Young people urged to contribute to youth parliament campaign

Shropshire’s Members of Youth Parliament (MYPs) are asking for help in building a picture of how young people travel and use public transport in the county. 

Young people, aged 11- to 18-years-old, are urged to complete a short online survey.  The responses will be used as part of a West Midlands Youth Parliament campaign.  The campaign aims to find out more about how travel and transport options for young people can be improved – and show decision-makers and transport providers how this can happen. 

To fill in the survey go to the Shropshire Youth Facebook page at www.facebook.com/shropshireyouth, the Shropshire Youth website at www.shropshireyouth.com or click here (http://kwiksurveys.com/online-survey.php?surveyID=NOEJFH_51d0841f). The survey includes questions on what forms of transport young people use and how often. 

Councillor Aggie Caesar-Homden, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member for youth provision, said:

“Our MYPs do a fantastic job helping other young people to share their thoughts, opinions and ideas.  We know that transport and access to public transport, particularly in our rural areas, can have a big impact on our young people’s lives. This is another opportunity for young people to have their voices heard, and I would urge as many young people as possible to fill in the survey which only takes a few minutes to complete.”

Kathryn Brooke, deputy MYP for Shropshire, said:

“The survey can be used for statistics in the West Midlands and also to show decision-makers what young people want. This will hopefully have a positive impact and mean transport providers are more likely to accommodate our transport campaign aims.”

MYPs represent young people locally, regionally and nationally, and influence policies on a range of issues.  Shropshire’s MYPs are Olivia Barber and James Ellsmoor, and the county’s deputy MYPs are William Coles and Kathryn Brooke.  Shropshire Council’s customer insight team provides support to the MYPs.
The survey will run until the end of September 2011.  The results will be used at a regional Youth Parliament campaign event in December 2011. 

For further information on MYPs and the survey call the customer insight team on 01743 210415.