The young people of North Tyneside have spoken, and the results of the Young Mayor and Member of Youth Parliament elections are in.
14 year old Cameron Quinn, a student at St Thomas More Catholic High School, was elected by his peers as the new Young Mayor of North Tyneside on Friday 17 February.
Elected as Member of UK Youth Parliament was 14 year old Sharon Zeng, a pupil at George Stephenson High school.
As Young Mayor, Cameron will act as a figurehead for young people living in North Tyneside. He has pledged to ensure that every young person in the Borough has the best possible start in life by creating a safe, diverse and nurturing environment.
He will work closely with North Tyneside’s elected Mayor and Cabinet, to provide a young person’s perspective on policies and procedures within the authority.
In her role as Member of UK Youth Parliament, Sharon will represent the young people of North Tyneside on a local, regional and national scale. She will raise the views and concerns of North Tyneside’s youth by speaking and debating on their behalf.
Sharon has pledged to raise awareness about the importance of financial education in schools, and to inform students about their financial and career choices.
Both young electees were present for the results announcement, hosted at the Council’s headquarters in Cobalt Business Park last week.
During his acceptance speech, Cameron described how ‘fantastic’ his campaigning experience had been. He said: “I will strive to ensure that North Tyneside is a better place by the end of my term.”
Whilst giving her speech, Sharon said: “during my term as Member of Youth Parliament I will do as much as I can to make my pledge a reality.”
Cameron and Sharon were presented with their badges of office by Dame Norma Redfearn DBE, elected Mayor of North Tyneside, and MP Mary Glindon, respectively.
Dame Norma said: “As a council, we are proud to offer young people representative roles within the authority.
“It is especially important to us that we hear directly from young people about the issues facing them in North Tyneside, and we deeply value their input in our discussions and decision making.
“I’d like to congratulate all this year’s candidates; they have each demonstrated a great deal of bravery and ambition in putting themselves forward.
“And many congratulations to Cameron and Sharon, it is clear that they are both passionate about bettering our borough for the children and young people in it; I look forward to seeing all that they can achieve during their time in their roles.”
MP Mary Glindon added: “It’s amazing to see so many young people keen to get involved in local democracy.
Well done to Cameron and Sharon, I’m sure that they will accomplish great things over the next year.”
Young people aged between 11 and 18 and young people aged up to 25 with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) who live, work or attend school or college in North Tyneside, were eligible to stand for election, and take part in the vote.
Most of Cameron and Sharon’s duties will be arranged outside of the school day, and they will be supported to make sure they honour all school commitments.
For more information about young democracy in North Tyneside visit the Council website.