Brighton & Hove Youth Council represents young people in the city. Find out about the youth council and how to get involved.
Brighton & Hove Youth Council (BHYC) is made up of young people aged 13 to 19 (and up to aged 25 with SEND), who are elected or nominated from local schools, colleges or youth groups.
BHYC meets at least once a month and represents the views and listens to the voices of young people in the city. The Youth Council aims to represent all young people’s views and opinions and influence decisions made by politicians, councillors and other local and national decision makers. They run campaigns about issues that are important to young people. Currently they have a Transport Campaign looking at pricing, timetables and safety, and a Mental Health Campaign looking at better education for young people around services available in the city.
The Youth Council exists to actively promote article 12 of the UN Convention on the Rights of a Child, which says:
“Children have the right to say what they think should happen, when adults are making decisions that affect them, and to have their opinions taken into account”.
Being a member of the youth council, you will be able to develop your skills in:
“I’ve only just joined Youth Council however it’s been so inclusive and enjoyable. From exploring the Town Hall to voicing my opinions in debates with other Youth Councillors. It gives me a sense of importance and something I can look forward to after a long day of school. I’m looking forward to the upcoming meetings in the council chamber, where I can see my peers and discuss how we can make Brighton and Hove a more inclusive place for all”.
Scarlett, Year 11, Hove Park, 2023
“I joined the youth council at the start of my second year of secondary school as someone who wasn't very confident, but wanted to put themselves forward for things. I knew I could do it, I just hadn’t yet. My confidence has been boosted significantly and I have felt a sense of purpose and responsibility in representing the views of the local youth.
“I have helped run and gather votes for the Make Your Mark Ballot Paper and I am proud to have received both the bronze and silver certificates for my hours, which kick started my CV. The entire experience has been great. I hope it's able to carry on and prosper in future years.”
Alfie Wingfield, Brighton & Hove Youth Council member, 2016 to 2019
“For me, youth council has been a real game changer for me in many different ways. For example, understanding the aspects of the council in more depth compared to not being in the BYHC, more social skills and public speaking which will be a huge skill I need in the future. It is actually a fun thing to attend because of the different kinds of characters of people there are.” Zac Capewell, Youth Council member
In July 2022, BHYC met with local MP’s Councillors and Council Officers to talk about Bus Transport in the city. They than ran a consultation with over 1800 young people to understand and inform their key priorities around Bus Travel. Which were as follows:
These priorities were covered in their Bus Transport Manifesto Launched in 2023. They recently met with the Enhanced Partnership which consists of bus company representatives, local councillors, and council officers to present their manifesto. They are now working with the Enhanced Partnership and local bus companies to look at some of the Youth Council recommendations.
In 2022, BHYC ran a local consultation with young people as part of the National Make Your Mark Consultation ran by the British Youth Council. Both locally and nationally for young people the most important topic was ‘Health and Wellbeing’ They then ran focus groups to better understand this topic and the outcome of these groups was the following two areas as key priorities around Mental Health for young people.
They explored ways that they could respond to this and agreed an education campaign to improve young people’s knowledge of services in Brighton and Hove was a positive way forward.
In the spring term of 2024 BHYC will be running a Youth Mental Health Summit with workshops focussing on the following four outcomes.
In February 2021 schools across Brighton & Hove came together virtually to ask important questions about the climate emergency to their three local MPs, Caroline Lucas (Green Party), Lloyd Russell-Moyle (Labour), Peter Kyle (Labour), as well as, local councillor, Samer Bagaeen (Conservative) who is a member of the council's Carbon Neutral Member Working Group.
Follow Brighton & Hove Youth Council on Instagram at @BHYouthCouncil.
If you’d like to know more about youth council or to get involved, either speak to your school youth group leader or contact John Lewry:
John Lewry
Lead Youth Participation Worker
Email: john.lewry@brighton-hove.gov.uk
Tel: 01273 294 248
Mobile: 07785 432 468
Additionally, learn more about the UK Youth Parliament.