Jacob Sakil is the Sixth Young Mayor for Lewisham

Sorry to everyone for the delay on this story. But for those who didn't know, Lewisham has it's Sixth Young Mayor! Check out the story below:

Lewisham, the first London borough to elect a Young Mayor chose their 6th representative on the 16th October 2009. The most competitive campaign yet saw 15 young people between the ages of 14 to 17 battling it out on the streets of Lewisham to secure the votes that could earn them the title of Young Mayor. Three weeks of campaigning were packed with feisty hustings, innovative video campaigns, conventional leafleting, groups on social networking websites, colourful propaganda, T-shirts and recognisable posters. It seemed the margin between each candidate was only going to be a few votes.

Miguel, the outgoing Young Mayor said that the election campaign, "...is a great way to get a lot of young people talking", he added that "Even though there can only be 2 top spots, every candidate has worked extremely hard to get their message across. The majority of the candidates had big campaign teams which has been great!"

The atmosphere at results night was unbelievable. Former young mayors, councillors, council officers, partner organisations and members of the public, old and young, all gathered in the Civic Suite to hear the announcement. After what seemed to be a long period of suspense, Jacob Sakil was declared as Lewisham’s Sixth Young Mayor, with Lola Mustapha as his Deputy. It was really close between the two with only 100 votes separating them. Jacob was shocked, saying, "It was exactly what I wanted but I didn’t prepare myself for it. I couldn’t back down and now I have to continue down this road and show people that their vote wasn’t in vain!". Lola described the atmosphere, saying, "It's Great! I’m happy to see so many young people supporting a good cause".

Once again Lewisham set the trend by breaking the record in London with a staggering 52% turnout. The new Young Mayor took these figures to heart adding that "It shows that young people are getting involved and they are starting to understand that they can shape their lives and the way they view the world. They can take their ideas to a whole new level."

What does the future hold for the pair? No one can be sure, but their future is certainly bright. By the end of their term, both are hoping to make real achievements on issues they feel passionate about. Lola would like to improve work experience and get involved in services that deal with young women and young parents. Jacob wants to make young people independent. "I want them to stop relying on the government and give them the tools so they can innovate and make a better Lewisham”, he said.

You can get in touch with Jacob & Lola by emailing youngcitizens@lewisham.gov.uk or contacting the Young Mayor's office on 020 8314 6354.

Is Stop and Search out of control??

Hi everyone,

It’s that time of the year when most of us will be out and about looking for ways to

celebrate the New Year in style. Due to that, some of us will be stopped and searched

quite a few times. Statistics show that you are more likely to be stopped and

searched if you are under 25, male and Asian. And it has also been reported that

White

people are detained to ‘balance racial statistics'

Have you ever been stopped and searched?

Do you know your rights around stop and search?

Do you know how to complaint once you have been stopped and searched?

GET INVOLVED!!

LGiU call for Councils to do more...

...to involve vulnerable young people in initiatives like Young Mayor elections.

http://www.cypnow.co.uk/news/ByDiscipline/Youth-Work/970935/Councils-involve-vulnerable-young-people-participation/

Kaycee making waves...

Early on Tuesday morning, Young Mayor of Newham Kaycee de Belen went to St. Pancras Station with Seb Coe to wave off a group of young people from Newham on a journey to Sheffield to spread the benefits of the London 2012 legacy.

Newham is one of the boroughs which will benefit most from the 2012 Games and Kaycee (and Joshua and Zuhayb before her) have been there every step of the way.

See the full story here...

http://www.london2012.com/blog/2009/11/13/sharing-the-educational-legacy-of-the-games-around-the-u.php

Congratulations to Kaycee de Belen who, with over 2,600 votes, has been elected as the first female Young Mayor of Newham. It was a fantastic night in East Ham Town Hall as outgoing Young Mayor Joshua Adejokun, handed over to Kaycee. Kaycee said: "Thank you to all my supporters throughout the campaign that helped me achieve my goal.

"I am so proud and excited to be the new Young Mayor of Newham and be the voice for young people in our borough.

"I am looking forward to reducing youth crime, creating better youth opportunities and focusing on education."

Look forward to working with you in the YMN!

Record turnout in Lewisham...

52% turnout in the election for Young Mayor of Lewisham - continues to go from success to success...

Young Mayor of Newham 2009

Voting has started for the Young Mayor elections in Newham. After a primary election earlier this month, Newham's young people have chosen fifteen candidates to go forward to the next round of voting.

