Daniel
Youth Assembly Member
My name is Daniel, and I am from Ballymoney. I joined the Youth Assembly because I wanted to get involved in the laws being passed in our country. The Youth Assembly helped me achieve that.
Being part of the Youth Assembly was so much fun. The meetings were informative and helped me to understand how I could actively contribute. The workshops were so helpful – one I remember particularly was a public speaking workshop with journalist and TV presenter Sarah Travers which we did before we first spoke in the Assembly Chamber. It gave me the confidence to speak up right from the start.
The Youth Assembly team kept everyone informed and up to date, so we could contribute and feel like we knew what was going on. It wasn’t just two or three ‘fast thinkers’ who planned everything and knew what was happening. Something that surprised me about the Youth Assembly was that the politicians actually listened and took on board what we said. We spoke to MLAs regularly about a range of issues including supporting mental health in schools.
Some skills I have developed during my time here at the Youth Assembly were people skills and public speaking. At the Youth Assembly, we are encouraged to talk to other members and MLAs and collaborate to be the best group we can be. I feel like now I could speak to anyone in the world – a big difference than this time two years ago!
The Youth Assembly helped me with public speaking through the opportunities it has encouraged me to try, like speaking in the Assembly chamber in front of 100 people and speaking in front of MLAs and Ministers. These skills have helped me, not just in my personal life, but in my school life as well. It has helped me with a lot of the assessments for GCSE English. I am so grateful for the Youth Assembly for this, and I would be in a much different place without it.
The impact made by the Northern Ireland Youth Assembly is massive. The Youth Assembly makes an impact by identifying problems and producing solutions, from young people, for young people. We then present this to MLAs and people in positions of influence so that they bring that into the Assembly Chamber and real change is made. We contributed to the Tobacco and Vapes Bill, which aims to tackle the problem of youth vaping. The Youth Assembly has also made a huge impact in how the government sees young people. They no longer see the youth as far off and hard to reach – they see us as a priority group to consult.
I think young people, in school years 9, 10, 11 and 12, should apply to be part of this experience because you interact with other young people, make an impact on the world around you, make friends from all around the country from all kinds of backgrounds and ultimately make the country a better place.
You can apply to change our world through the Youth Assembly by visiting our website niyouthassembly.org/recruitment.
This is an opportunity you do not want to miss. I cannot say enough how much good the Youth Assembly has done for me and could do for you.
Apply to make Northern Ireland better!
