Youth councillors gather for first meeting

Harry Atterbury, Hannah Churchill, Max Rowley, Jamie Butler, Kieron Stevens, Anie Scott, Nico Everest, Amba Greenwood and Sarah Roberts were joined by their three allocated parish councillors – Gloria Eveleigh, Geoff Patmore and Emma Purnell – for the Council Chamber meeting on Wednesday, May 24.

Gloria Eveleigh, Lancing Parish Council chairman, said: “After several months of preparation, training and recruitment, this was a historic occasion – the first time in Lancing parish’s history that a youth council has ever met.

“Young people between the ages of 13 and 19, living within three miles of, or attending a school or club within Lancing, are eligible to be youth councillors.

“Their role is to represent the Lancing youth – both for consultation by the parish council and by outreach to young people in the village to understand their views and wishes.

“The youth council currently meets once a month and brings ideas for discussion and decisions that can be taken to the parish council for agreement or ratification.”

At this inaugural meeting, all new councillors were presented with their youth council badges, before voting for a chairman (youth councillor Harry Atterbury) and vice chairman (youth councillor Hannah Churchill).

The rest of the meeting covered issued such as the introduction of an internet cafe in the village, to review how recruitment has gone so far and to introduce the idea of a youth council website.

The young councillors also discussed how they could be involved in the Monks Rec play day on August 2 and discussed ways of obtaining ideas and wishes from Lancing’s youth, including any points of action they should take.