Outgoing Young Mayor Joshua Adejokun urged everyone aged 11 to 17 in Newham to vote 'to make sure your views, hopes and aspirations for the borough can become reality'. Adult Mayor Sir Robin Wales is also supporting the ballot. Young people can vote in schools, colleges and Connexions centres.

You can see the candidates' manifestos and video statements online at http://www.newham.gov.uk/youngmayor/elections/. The winning candidate, along with the youth council, will represent the views of young people across the borough, and has a key role deciding on local priorities and advising the council.

Results are expected on Thursday night, and will be published here as soon as we know!

Should the DNA of innocent people be kept on the police database?

"More than 300 children a day have their DNA taken by the police and added to the national database.

Already 412,670 youngsters under 15 have their genetic profiles stored.

The DNA samples, from children as young as ten, are kept regardless of whether or not they were ever charged."

Do you think this is right? Should innocent people have their DNA stored into a database that's meant to be for criminals? Surely it must be against one's human rights.

What do YOU think?

Hi everyone :)

Hi everyone :)

I just wanted to introduce myself and to familiarise myself with everyone who is a member of the Young Mayor Network. My name is Luziane, I'm 17 years and I'm about to start my 2nd year of college to study Spanish, French, History and Economics A2 levels.

I applied for this job because I've always thought that the YMN has a huge potential and it is up to us to take the initiative to make sure that potential does not go to waste. Hence, I will need everyone's participation in order to deliver what you want. I need your feedbacks, comments and criticism to make sure we hit the road to success.

I shall keep you posted with my forthcoming achievements but in the meantime make sure you keep in touch and post any ideas.

Luziane

Congratulations to Luziane Tchiegue-Nouta who has just been appointed as the new co-ordinator of the Young Mayor Network. Luziane is a young advisor working with the young mayor in Lewisham. I'm sure you'll be hearing from her soon!!

MYPs and young mayors

YMN ran a workshop last weekend at the UK Youth Parliament Annual sitting to talk about how young mayors and MYPs can work together. We were joined by representatives from the British Youth Council and Young Advisor's - it is clear that a lot of great stuff is happening locally and we talked about how to work more closely alongside each other. Everyone was very keen that it shouldn't just be a talking shop so watch this space...

Steady progress...

Still so much work to be done, but CYP Now article looks at how young people, through things like the young mayor programme, are increasingly being listened to
http://tinyurl.com/nnnlz2

Young mayors in parliament

Over 50 local authorities from across the country came together yesterday to find out more about how the young mayor model works and how it might be implemented in their local area. A passionate debate around the different models of youth engagement was the highlight of the day and underlined the need to think carefully about how young mayors and youth councils can complement each other. The end game for everyone is the same and it is essential to remember that we are not in competition! The YMN are here to answer any questions about the young mayor process and look forward to carrying on the debate with everyone present and many more. Also, if you were at the event yesterday and want your copy of the film, get in touch and let us know where to send it!

Newham in the news...

Young Mayor of Newham Joshua Adejokun has urged directors of children services across the country to set up young mayor schemes in their own areas.

http://tinyurl.com/de3lk6

Young Mayor of Newham Joshua Adejokun writes today in a special edition of the SocietyGuardian. Joshua talks about his experiences as a young person and why it is important to inspire other young people to get involved in changing their society on a very local level.

http://tinyurl.com/djo35d

Young Mayor live broadcast...

The first radio show by the Young Mayor of Tower Hamlets goes out next Friday (24th April) at 6pm. You can listen to it here: http://www.xstreameast.co.uk/

'I’ve always been a little critical of society. I feel annoyed when decisions are made without young people being consulted, especially if the decision influences us. Before I was elected as Young Mayor, I felt discriminated against because of my age; some of my older friends told me I was too young to have such a responsible role.'

So said Joshua Adejokun, Young Mayor of Newham, at a speech yesterday to the Association of Director's of Children's Services. Do you agree?

Willing but not Wanting

Only a quarter of young people will definitely vote in the next election even though most think it is important to vote, according to figures published by the Hansard Society today.

The political education charity's sixth Audit of Political Engagement found that 24 per cent of 18- to 24-year-old say they are ‘certain to vote' at a general election, compared to 57 per cent of over-25s. This double in difference initially reflects that the younger generation just aren't interested or bothered about the democracy that surrounds them. However this is not true, four out of five (83 per cent) think it is "essential" or "important" to vote in order to be a good citizen clearly hinting that the new generation is not only overly keen about having a say and involvement in their community but also that they are more awake than ever and are not happy with the choices that are on offer. they are willing to be a part of the community but are not wanting to support the unrepresentative parties of today.

