POLICY & PRACTICE: Soapbox - Council youth champions are more thana gimmick

To many councillors, youth issues can be more commonly interpreted as youth problems.

For a number of reasons, it seems that as participation by young people in politics has declined, so has their elected representatives' knowledge of the issues important to them.

Children and young people are vital members of all local communities.

Living in the same area, they use and receive the same services and they have the same rights and responsibilities as any other citizen. But how well does local democracy represent their views in the 21st century?

Many young people have little knowledge of the services their local council provides or how to approach it if they need to. They often feel their votes make no difference or that their needs do not matter. This is reflected in a falling interest in local politics and declining turnout at elections.