an interest in politics, or who want to learn more about the council’s work, to get involved. Anyone who is interested is welcome to attend the Thanet Youth Council’s first meeting. It’s on Wednesday 30 November 6.30 to 8.30pm, at the Thanet District Council offices on Cecil Street in Margate. Prospective attendees should talk to their parent or carer for permission, and email tracy.moon@thanet.gov.uk to say that they intend to come to the meeting. Transport to the meetings can be provided if necessary. The members of the Thanet Youth Council will decide on the frequency of future meetings.

Cllr George Kup, Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Youth Engagement, said: “We’re all really excited about the prospect of a Youth Council and what it could become. It’s absolutely crucial that we get more young people engaged in local democracy – they arguably have an even higher stake in the future of the area than the rest of us, and it’s only right that they have the opportunity to comment on decision-making processes. 

“We want the council to be more representative of the Thanet community as a whole, and that includes better representation for Thanet’s young people. We have so many bright young minds in the district, and their fresh insight and perspective on council projects could be of real value.”

To encourage / help more people to get involved in council projects, we have launched a brand new online engagement platform, Your Voice Thanet. This will become the go-to place for residents to learn about council projects, where there are engagement opportunities and an important channel to provide feedback on proposed plans. Anyone can see the projects on the site but in order to participate members of the local community must complete a short registration process at YourVoice.Thanet.gov.uk