The younger generation are thinking for themselves rather than following the old fashion trend of following in your parents foot steps. 54% of adults expressed an interest in politics yet this figure is lower than than their voting turnout showing that some adults just vote for the sake of it rather than thinking for themselves. Perhaps it is time for the grown-ups to take a leaf out of the younger generations book and begin thinking for themselves.

Chief executive of the Hansard Society, Fiona Booth had this to say: "The overall findings of this year's Audit should cause all of us to reflect on how much more there is still to do to increase public knowledge of and interest in how we are governed - particularly among the younger generation."

Record Turnout on Tyneside!!

The 1st ever Young Mayor election in North Tyneside saw a turnout of 59%. Voting took place yesterday with the result announced today at a ceremony led by adult Mayor John Harrison. The winner was Olamide John Akinropo with over 1,000 votes. This turnout smashes the figure for equivalent adult elections and underlines that young people are NOT apathetic about politics!! More to follow...

Zu Blog - Spitting Sparks

I am fortunate to be in a line of work that crosses paths with many talented, opinionated young people. Even so I was taken aback by a discussion with young people from the young mayor network.
The philosophical atmosphere was set by Matt and Alex washing up while the ladies built the fire. We all settled round mesmerized by the glowing amber, no doubt contemplating about the calories piled on during dinner. It only took one loud thought from the sophisticated Emmanuel Adepoju about his perspective on himself and ambitions to get the young peoples views pouring. I spent most of my time lost in awe at their depth and as always came to the conclusion that this passion and talent need to be captured.
We concluded with Andorid Alex's brain teasing game. By the end both young people and officers were mentally and physically tired. making the nights sleeping that little bit sweeter. What intrigues me most is the way each and every young person woke up with the same level of enthusiasm they departed with. Unique.

Zuhayb Ahmed

Young Mayor Network Coordinator

[S]uperior [S]amuel [S]tatement

Welcome,
I believe that all borough's need to unite and have power in numbers. we reflect on the fact that change is our thing and together we can do anything. young mayor network are educating our youth to be leaders of tomorrow. we want to make a difference to resolve old problems and create new solutions.

Samuel Adepoju
Lambeth Youth Councilor

Jammin With Jacob

Wassup Everyone,

My Name is Jacob Sakil and I am writing to trigger the beginning of endless blogging on what young people want to change. one of the problems that i absolutely hate is how the media portrays us as 'young people that get up to no good', and the reality is we do more right than we do wrong, so my question is what can we do to change this stereotype? love to hear people replies answers or even more question and remember this blogging is only the beginning of something big 'old problems, New solutions'

Jacob Sakil

Chair, Young Advisor of Lewisham

Welcome!

Hello everyone, this is Joshua Adejokun, the Young Mayor of Newham. I am welcoming everyone to this blog page and hope that we can all interact together and hear each others thoughts and ideas. This will be a great opportunity for us to discuss our ideas on a wider level. there is power in numbers so let all boroughs unite.
Have a great time on this website.

Joshua Adejokun
Young Mayor of Newham

Blears Backs Young Mayor Network

Still ecstatic from yesterdays proceedings. The turnout of Young Mayors and their supporting young people was brilliant and the numbers seemed duplicated when the opinions began pouring out. The Young Mayors took part in a role play work shop where half of them impersonated a cynical journalist and the other half represented Young Mayors. From the word go both teams began scheming and predicting the tactics of the rival and prepping their selected spokes person. The levels of enthusiasm and anticipation were dangerous, with the natural young winners at their competitive peak. Time over. The 'Young Mayor' (Tommy Seagull - deputy young mayor of Newham) and the cynical journalist (Thomas North - Young Mayor of Melton) met on camera to conduct the controversial interview.
The manner, ability and performance of both actors was memorable and with many adult politicians in the room the act was mockingly humorous.
Soon after Rt. Hon Hazel Blears MP voiced her impression of active young people in particular Young Mayors and their councils. She also got the chance to confer and congratulate the young people on their individual success stories. Still in awe of the Young People She announced her future plans of involvement with the Young Mayor Network and financial support. Speaking on behalf of the Young Mayor Network I would like to thank Mrs.Blears for giving us her time, effort and support.

Zu blog - Stop press!!! Hazel Blears announces £2m for new young mayor schemes

Zuhayb (YMN co-ordinator) – When I stepped down as Young Mayor of Newham, everyone kept telling me how the feeling would sink in and the surreal atmosphere would soon dissolve into reality. No one predicted that this one success would just trigger another and lead in to a chain reaction? I spent my whole term lost in the pleasure and gratitude of being the representative of so many passionate and talented young people, and no sooner had that era drawn to a close than I get a proposal from the Young Mayor Network to come and carry on the work that I had so heavily fallen for.

Four months on I am sitting at my desk writing about how Rt. Hon Hazel Blears MP has recognised and supported the work of the Young Mayor Network by announcing a £2million budget to help young people from other areas to also benefit from having a young mayor of their own. Mrs. Blears met with young people form across the country today to discuss and push forward the issue of participation and young people in a workshop lead by the Young Mayor Network.

In agreement with Mrs. Blears I also believe that Young Mayor schemes provide young people with a figurehead to listen and voice their views on a greater platform and also the opportunity to have direct influence over decisions that effect their livelihood. The announced budget should allow another 20 young mayor schemes to kick off around the country and reignite the belief and passion of the new generation in democracy and change.

Time For Change At GOL

Time for change is clearly upon us. Government office for London has taken full advantage of this and have appointed Jacky Tiotto as Director of Children and Learners. Jacky previously worked as Senior National Advisor – Children Adults and Health Services, so is well equipped with the skills and ideas needed to meet the demands of working with young people.
This was also the judgement of two fellow Young Mayor network members, Liam Webber and Alex Kuye who were part of the interview panel for this demanding job role. Alex and Liam both felt that Jacky had the X factor needed to be able to relate and work for and with young people for their benefit. When appointed Jacky was full of praise for our two fellow YMN members, “Liam and Alex were charming and very sure about what they wanted to know! I felt they were really searching for someone who wanted to work alongside them, involving them in decisions and plans at the beginning rather than asking them half way through and never then letting them know what decisions had been made.
The Young Mayor Network wishes Jacky all the best and look forward to working with her in the near future.

Spiraling Secular Society

Typical start to the morning! Missed the alarm, rushed getting ready only to end up looking worse than before and the inevitable delays of the London underground. Even in all the hustle and bustle an article in the next guys paper caught my attention, 'Baby Faced Dad'. Last week 13-year-old Alfie and his 15-year-old girlfriend Chantelle became parents of a healthy baby girl - Maisie. The young age bracket of the two parents has sparked debates all over the country and it hasn't helped that Alfie himself looks young for his age hence being labelled the 'Baby faced Dad'. Having only caught the beginning of the story I was already sent into a state of disbelief and sadness over the wasted lives of today's society. Not only are we consistently losing potential filled young lives to gun n knife culture but it plain to see that these two young parents have picked up the major responsibility of parenthood before they have even begun their 'best years'. And who will the responsibility of Maisie be thrown upon, who will she look to for advice and guidance when her parents are still learning themselves?
After purposely distracting myself, I managed to carry on worrying about being late and how to politely edge past the trotting old lady in front of me. I ran into the office and head first into my overloaded inbox. The thought of the baby faced dad kept coming to mind and I wondered what other young people from different upbringings would have to say or whether they could even begin to imagine how it would feel like, had it been them. I found the article on the web only to realise that the second half was about how they weren't even sure the child was Alfie's. Two other young lads from the area also have reasons to believe Maisie is their daughter. Tyler Barker, 14 and Richard Goodsell, 16 both claim that they were involved with Chantelle around the same period that she fell pregnant. This latest piece of information was too much for me to process.
The failure of young people in the present time is unacceptable and the secular way of living that today's elder generation has adapted needs to stop. The country is failing the new generation and it will come back around to them if things carry on the way they are going. Is it fair to blame the parents of these two young children or is the picture bigger than it first seems. With sexual education in schools becoming more and more if a issue, is the government taking the correct approach to tackling the issue are are they just feeding into the problem?
I for one believe we should be educating today's young people about the true meaning of a relationship by concentrating on the emotional and commitment factors rather than shoving flimsy condoms into their back pockets without and knowledge of the scale of repercussions a sexual relationship can cause. Parents are so caught up in financial crisis and mortgage payments that they are forced to neglect their children therefore believe the blame lies with teachers and the education system and so this circle of blame continues its cycle with the actual root of the problems being left untouched and the problem itself left to grow in negligence.

Young People Credit Crunched

One of the current issues that has been taken on by other youth participation organisations such as UKYP and Chair of BYC Emily Beardsmore, is 'Young people and the Credit Crunch'. Due to recent positive and negative events such as the Olympics and youth on youth crime, local leaders and providers began to involve young people more and more in decisions that influence their lives. Goverment pushed for every borough to have a youth participation officer in post and newspapers were hunting for young people stories and views. This was a much needed step forward at a time where the new generation was becoming out of touch with their community and drastically loosing faith in the countries political system and democracy. However as the credit crunch hits the UK harshly, will leaders and providers of the community still think it important to spend valuable time and finances on involving young people in decisions. Will young people be failed once again? Will it ever be possible to restore the new generations faith in their country after a rise and fall like this?

Training on Tyneside...

The candidates for the first ever Young Mayor of North Tyneside picked up some election tips at a dedicated training session on Saturday. Nearly 60 prospective Young Mayors came along to learn about running a political campaign, communicating with the electorate and how to get their message across. The day was closed by the Mayor of North Tyneside John Harrison, with whom the young mayor will work closely, and with only 7 weeks until election day, there is a lot of work to do...

Tower Hamlets Young Mayor 2009/10

I wasn't expecting to receive an invite through the post to President Obama's inauguration but I was privileged enough to be invited to the inauguration of the London borough of Tower Hamlets new young mayor. This is the borough third democratically elected young mayor following their first elections in 2007. However there is a special twist in this tale as the election winner was the boroughs first ever female young mayor, Uma Akhter with an amazing 1476 votes.

The elections were fierce, understandably as there were 24 candidates in total. All candidates deserving a pat on the back as the voting turnout rose to 6385 – 46%. Stealing the limelight from Tower Hamlets council election where the turn out was only 40% reflecting how awake and active the young people of the new generation are. The three runners up, Jahingir Alom (1,218 votes), Alex Kuye (843 votes) and Jamil Ahmad Trofder (754 votes) will be the young mayors advisory board and step in for Uma at events and invites when she cannot attend.
I had a chance to catch a quick talk with Uma and her uniformed campaign team after the results had been announced. She was still shocked that she had won and no doubt it would take a couple of days to sink in. Uma said 'I’m overwhelmed. As a female I didn’t think I could achieve this, but being the first female Young Mayor of Tower Hamlets – I feel like I’ve achieved something already'. However there was no sense of disbelief surrounding her family who believed victory would be hers all along. They were extremely proud that all her hard work had paid off and that a female member of their family had become a leading figure in their community.

Uma also told us of chilli campaigning experience and how hard it had been braving the winter winds and visiting as many youth centres as she could along with the unwavering support of her friends and family. Uma wishes to raise the profile of the Tower Hamlets Young Mayor scheme so that the young people of Tower Hamlets know that there is a way to have their opinions voiced and their ideas implemented. She also wishes to work on projects that not only benefit young people but their families and community clockwork, bettering the relationship between the two generations of the borough.

I look forward to working with Uma as I'm sure so does the rest of the Young Mayor Network.
Uma is just another example of what young people are capable of when provided with the right opportunity and support.

This blog was written by Zuhayb Ahmed, Coordinator of the Young Mayor Network

For more details about the young mayor network and its benfits for youth engagement Visit www.thecampaigncompany.co.uk

Young Mayor hits the news...

With North Tyneside electing their first young mayor over the next couple of months, the emphasis is on letting as many people as possible know about what is going on. After Zuhayb's trip to see the Youth Council a couple of weeks ago, I went back to my old high school to tell everyone why they should get involved. The BBC news crew came along as well. Great to see positive stories about young people making the news...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/7834565.stm

The Young Mayor Network 2 months in

It is now coming up to two months that I have been in my role and I have had a real eye opening experience as in to how much work and effort goes into projects such as Young Mayor Network. My first couple of days were spent adapting to the office and the TCC system and evaluation the current YMN workings. After many hours of contemplating and dreaming, myself and Matthew realised what we needed to change and where we were heading...a long term vision was now formed.

Since then I have projected this vision in YMN meetings and gathered members views and opinions. I feel as id with this direction in view the members have a greater sense of purpose within the YMN. We have now thought up many aspects of the YMN that need to be tailored to ensure it fulfils its purpose. We are planning on hold a working residential shortly after the new year, in which we will workshop many ideas such as a public/private website, roles and titles within YMN structure, elected borough reps to ensure effective communication and many more initiatives.

I hope to be sitting here in the near future writing about how the YMN has many sponsors, an increase in members and many success stories of influencing and aiding other young people to get involved and make a difference.



Zuhayb
(Young Mayor Coordinator)

For more information on the young mayor network

Also for the team behind the young mayor The Campaign Company